Falling for Christmas: Film Review
I don’t generally start watching Christmas movies until December, but I had to make an exception for Falling for Christmas because I couldn’t wait to see Lindsay Lohan‘s movie comeback.
In Netflix‘s latest festive flick, Lohan plays spoiled heiress Sierra Belmont (think Paris Hilton), whose father owns a lavish hotel in the ski resort of Summit Springs. Moments after Sierra’s boyfriend Tad Fairchild (George Young) pops the question on a snowy mountaintop, she becomes involved in a freak skiing accident and suffers amnesia. With no memories or ID, the hospital must keep her in until a relative comes looking for her, but her rescuer, Jake Russell (Chord Overstreet), volunteers to give her a place to stay in the North Star Lodge, the quaint and cosy bed and breakfast he owns.
Netflix’s Christmas movies are notoriously rubbish so I did not go into this expecting a work of art. It is pretty terrible – and very much on par with the platform’s other festive offerings quality-wise – but I still had a lot of fun with it. If you ignore how ridiculous and predictable the story is, you might enjoy it too.
There are a few genuinely funny moments – like Lohan trying to make a bed – but most other laughs come from the movie being so silly. We’re laughing at it rather than with it. Prime examples of this are the mountaintop proposal and the accident (it’s tragically absurd), Sierra’s encounter with a raccoon (I replayed that moment because it’s hilarious) and anything said or done by Tad.
Outside of the production design (I loved the OTT Christmassy lodge) and Sierra’s fabulous socialite costumes, Falling for Christmas feels like it was made in a rush and on a shoestring budget. The writing is rather poor, which makes the acting shabby, there are plot holes with Sierra’s amnesia, and the conflict is contrived and fleeting. We all know how the story is going to end up and it doesn’t put up any serious obstacles on the journey there. But this is a Netflix Christmas movie and we shouldn’t expect such things!
It was a joy to see Lohan back on my screen in her first role in a major production in about 10 years. I loved her so much growing up and I’m very much here for her comeback. I just wish the material was better! She deserves more than Falling for Christmas but perhaps no other studio was willing to take a risk on her given her reputation. She’s already got two other Netflix movies lined up, including another with this film’s director Janeen Damian, so it’ll be interesting to see what those projects will be like.
I think Glee star Overstreet did quite well as Jake. He seemed to keep this character grounded and down-to-earth, which cannot be said for Young as Tad, the most annoyingly selfish person. Young is given pretty lame lines to say and I’m sure he’s overegging the performance on purpose for laughs, but it’s all very cringeworthy to watch.
Falling for Christmas is categorically not a good movie, but it’s a highly entertaining watch. Lindsay’s back, baby!
On Netflix now