In this year's gay Hallmark Christmas movie that isn't actually on Hallmark, Peter (Michael Urie) is ready to fly from Los Angeles to small-town New Hampshire to spend Christmas with his family and introduce them to his new boyfriend Tim. But when Nick, Peter's roommate and best friend of eight years (Philemon Chambers), discovers that Tim is married with kids, Peter is devastated. He begs Nick to accompany him to New Hampshire with the story that the two have finally become romantically involved, something Peter's family has been hoping would happen. But in New Hampshire, Peter's mom Carole (Kathy Najimy) has already set up a blind date for Peter, with the handsome and hunky James (Luke Macfarlane), a trainer at the gym, so the charade collapses immediately. Peter and James hit it off, but his family begins actively pushing for Peter and Nick to get together. Eventually, we learn that both have had feelings for the other in the past but they were never acted on. Now, Peter worries that if they become a couple and things don't work out, he'll lose his best friend. Peter decides to stay in New Hampshire, which Nick takes as a sign that he's staying for James, so Nick decides to head back to L.A before Christmas Day. Can Peter's family meddle enough to get Peter and Nick to realize they love each other?
Being that this is in every way except the genders of the main couple a Hallmark romance, that answer is not in doubt. I am happy that the Christmas romance movie genre has expanded a bit to let in sexual and racial minorities, but I also wish that the types of plotlines and tropes and characters could be more creatively expanded. Having said that, this is a cute and frothy rom-com which benefits from a good cast. Urie is delightful and Chambers has good chemistry with him. Macfarlane, who regularly plays leads in Hallmark romances, is fine as the blind date, though he and Urie never work up much chemistry, so even though in the beginning I wanted them to get together, there's never really any danger of that happening. The great supporting cast includes Kathy Najimy as the mom and Barry Bostwick as the dad. The two nieces who become the biggest meddlers are nicely played by Madison Brydges and Alexandra Beaton. Jennifer Coolidge steals every scene she's in as the eccentric aunt who is putting on a kids' Christmas pageant, the title of which I can't mention as it would give away the single funniest moment in the movie. Harmless fun I sort of wish was a little less harmless. Pictured are Chambers and Urie. [Netflix]
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