Single All the Way Parent Guide

Peter (Michael Urie) is facing a blue Christmas. Having learned that his boyfriend is married, he’s heading home for the holidays. Single. Again. Desperate to avoid his family’s pity, he persuades his roommate and best friend, Nick (Philemon Chambers), to come with him and pretend to be his partner.

Once the friends arrive in New Hampshire, Peter learns that his mother (Kathy Najimy) has set him up on a blind date with her buffed gym instructor, James (Luke Macfarlane). Quickly abandoning the charade with Nick, Peter is charmed by the handsome, athletic personal trainer. But that’s not enough to keep him away from the festive activities at home. Over the course of the holidays, Peter starts to see where his heart really lies…

There are three questions that will determine how you feel about Single All the Way. First: How do you feel about homosexuality? If you have contemporary attitudes about LGBTQ issues and want to see greater representation in film, this movie fits the bill. If you have traditional views about same sex relationships, this show will likely make you uncomfortable.

Second: Do you enjoy Hallmark-style romantic dramas? If paint-by-number, cheesy movies with foreordained happy endings are your idea of cinematic comfort food, you’ll be relieved to know that this movie doesn’t depart from that formula. It replaces some of the gender stereotypes with gay stereotypes, but that’s not a surprise in a genre known for lazy writing.

Third: How fussy are you about production quality? If you insist on good dialogue, well rounded characters, and an entertaining plot, this story will be disappointing. The cast ooze harmless goodwill, but they are neatly pigeonholed into flat cardboard characters spouting cavity-inducing dialogue. This movie is every bit as vapid as rom-coms featuring straight characters. If gay Americans want equal representation in romantic films, they can take what comfort they can find in the fact that these characters are every bit as clueless as their straight counterparts.

Like traditional Hallmark romances, this isn’t a film with broad audience appeal. Rom-coms have always appealed to a strongly female demographic, and this one hits the same notes, although it will also find an audience with LGBTQ viewers. For either of these audiences, there’s little here to offend. There’s no sex beyond kissing, no swearing beyond terms of deity, drinking without drunkenness, and no violence whatsoever.

Not only is there little negative content, there’s little in the story that isn’t filled with “niceness”. And that’s a problem. Romantic movies need a conflict or issue to temporarily keep the intended lovers apart, but here the only relationship challenges are diffidence, fear, and poor communication. It’s not exactly compelling cinema. But, hey, at least it’s clean.