This feature film, produced by Netflix and directed by Michael Mayer (The Seagull), will likely go down in history as one of the first romantic Christmas comedies, aimed at a large audience, whose main character is a gay man. Apart from this particularity, which is not really one, Single All the Way (That romance blows in the French version) hardly exceeds the status of the sympathetic but agreed pochade, which one will catch on a TV screen before it falls into oblivion.
Written by Chad Hodge (The Darkest Minds), the scenario ticks all the boxes of the genre and the spectator can guess in advance all the developments. From the misunderstanding generated by the presence of the best friend (Philemon Chambers), already known and adored by the family (whose young nieces will soon have spotted the true feelings), until happy end predictable by way of the beautiful kid of the village who is dumped in the process by Peter (Michael Urie), whose sentimental life really worries everyone a lot, everything is there.
Here, the pleasure we can take in this very chaste film (we hardly exceed the level of Making love, released 40 years ago) lies mainly in the way. We will retain a certain dynamism in the replicas, as well as the presence of well-established peripheral female characters: Kathy Najimy in the role of the mother, Jennifer Robertson in that of the sister, and the always indispensable Jennifer Coolidge in the role of an aunt “Artist” …
It would be surprising, however, if Single All the Way one day becomes a holiday classic.
Exclusively on Netflix
Romantic comedy
Single All the Way
VF: That romance blows
Michael mayer
With Michael Urie, Philemon Chambers, Jennifer Coolidge
1 h 39