'Our Little Secret' is Not Worth Keeping

         On November 27, 2024, Netflix released 'Our Little Secret', which has received a mixed reception from critics, earning a score of 30% on Rotten Tomatoes. In the film, "Two resentful exes are forced to spend Christmas under the same roof after discovering that their current partners are siblings." The ensemble cast includes Lindsay Lohan, Kristin Chenoweth, Ian Harding, Katie Baker, Tim Meadows, Jake Brennan, and Jonathan Rudnitsky. But what did the critics say?

        Marya E. Gates of RogerEbert.com says, "After taking nearly a decade off, Lindsay Lohan made her return to the movies in 2022 with a starring role in the Netflix Christmas romantic comedy "Falling for Christmas." Since then, she has made two more rom-coms with the streamer: "Irish Wish" and this week's "Our Little Secret." What this pivot has proven is that Lohan is a sharp screwball comedienne who has decided to forge her own path in the new studio system as an actress-producer in the mode of some of Old Hollywood's most savvy stars. And the movies are richer for it. "Our Little Secret" is the slickest of the three, likely because director Stephen Herek has a strong background in traditional mid-budget studio fare. He's the helmer behind films as diverse as "Critters," "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure," "Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead," "The Mighty Ducks," and "Mr. Holland's Opus." While this film doesn't quite have the same Hollywood sheen as some of his better-known titles, it plays a lot more like a traditional film that's made to be seen on the big screen with your family during Thanksgiving vacation than most of the made-for-TV or streaming Holiday films that get churned out this time of year."

Photo by Andréa Villiers on Unsplash

       Brennan Klein of Screen Rant notes, "Netflix's latest holiday offering, Our Little Secret, is something of a step back from the streamer's efforts to go slightly spicier with their rom-com content this season following the shirtless-man-forward releases Hot Frosty and The Merry Gentlemen. The new movie — which follows exes Avery (Lindsay Lohan) and Logan (Ian Harding) as they pretend not to know each other over Christmas when they realize their respective partners are siblings — is a profoundly middle-of-the-road family comedy, minimally edgier than the average Hallmark Christmas movie but without enough texture to rub anybody the wrong way."

       Emma Kiely of Collider writes, "Lohan’s latest holiday romance for the streamer, Our Little Secret, seems to think it’s slightly above its twee comrades in that it has more of an edge, focusing on a series of embarrassing faux pas for its two leads (Lohan and Ian Harding) rather than developing a gushing romance between them. It catches itself in the middle of the Christmas spectrum. It in no way has the standard of writing to place it alongside the likes of The Family Stone (of which it is very reminiscent), but it doesn’t fully let itself get lost in the oogey-gooey Hallmark romance that we all pretend to hate. This middle ground makes it a stiff, poorly written comedy that is somewhat saved by the performances of its two leads."