Our Little Secret Review: Big on Recycled Jokes
Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Before this review starts sounding like I might have something against Lindsay Lohan, here’s a friendly reminder that I really enjoyed her 2022 Christmas romance Falling for Christmas and gave it a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars—unlike the 2 stars for Our Little Secret, which falls under the same genre.
Directed by Stephen Herek, “Our Little Secret” follows childhood sweethearts Avery (Lindsay Lohan) and Logan (Ian Harding), who seriously date for years, until Avery decides to move away from the city for her career and rejects Logan’s last minute marriage proposal to keep her in town. They break and do not see each other for ten years, that’s until they show up as guests at a Christmas dinner and realize their new partners Cameron (Jon Rudnitsky) and Cassie (Katie Baker) are siblings! Now they must spend the holidays together and try to keep their past a secret. We all know what’s going to happen next.
The first fifteen minutes of Our Little Secret establish Avery and Logan as “made for each other,” and as soon as their future partners are introduced, it’s clear that neither protagonist is truly “into” them. Predictability isn’t the issue here—we all know how Christmas romances work—but the uninspired jokes and stereotypical characters make the film a yawn-inducing ride. There’s very little chemistry between Lindsay Lohan and Ian Harding, and the same goes for her and Jon Rudnitsky who plays the current boyfriend.
Kristin Chenoweth plays Erica, the potential mother-in-law for both Avery and Logan. While Erica is supremely sweet to Logan, she’s a terror when dealing with her son’s girlfriend, Avery. Kristin Chenoweth does nail the ‘monster-in-law’ vibe, who loves to micro-manage everything. Logan offers to help Avery win Erica over in exchange for her assistance with a business proposal he needs to prepare. The exes essentially team up to charm their current partners’ family, and while this premise had so much potential for fun, the writers rely on tired jokes that fail to land. For instance, one character accidentally consumes drugs, and while the consequences could have been hilarious, they’re just plain awkward and unfunny in Our Little Secret.
Some of the chaos and confusion towards the end of the film is actually entertaining, but for most parts, this is a strictly very average affair.
You can stream Our Little Secret on Netflix.
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