Chapter 14.

Ian was going through the reviews that the critics had written about Home Alone. There were both positive and negative ones. After every review, he understood the point of view of the critic. The majority of the reviews were expected, but some were truly unexpected.

|| "The movie is quite enjoyable as long as it explores the fantasy of a neglected little boy having an entire house of his own to explore and play in, but the physical cruelty that dominates the last act leaves a sour taste, and the multiple continuity errors strain one's suspension of disbelief to near the breaking point." - Jonathan Barley [6/10]

|| "Great movie! Home Alone is arguably one of the funniest movies ever! It's really good. The cast is very good! It was sweet to see Hyde in it! The teamwork of the two burglars is just not insanely hilarious but it's also incredible that the two are so good together and I like how their scenes of punishment are followed right after the other! I think Harry looks like Robert Frank, that top actor! I like Kevin's mom, she is a fine actress!! This is a perfect movie for people to watch around Christmas and if you need a big laugh watch this as it will crack you up! Highly recommended!!" - Phescy Shawarma [9.5/10]

|| A huge disappointment! The movie was a huge waste of time. No redeemable quality. Everything seemed rushed. Nothing about it felt like Christmas. Everything in this film is stupid or cringy, or insulting, or all together. The plot was lame. Don't waste your time on this poor excuse so-called movie. - Womby Womainer [3/10]

|| I'm a young adult, and not a huge fan of kids' movies these days. Some people would classify this as a kids' movie, but I think it's more of a classic. I grew up seeing these types on TV every winter, and it's still one of my favorite genres. Home Alone is fantastic. I laughed a lot when I watched it. It's really one of those "feel good" movies, the kind that makes you want to cuddle up on the couch with family and relax and enjoy it.

If you haven't seen it yet, you're missing out on a great Christmas movie. Heck, it's even great for a rainy day. Watch it, you'll love it! I wish it were on more often! - J.J.James [10/10]

A huge sigh left Ian's lips. He was feeling good and bad, both about the premier.

"I honestly feel these are quite weird, and I expected much… better," Ian told Mason who kept reading the reviews with him.

"You shouldn't care about these a lot. Some reviews are like that due to catering to bigger movie releases."

"Huh, like-"

"Like see, this review by Womby, it's pretty bad for us, right?"

Ian nodded in return.

"Yeah, now see this one," Mason showed another review of another movie by the same username.

"Don't you think it's just that their movie is better?" Ian was having doubts.

"No, this is pretty normal in the industry. Womby works in the Times of LA, an agency which made deals, a partnership with the Leon Studios.,"

"I see,"

"Yes, it happens. That movie is another big Christmas release by Leon Studios. They release pretty big hits, which attract a huge fan base every year, the name of the movie is 'Sweet Merry Love', a rom-com."

"Hm.. Makes sense,"

"Yeah, so due to it all, they bash out on small studios like us. You just… don't have to care about them, You know this stuff happens often in Hollywood. When I say many.. I mean many bigshots use their connections and influence to get favorable responses… Critics are biased and it's hard to find unbiased ones.."

Ian shook his head in disapproval. "It's fine, doesn't matter. In the end, only box office will matter,"

"Yeah,"

"And Ian, see these good reviews. Don't you feel thrilled by these? These will only grow bigger and bigger after the premier."

Ian nodded and smiled in return. He was right, if those big movie studios want to play unfairly, let them.

Nothing would matter in the end, but just the box office.

-

It was the smallest cinema hall in the town. It was the days of many new movie releases and screenings of new Christmas movies. Many people were thrilled to watch the movie they had longed after getting to know about them during different marketing campaigns, especially movie fans of different film studios.

The young man, Aaron was so thrilled to watch 'Sweet Mary Love', on the very first show of the day in that theatre, but when he came out after its end, he was enraged.

His hope for a good Christmas movie got destroyed. He was an enthusiastic movie lover, and would often watch movies in cinemas. But during this time of Christmas, he was left with no good movie.

He tried almost every movie that got into the public eye through marketing. But none was good as they ought them to be. Either too cliche, or not to his choice, and one even got the main character to die at the end, and some other reasons, which made things worse for Aaron.

He got out of the cinema, very angrily. He threw the ticket which was in his hand throughout the entire movie, out in the air. He was clearly frustrated. So were many people who came out of the movie hall, just like him.

He was annoyed at every film studio that had done so much marketing. He was annoyed at every studio for not releasing something good. Also, he was annoyed at every critic who said that movie was good. He decided to call his best friend and nag about the movie he just watched, just like he did the other days.

Right when he took the phone, he overheard a conversation with a family who had just gotten out from a screening of another movie.

"Can we watch it again, mom? I wanna see Harry getting tortured!" Two kids laugh and kept talking about it.

Aaron who saw this went near the schedule board in front of the cinema hall and saw, at the same time 'Sweet Merry Love' was screened, another Christmas movie called, 'Home Alone' got screened.

He saw the movie title on the It's A Movie website but had decided against it because of some negative comments which gave him a bad taste.

But seeing all the hype for it, he had a sudden change in his mind. Everyone who came out from the screening of Home Alone seemed to be overly joyed.

'This better be worth it' He bought a ticket to the next show of Home Alone.

He sat in the seat which was assigned on the ticket with low hopes because he was afraid to get disappointed.

In fact, he didn't even buy popcorn before the movie even though his movie tradition was to buy popcorn before the movie and enjoy it throughout the movie. Yet he thought, if the movie is good, he will buy snacks during the interval.

This better be good, he told himself over and over. The movie started and all the tension ceased.

"This house is so full of people. It makes me sick! When I grow up and get married, I'm living alone!"

This gave Aaron a smile. Leaning back to the chair, he got comfortable and watched the movie throughout. He was such a fan of movies, little things in the production and direction of the movies, mattered to him a lot. If a certain shot hasn't been taken properly, and he wished it was better, it would leave a certain bad taste.

But in Home Alone, he found everything to look almost perfect if not perfect. And after a while, he had forgotten what he was exactly looking for in a Christmas movie, yet he enjoyed the entire movie thoroughly.

"Would you please tell him that instead of presents this year, I just want my family back?"

It was heartwarming for everyone in the hall. Aww's, sniffs were audible in the movie hall. Even Aaron's heart warmed up. He even bought snacks in the interval by spending a little extra, because it was worth it all.

The movie ended giving the opportunity for the crowd to wish if they were able to watch it again. That was what Aaron thought, too. He stood up just like everyone else in the hall and walked out smiling. He was feeling content, with the money and time he spent.

He called his friend, just after he got out.

"Yes, man."

"I watched it, that was shit not gonna lie"

"No, but listen, in the same place, Home Alone was screened right after Sweet Merry love. I was about to call you at the time, but I heard Home Alone was good, so I watched it."

"Yes, now now now… It was awesome! I suggest you should watch it, please not that crap Sweet Merry Love."

"Yeah, tomorrow? I can join you, too. Another round of home alone doesn't sound boring to me."

He felt like it was 'Christmas' after all. After getting into his car, still thinking about the movie, he made a mental note to bribe against some of the negative comments.

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