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20 of the most cringeworthy moments in Netflix's holiday rom-com 'Falling for Christmas'

Erin Ajello   

20 of the most cringeworthy moments in Netflix's holiday rom-com 'Falling for Christmas'
Lindsay Lohan stars in "Falling for Christmas."Scott Everett White/Netflix
  • "Falling for Christmas," Netflix's latest holiday film, has plenty of cliché and awkward moments.
  • There are plenty of overdone rom-com tropes throughout the movie, especially at the end.

Sierra complains about her life while people are waiting on her.

Sierra complains about her life while people are waiting on her.
People are feeding her, doing her makeup, and doing her hair.      Netflix

Sierra's morning routine consists of people feeding, dressing, and pampering her.

While on the phone with Tad during all this, she complains that people think of her as spoiled, showing how out of touch Sierra is.

Tad throws Jake out of the resort for accidentally spilling a drink.

Tad throws Jake out of the resort for accidentally spilling a drink.
Tad overreacts to what is obviously an accident.      Netflix

Jake accidentally spills his hot cocoa on Sierra when he runs into her in the resort lobby.

Tad sees this and has Jake thrown out while insulting him for being a local.

Not only is the moment quite unfair to Jake, but it also seems unrealistic that Tad would have any influence at the hotel when it's run by Sierra's father — who doesn't even know Tad's name.

Sierra's father doesn't think she can take care of herself.

Sierra
Sierra doesn't want to live the life her father set out for her.      Netflix

Beauregard, Sierra's father, offers her a job at his resort that has no real responsibilities.

While the two discuss the job offer, Beau mentions that he feels he still has to take care of Sierra.

Sierra is clearly bothered by this, as her father treats her as though she's incapable of doing anything for herself.

Beau tells Sierra information about her mother that she should've already known.

Beau tells Sierra information about her mother that she should
There's a little too much exposition about Sierra's late mother.      Netflix

When Sierra sees her mother's snow globe in Beau's room, he tells her the story of why her mother bought it.

This is presumably a story that she would've known already, especially since she immediately recognizes the snow globe.

Her dad even reminds Sierra how old she was when her mother died, adding more clunky exposition to the scene.

Tad almost runs over members of the resort staff with his car.

Tad almost runs over members of the resort staff with his car.
Tad is reckless with his fancy car.      Netflix

When Tad picks Sierra up to go skiing, he haphazardly pulls up to the front of the resort.

He's driving recklessly for no clear reason, and he almost runs over multiple staff members at the hotel.

Tad corrects Sierra's singing in a very rude way.

Tad corrects Sierra
Sierra starts singing "Jingle Bell Rock" alongside the radio.      Netflix

Sierra sings along to "Jingle Bell Rock" in the car — a fun nod to Lindsay Lohan's past role in "Mean Girls" (2004).

But Tad insults her singing, calls her pitchy, and takes over control of the music by switching the station and singing along to that instead.

It's an extremely rude moment that makes his proposal in the next scene feel even more forced.

Tad and Sierra get engaged before telling people they're dating.

Tad and Sierra get engaged before telling people they
Tad said they've been keeping their relationship a secret from his followers.      Netflix

Tad drives Sierra to the top of a mountain they've never been to so he can propose there.

He says he found the geo-tag of "one of the top off-trail skiers in the country" and wanted to check out the remote spot.

Proposing at a place that neither of them has ever been made the moment feel more impersonal than romantic. The two have also been dating for less than a year and haven't even announced their relationship publicly yet.

Sierra's dramatic fall goes on for far too long.

Sierra
The action scene is just a little too drawn out.      Netflix

After Tad and Sierra get engaged, they take pictures on the mountaintop. But the wind picks up and completely knocks Sierra off the edge — and she's already made it clear she's not much of a skier.

The sequence of Sierra falling down an entire mountain is a bit too cringey to feel comical, and it goes on for so long that it seems she should be more injured afterward.

Jake doesn't recognize Sierra, who he just saw earlier that day.

Jake doesn
It's only been a few hours since Jake spilled his drink on Sierra.      Netflix

Jake is the first person to find Sierra after her fall.

He helps get her to the health clinic, but even after she's been cleaned up, he doesn't recognize who she is.

Since he bumped directly into Sierra earlier that day, he should've at least known that she was staying at the Belmont resort. But he doesn't recognize her at all.

The sheriff and medical staff encourage Sierra to leave with a complete stranger.

The sheriff and medical staff encourage Sierra to leave with a complete stranger.
Sierra has amnesia, but the hospital doesn't seem to care.      Netflix

The medical staff and sheriff tell Sierra that it'll be difficult to find out who she is because it's the holidays.

Since Sierra has absolutely no memory of who she is, has nowhere to go, and is legally in the health clinic's care at that point, it seems like they should be willing to help her regardless of the time of year.

They instead encourage Sierra to stay at Jake's resort, despite him being a complete stranger to her.

Sierra screams and trashes her room when she sees a raccoon.

Sierra screams and trashes her room when she sees a raccoon.
Sierra shouldn't be falling all over the place when she has a concussion.      Netflix

When Sierra is getting ready for bed at the lodge, she sees a raccoon out her first-floor window.

