Without giving too much away, this film is the definition of a slow burn that even pulled out the much-loved 'one bed' trope to get our love interests where they needed to be. Having said that, who doesn't want Schitt's Creek's Jennifer Robertson as your doting sister? Although they have Peter's best intentions at heart, their intensity toes the line a time or two. If you thought you understood the concept of a 'meddling family', think again. The dynamic between Peter and his family is also a journey to watch unfold. There are a number of relatable lines for anyone who's found themselves single this holiday season – perhaps summed up best when Peter describes his LA love life as "seven heartbreaks and a mountain of therapy debt". Two hours of love triangles, family therapy sessions and painfully oblivious protagonists follow – along with several laugh out loud moments. The boys arrive in a New Hampshire location (the designated 'small town'), and enter into the whirlwind that is Peter's family.
There are a few eye-wincing scenes when the number of clichés gets a bit much: from a plant-obsessed millennial to Nick having no family to call his own (yes, this is all in the first ten minutes).īut once you embrace it, it becomes a lot more fun. You can't help but feel bad for Peter's plight to get his family off his back (and maybe find true love on the way).
You might roll your eyes at the cliché "fake relationship to appease overly-invested family" trope, but the film manages to turn it on its head. The two best friends live in LA, where Peter's an on-set producer disgruntled with his job, and Nick is a handyman by day and best-selling children's author by night.Īs Christmas approaches, Peter invites Nick to come home with him after his latest relationship falls through. The premise includes all the elements to brew a quarter-life crisis and find eventual love. And who could forget an entire subplot dedicated to the iconic Jennifer Coolidge running a rogue Christmas nativity?Īnd so, we enter the world of Nick and Peter. The LGBTQ+ community deserves lighthearted romances, too. It seems ridiculous that this is revolutionary, but it's always refreshing to watch a queer film not laced with trauma.
Debuting as Netflix's first gay festive romance, the movie stars Michael Urie ( Ugly Betty) as Peter, alongside Philemon Chambers as best friend and roommate, Nick. Single All The Way valiantly attempts to break the usual stereotypes whilst keeping the key ingredients that make a Christmas rom-com what it is. There has tended to be a common theme: straight, largely white and inexplicably set in a remote village. This year Netflix alone have released Love Hard, Princess Switch 3 and A Castle For Christmas. The annual avalanche of cheesy Christmas films for hopeless romantics everywhere to feast on is well under way. What do you get when When Harry Met Sally meets every cheesy holiday romance trope? That's right – Netflix's latest Christmas film, Single All the Way.