Netflix And Chill: Single All The Way (2021)

Thanks to a gradual easing open of the gates over the past year or so, Christmas movies can now be tailored to include main characters representing the LGBTQ+ community. Because, as all of us were already aware, a love story between two people can play out in very similar ways, no matter what the genders or sexual preferences of those involved. In fact, the pleasant surprise is that these movies already seem to play out a bit funnier, a bit smarter, and with more resonance than some of the many other movies that retread the well-worn, and enjoyable, snow-covered paths that we visit every year at this time.

After another disastrous episode in his love life, Peter (Michael Urie) convinces his best friend, Nick (Philemon Chambers), to join him as he visits his family for the Christmas holidays. The plan is to pretend that the two have finally committed to a relationship with one another. Nick is already well-known to the family, and already well-liked. Things change quickly, however, when it turns out that Peter's mother, Carole (Kathy Najimy), has set up a blind date between her son and a handsome new resident of their small town (James, played by Luke Macfarlane). Peter and James actually get along very well, but everyone else can see that the real love story to root for is one between Peter and Nick. Everyone can see it apart from Peter and Nick themselves.

Although it can be comforting to see Christmas movies made by people who have long spent their time working under that seasonal umbrella, there are many films all the better for being made by people less inclined to feel beholden to every trope and story beat. That's the case here, with neither director Michael Mayer nor writer Chad Hodge having broken in their snow shoes throughout their careers. Both know exactly what is needed, because viewers watch these movies with certain expectations, but they fill the journey to the predictable ending with plenty of fun little surprises (from moments of humour that are genuinely funny, a great selection of references, and a cameo appearance from a singer known best for expletive-laden covers of popular hit songs).

It helps a lot that this is cast well, but that's not to undermine the great work done by Mayer and Hodge, with the latter treating almost every cast member to at least one great moment. Urie is a likeable lead, playing up his haplessness at times, and doing well with the comedic moments he has while being blindsided and frustrated by how things unfold around him. Chambers is really sweet, the kind of unselfish and good-natured soul that needs to eventually be seen for the great love he could be by our central character. Macfarlane is handsome and nice, and I have enjoyed seeing a few Christmas movies this year that have allowed other characters to become potential obstacles to true love without being complete douchebags. Najimy is a very cool and accepting mom, matched by Barry Bostwick as Peter's father, the latter happy to just say outright what others are thinking during the first half of the movie. Jennifer Coolidge is the overly dramatic Aunt Sandy, the role is perfect for her and she even gets to deliver a meta-statement about how gay people seem to love her, and Melanie Leishman and Jennifer Robertson portray sisters with different levels of nerviness. Madison Brydges and Alexandra Beaton also get to stand out, playing two teenagers who more actively plot to start pushing Peter and Nick to see what they actually have between them.

I often justify my ratings of Christmas movies by reminding people that I rate them AS Christmas movies. A good Christmas movie isn't necessarily the same as a good movie. I'm sure people are tired of me underlining that point. Single All The Way is a good Christmas movie, but it's also actually just a good movie. It may not be quite as good as Happiest Season, the film that came along last year to remind everyone that gay people also like some Christmas cheer, but it's very enjoyable.

7/10

P.S. Here is a huge list of every Christmas movie I have ever reviewed, either here or over at Flickfeast.

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The Darkest Minds (2018)

Another month goes by, another YA novel is unsuccessfully adapted into movie form. This time it's The Darkest Minds. There's something about these teen-friendly film (wannabe-)franchises that often appeals to me, perhaps due to many of them being created with so many fun genre tropes in the mix (all of the ones I can think of right now are either horror, sci-fi, or whirling through a landscape of magic and fantasy, of course). Or perhaps it's just the case that the older I get, the more I try to pretend I'm still energetic and young at heart.

This particular tale starts with a MAJOR EVENT. It's not given any explanation, it's just a sudden occurence that immediately kills of a lot of the children on our planet and imbues those left behind with special powers. Some become smarter, some can use and control the electricity around them, some have telekinetic powers, and the most dangerous have the ability to brainwash others, even to the point of them being led towards harming themselves. Amandla Stenberg is Ruby, a young woman who is now viewed as one of the most dangerous of the child population. Her power is discovered while being graded in an internment camp, which she then has to escape from with the assistance of an adult (Mandy Moore) who seems to be wanting to help her. Unsure of who to trust and what to do, Ruby ends up teaming up with three other youngsters: electricity-wrangler Zu (Miya Cech), supersmart Chubs (Skylan Brooks), and telekinetic Liam (Harris Dickinson). The quartet end up heading towards a rumoured place of safety, headed up by a mysterious figure who has set himself as a leader of a resistance movement.

I suspect the biggest weakness here lies with the source material, by Alexandra Bracken, or the changes that have been made by Chad Hodge to adapt it into his screenplay. Although the main premise seems like a decent one, it's far too derivative and predictable once it gets past the opening act. It also feels a bit too haphazard, without enough scenes showing the ripple effect of the deadly initial incident, instead just giving us a couple of scenes to set up some main characters that will figure during important plot points. Although this is a film about a global crisis, you never get the feeling of that. I had, in fact, forgotten quite quickly that most of the other children around the world had been killed off in the opening moments.

Director Jennifer Yuh Nelson doesn't help. Everything is in place, but it's all assembled in a perfunctory way. The characters never feel well-rounded, they're just reduced to the tags given to them after the MAJOR EVENT, and none of the potential surprises in the plot are surrounded by enough distractions to make them work. There are a couple of good sequences that tease the horror genre ideas at the core, and a satisfying battle in the grand finale, but not enough to make up for the rest of the movie being so disappointingly generic.

Despite the weak direction and script, things could have been lifted a little bit more by the cast. Sadly, that doesn't happen. Stenberg tries, she just isn't quite good enough (although she's not bad). Brooks fares the best from the younger cast members, Patrick Gibson does well as the young leader assembling the young fugitives, while Cech and Dickinson fare the worst. The adults all do a bit better, with decent performances from Moore, Gwendoline Christie, and one of my favourite "big meanie" actors, Wade Williams, here portraying a . . . big meanie.

While not working with a huge budget, the money and people involved here ensure that it's far from unwatchable. It's just not surprising to find out that it underperformed, and probably won't be getting any of the intended sequels. But if it does end up getting them then I'll still end up watching them.

5/10

You can buy the DVD here.
Americans can get the Blu here.