She immediately screams, tears the curtains down, and flips over an armchair in response to the animal — who, to be fair, made a ridiculous face at her through the glass.

It's an absolutely overexaggerated response to something as common as a raccoon. And Sierra definitely shouldn't be falling all over the place when she has a minor concussion.

Tad's interactions with Ralph feel out of place.

Tad
Ralph makes a comment about the size of his feet.      Netflix

After Tad and Sierra are separated on the mountain, Tad is rescued by a wilderness expert named Ralph.

Despite saving his life, Tad doesn't exactly appreciate Ralph's survival skills and often makes the task of saving him harder for Ralph.

There are also a few unexplained, seemingly queer-coded exchanges between the two, namely when Ralph is letting Tad use his snowshoes.

Tad first admires how strong Ralph is as he's whipping him around in the show to get to his legs. Then Ralph tells Tad not to worry about him because he has big feet (which he says with a wink), and Tad makes an impressed face and sound.

Sierra doesn't know how to do basic tasks.

Sierra doesn
Sierra can't even get a sheet on a bed.      Netflix

After being told that doing normal tasks may help her get her memories back, Jake and his mother-in-law Alejandra get Sierra to help out around the lodge.

She attempts to make her bed, clean a toilet, and do a load of laundry, but she absolutely struggles with all of it.

Her inability to do anything for herself is a little embarrassing to watch. As a grown adult, she should at least have a general idea of how each of those everyday tasks is done, even if she's only ever watched a cleaning staff do it for her.

Sierra goes skiing after getting a concussion from falling down a mountain.

Sierra goes skiing after getting a concussion from falling down a mountain.
At least she wore a helmet.      Netflix

Jake takes Sierra skiing a few days after her major skiing accident.

Since Jake was the one to find her injured at the bottom of a mountain, it seems like he should have some reservations about the activity

Sierra and Jake don't mention any concerns about this, but at least they're both wearing helmets.

Sierra and Jake's run-in with the mistletoe is hard to watch.

Sierra and Jake
Jake and Sierra awkwardly stand under the mistletoe.      Netflix

After spending a full day together, Sierra and Jake end up standing under some mistletoe at the lodge.

Of course, they just happen to stumble under it during their first flirty conversation. Then there's a beat too long of awkward silence before Jake stops the kiss from happening.

Although Jake's reasoning is pretty solid — he doesn't know if she's with someone since she can't remember anything about her life — the moment is just a little too clichéd for its own good.

Jake does charity work but is embarrassed to accept help.

Jake does charity work but is embarrassed to accept help.
Jake is very vocal about his involvement in the community.      Netflix

Throughout the movie, it's mentioned that Jake frequently helps out people in the town and is involved in several local charities. He even takes Sierra with him to volunteer at a toy drive.

But when Sierra suggests that he hold a fundraiser to save the lodge from closing, he's insulted by the idea.

His embarrassment over needing financial help seems hypocritical and out of character with his charitable nature.

It takes the resort staff four days to realize Sierra's missing.

It takes the resort staff four days to realize Sierra
Terry just assumes Sierra wanted to be left alone.      Netflix

Despite having a full security team and entourage at the beginning of the film, it takes days for anyone to realize Sierra is missing.

Since Beau is also away for a few days, he has no idea that Sierra isn't around. Terry, the head staff member put in charge of watching her, also took it to heart when Sierra told him not to bother her.

It ultimately takes four days for Beau and the resort team to figure out what's going on.

Ralph isn't charged for poaching on government land.

Ralph isn
Ralph did a good deed helping Tad out, but he was still doing sketchy stuff.      Netflix

Tad and Ralph are brought to the sheriff's station after the police catch up to them on their survival journey.

They'd evidently been looking for Ralph because he was poaching on government land.

Despite this being a major crime, Ralph isn't arrested because Tad vouches for him and reminds everyone that it's Christmas. The holiday season apparently has a major effect on how laws are enforced in town.

Tad's presumed sexuality becomes little more than the butt of a joke.

Tad
Terry and Tad seem to end up together in the end.      Netflix

When Sierra breaks up with Tad, she says she knows he'll "be OK by New Year's." Right after their exchange, Tad turns to Terry and asks him what he's doing for New Year's with a raised eyebrow.

Although Tad's sexuality is never stated, it seems pretty clear they're making a romantic connection.

But after the uncomfortable and unexplained exchanges between Tad and Ralph, the rushed nature of the scene makes it feel much more like an ill-made joke than a happy ending for Tad.

Jack accidentally confesses his feelings to Tad, not Sierra.

Jack accidentally confesses his feelings to Tad, not Sierra.
The reveal is such a cliché rom-com trope.      Netflix

After realizing what Sierra means to him, Jake races to the resort — on a horse-drawn sleigh no less — to confess his feelings for her.

When he sees a limo parked outside the resort, he just assumes Sierra is inside about to leave for her tropical vacation with Tad. He starts talking to the car window about how he really feels.

Of course, Sierra isn't in the car at all, and Jake realizes he's been talking to Tad and Terry.

It's a total rom-com cliché that only could've been made more predictable if Jake turned around to see Sierra standing there the whole time. Instead, he has to find her in the resort and give his speech again.

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