OVERLAY REPORT

The plot of *Home Alone* (1990) is set in motion by a "perfect storm" of interconnected events that occur the evening before and the morning of the McCallister family’s departure for Paris. The following specific actions are the primary catalysts: ### 1. The Pizza Fight and the "Disappearing" Wish The conflict begins the night before the trip when Kevin gets into a physical altercation with his older brother, Buzz. Buzz purposefully eats the last of the plain cheese pizza (the only kind Kevin likes) and taunts him. Kevin tackles Buzz, causing a chain reaction that spills milk and soda all over the table, soaking the family’s passports and plane tickets. * **Consequence:** As punishment for the "trouble" he caused, Kevin’s mother, Kate, sends him to sleep in the third-floor attic. Before going, a frustrated Kevin tells his mother he wishes his family would "disappear." ### 2. The Discarded Plane Ticket While Kevin’s father, Peter, is using red napkins to clean up the spilled milk from the table, he accidentally scoops up **Kevin’s plane ticket** along with the wet trash and throws it into the bin. * **Significance:** This detail is crucial because it explains why the family doesn’t realize someone is missing when they arrive at the airport; they have exactly enough tickets for the people present at the gate. ### 3. The Power Outage During the night, a severe thunderstorm causes a tree limb to fall on a power line, leading to a temporary power outage. This resets all the digital alarm clocks in the house. * **Consequence:** The entire McCallister household oversleeps. They wake up just 45 minutes before their flight, leading to a state of "controlled chaos" as they rush to get ready and load the airport shuttle vans. ### 4. The Headcount Error (Mitch Murphy) While the family is frantically loading into two rental vans, Kevin’s cousin, Heather, is tasked with performing a headcount. A neighborhood kid, **Mitch Murphy**, has wandered over to the vans to talk to the McCallister children about the trip. * **The Action:** As Heather counts the heads, Mitch is bending over to look at equipment in the van. She counts his head as Kevin’s. * **Significance:** Because she counts 17 people (the correct total including Kevin), the parents believe everyone is accounted for and authorize the vans to leave for O'Hare Airport. ### 5. The Split Van Logistics The family is split into two separate vans. Because of the odd number of travelers (15 family members plus two others), each van has a different number of passengers. * **The Action:** The parents (Kate and Peter) are in the lead van, while the older kids are in the second. Each group assumes Kevin is in the other vehicle, preventing any immediate realization of his absence during the drive or the frantic sprint through the terminal. By the time Kevin wakes up in the attic, the house is empty, the power is back on, and his family is already boarding a flight to Paris. Because of his earlier wish, Kevin initially believes he has successfully "wished" his family away.