Aahana Swrup
Netflix’s ‘Our Little Secret’ is a Christmastime rom-com film filled with holiday hijinks, dysfunctional family dynamics, and an intriguing romance at the center. Directed by Stephen Herek, the film follows two childhood best friends-turned-lovers, Avery and Logan, who undergo an unfortunate breakup after a proposal goes wrong. Fast forward to ten years later, the two are perfect strangers who are no longer in each others’ lives. However, that changes when Avery decides to spend Christmas with the family of her boyfriend, Cameron, who also happens to be the brother of Logan’s girlfriend, Cassie.
Consequently, as the two exes are reunited under the same roof, they decide not to disclose their previous entanglement to their significant others. Naturally, this results in a merry, chaotic week. Avery and Logan’s will-they-won’t-they romance remains grounded in relatable themes of friendship, an inescapable past—and the ever-frustrating need to impress your potential future in-laws!
Our Little Secret: A Love Story Between Exes
‘Our Little Secret’ presents a compelling narrative about an unconventional yuletide situation. While the premise makes for an engaging holiday watch, the story itself remains entirely fictitious in nature, with roots solely in screenwriter Hailey DeDominicis’ imagination. Although the project is a first for DeDominicis, debuting her career in screenwriting, her collaborator Stephen Herek has many notable titles under his belt, including the 1996 film ‘101 Dalmatians’ and the 1995 film ‘Mr. Holland’s Opus.’ Consequently, as the two filmmakers blend their visions, they present a story that occupies a unique space in Christmas storytelling.
The film sports familiar building blocks with cliched rom-com characters, including a passively manipulative girlfriend, a hard-to-please matriarch, and a father who has been rooting for true love all along. Nonetheless, the story finds its unique footing in the base premise itself. The central romance unraveling on-screen exists between a couple who broke up almost an entire decade ago. Nonetheless, the unpredictable chaos of Christmas brings them together—under the most unwelcome of circumstances. As a result, Avery and Logan’s tale becomes defined by one misstep after the other that pushes down the narrative dominos.
Consequently, this romantic comedy remains a comedy of errors set to the most wonderfully tumultuous time of the year. Ultimately, all these pieces strengthen ‘Our Little Secret’ as a fun-filled Christmas story that sports a sense of familiarity through tried and tested tropes while also delivering uniquely entertaining intrigue. Nonetheless, the story and its characters are confined to the screen, holding no comparable counterparts in reality. Thus, the film is ultimately a piece of fiction.
Our Little Secret Emphasizes a Timeless Romance
The close relationship between the central leads, Avery and Logan, remains the center of ‘Our Little Secret,’ which grounds the narrative and infuses it with a sense of relatability. Even though the duo begins the story as a broken-up couple with years of no contact, their connection remains defined by the childhood friendship they once shared. Despite the bad blood between them, Avery and Logan sport an inherent understanding of each other that compels them to care for one another even in unideal circumstances. For the same reason, they agree to help each other out in various corners, which further rekindles their once-buried romance.
In a conversation with Tudum, Ian Harding, who plays Logan, highlighted this point and said, “Logan remembers and adores a lot of what makes Avery, well, Avery. That includes (her) deep love of snacks and coffee and the inability to realize that she will most likely be cold in any temperature under 70 degrees.” Consequently, Logan’s character reinforces his lingering feelings for Avery through subtle depictions of his affection. Furthermore, he remains a reliable shoulder for her during instances when others, including her current boyfriend, Cameron, fall short.
Thus, despite various other plot points and love interests pulling Avery and Logan in other ways throughout the film, the duo maintains a deep connection that stems from their past together. Naturally, this aspect of their storyline—that argues in favor of the magic in nostalgia and the significance of a deep-rooted friendship—will remain relatable to a majority of the audience. As such, the couple manages to remain grounded even during their more outlandish adventures.
