The end of the year is a time of introspection, and for those of us desperate for change, that calling feels strongest. This experience looms large in The Christmas Switch (Bara till jul), where two sisters live lives they clearly aren’t happy with. Surprisingly, the holiday itself doesn’t completely take over the storyline of this messy quarter-life crisis journey of self-discovery and realization. With two completely imperfect protagonists at the helm of this cozily lit winter fest, there’s never a dull moment, but plenty to judge when these sisters screw up a lot.
The Christmas Switch follows Mathilda (Felice Jankell) and Freddie (Happy Jankell), two sisters who lead completely opposite lives. Mathilda’s life seems destined for a more traditional route. Set to inherit her family’s shop in their small town and looking to find an affordable home with her partner of over a decade, Jonas (Anastasios Soulis), she seems to have it all figured out. But Mathilda feels stuck, putting her wants and desires on the back burner to do what’s expected instead of pursuing her goal of seeing the world.
Freddie, on the other hand, lives in Stockholm, living her best cosmopolitan, hard-partying lifestyle. However, her job is literally wrecking her health, with the heart rate monitor on her watch climbing sky-high with each new deadline, presentation, and immediate pivot she has to pull at the office. A health scare forces her to step back and return to her hometown on sick leave. With her encouragement to Mathilda to pursue a job in Stockholm, the two ultimately switch homes, and both soon start to figure out what they’ve been missing.
Mathilda longs to explore and makes some controversial choices that will shake viewers.
Through just body language and facial expressions alone, Felice Jankell makes it clear from the film’s start how unhappy Mathilda is with her life, and, more specifically, her partner. She wants to pursue other things but constantly hides these wants and desires from Jonas. This leads to a horrendous failure of communication that never bodes well for any relationship, short-term or long-term. Through key dialogue and Anastasios Soulis’s delivery, Jonas remains oblivious and averse to any change that disrupts the routine.
Bucking the routine is exactly what The Christmas Switch aims to explore, challenging not just the characters’ perceptions of whether their routines are aiding or harming them, but also the audience. Both sisters go through an adjustment period, with Freddie initially struggling more than Mathilda to adjust to a slower lifestyle after experiencing the constant hustle and bustle of her high-stakes position.
Regarding the latter, director Adam Pålsson and screenwriters Christin Magdu and Mikael Syrén tackle what is essentially a detox period for Freddie, reflecting how incredibly difficult it is to slow down. The high-stakes, high-stress environment is harmful to Freddie’s health, but it also creates a cycle of adrenaline that can be really addictive and hard to break free from. For someone like Freddie, who is used to keeping all cylinders running at all times, resting is physically difficult, and the direction for Happy Jankell in Freddie’s adjustment period conveys this trapped feeling well.
Freddie’s storyline in The Christmas Switch about slowing down is one many of us need to see.
Through Freddie’s journey in The Christmas Switch and her reaching out to a former lover, Emma (Celie Sparre) in town, an important lesson on balance also emerges. There is, of course, the standard romance trope of finding the right person interwoven throughout, but balance becomes key in terms of how Freddie ultimately emerges as a stronger, more fulfilled person by the film’s end. Of the two sisters, hers is the stronger (and admittedly way healthier) romance and storyline, even if it takes some time for Freddie to get there.
Mathilda, on the other hand, makes a rather damning mistake that makes her likability as a protagonist in this holiday romance a little harder to stomach. This is especially true after her love interest, Oliver (Christian Fandango), shares that he, too, has been on the receiving end of the same mistake from another partner. It’s a rocky way to start a relationship, and while the journey makes sense and the build-up is explained understandably, some viewers might tap out when Mathilda screws up.
It’s a testament to how incredibly charismatic Felice Jankell is as Mathilda that the character is somewhat palatable by the end of The Christmas Switch. She infuses Mathilda with this doe-eyed wonder, excited over all the new things she’s experiencing away from her provincial small town. There’s an innocence that shouldn’t quite be there for a character in their 30s, yet it somehow works. And, most importantly, Mathilda finally learns to communicate with the people around her instead of bottling it in, so her arc reaches its appropriate zenith.
What makes The Christmas Switch successful is how fully realized the characters are onscreen.
Celia Sparre plays Emma with a quietness that makes her blend into the background, which balances out Freddie’s more bubbly, forward personality. However, Christian Fandango’s approach to Oliver provides an immediately noticeable contrast to Jonas for both Mathilda and viewers. Fandango projects friendliness and a lack of ego in his take on Oliver, which easily positions him as a more suitable paramour for Mathilda. And while some might disagree with the final outcome of their relationship, it’s clear that Oliver is rom-com golden-boy material.
As for the holiday of it all, the holiday itself isn’t so much a focus or motivation in The Christmas Switch, which is a refreshing turn. More of a backdrop than any sort of motivation, the usual visuals are arguably scaled back for something more tasteful. There’s a warmth to the lighting that cinematographer Ari Willey uses to their advantage, adding a coziness to the visuals that feels right for the time of year. It makes the cooler tones more striking on screen, stripping the characters bare metaphorically once the cold settles in.
The Christmas Switch isn’t afraid to explore the messiness that comes with needing to break out of a routine, even if some of that messiness crosses into unsavory territory. The characters at the heart of the film are well-rounded and don’t easily fall into the standard tropes that permeate the romance genre (though you can see where they might align once you break them down to their barest parts). ‘Tis the season for reflection, and The Christmas Switch will certainly have people reflecting by the end.
The Christmas Switch is now streaming exclusively on Netflix.
Rating
The Christmas Switch isn’t afraid to explore the messiness that comes with needing to break out of a routine, even if some of that messiness crosses into unsavory territory.