There’s a level of ridiculous Netflix movies seem to strive to achieve, and in that regard, Lindsay Lohan’s Falling for Christmas hits just the right notes to be not just entertaining, but actually pretty charming. It’s a Christmas movie, after all. Common sense stays at the door, all we want is some fake snow, pretty decorations and tropes galore!
In this case, the particular trope is amnesia, and Lohan pulls it off admirably – both in the before and the after, but particularly in the amnesia period. The pre-accident Sierra is fun in a “I wouldn’t really want to spend more than five minutes with her, but she works for the before in this movie” kinda way, and yet Lohan makes her feel like there’s depth there, waiting to be uncovered. The post-accident Sierra is unequivocally herself, in a way that’s easy to admire. But it’s the Sierra that doesn’t know she’s Sierra that truly makes the movie work.
We’ll call her Sarah, like Jake and his daughter Avy do. And we’ll do so while we tip our cap to Sarah, the real star of the movie. Whether she’s spending time doing Avy’s hair, learning how to do basic chores that most humans know — or can at least figure out — how to do, or not-so-subtly flirting with Jake, there’s something inherently relatable about Sarah’s struggle to not just find out who she is, but to discover how she can actually be the person she seems to be. In this regard, the journey isn’t just about regaining her memory, it’s about finally becoming the person she could have always been.
You know, sans Tad. And the hats. Or, you know, the caviar and the people waiting on her hand and foot while her daddy creates a position out of nowhere to make her feel like she’s cared for.
But the thing about Sierra is that she never truly needed to be coddled, she just got so used to being so that she never truly tried to figure out who she could be outside of it. She didn’t even know she liked bacon! And I promise if you think you don’t like bacon and you get amnesia …you’re probably going to discover you do like bacon, you were just telling yourself you didn’t. That’s the thing about bacon, it’s just really hard to resist.
The flip side of Lohan is a Chord Overstreet that is a little bland but doesn’t need to be much more than he is for the movie to work. Jake is just here to smile at Sierra, have a cute kid and give that final speech that she never truly gets to hear — always check the woman you love is actually there before you start pouring your heart out, you’d think that’d be obvious! That’s pretty much all the movie required of him, and he fulfills his role admirably.
Yes, the movie does what it sets out to do — allow you to stop thinking for a moment, and just enjoy the magic of the holidays, the kind of magic that doesn’t really require you to think too hard. In that regard, Netflix has found its very own niche in regard to holiday content. And though Falling For Christmas doesn’t come anywhere near The Princess Switch, or A Christmas Prince in the suspension of disbelief required, it does its very best to remind you that it’s okay to just let go, grab yourself a hot cocoa and enjoy the fact that the happiest time of the year is almost here.
Lindsay Lohan is back, and it’s like she never left. And though we can’t imagine there are many more adventures to be had for Sierra and Jake, we wouldn’t say no to a few more romcoms from Lohan. If she needs a list of tropes to tackle next, we’ll be happy to provide them.
Did you enjoy Falling For Christmas? Share with us in the comments below!
Falling For Christmas is available to stream now on Netflix.
