Mingle All the Way

The film opens with Molly Hoffman returning home for the holidays, only to face pressure from her mother, Veronica, to join the family accounting firm and find a stable partner like her newly engaged sister, Michelle. Molly is instead focused on her tech startup, 'Mingle All the Way,' an app designed to provide platonic plus-ones for holiday events. During a pitch to potential investor Helen Lange, Molly is challenged to use the app herself to prove its efficacy. Meanwhile, Jeff Scanlon, an ambitious ad executive, is told by his boss, Mr. Grayson, that a promotion to the new L.A. office requires him to show 'stability and commitment.' Jeff and Molly have two disastrous 'meet-cutes'—first fighting over a vintage angel ornament at an antique shop, and then colliding and spilling coffee. When they both join the app, they are matched with a 94% compatibility score. Realizing they can help each other—Molly needs to show the app works for Helen, and Jeff needs a 'girlfriend' to impress his boss—they agree to a series of 'mingle' events. Their arrangement takes them through a gauntlet of holiday activities: a corporate party hosted by Molly's friend Lisa, an ice-skating outing where Jeff introduces Molly as his girlfriend to Mr. Grayson, and a charity gift-wrapping event. Along the way, Jeff helps Molly find a replacement for her father's lost family angel ornament, and Molly helps Jeff land a major client, Swift Technologies. As they spend more time together, including a tense dinner with Molly’s family where Jeff defends Molly’s career ambitions to her mother, real feelings begin to surface. However, the professional nature of their start haunts them. Jeff’s rival, Brent, discovers a 'founder's testimonial' Molly wrote for the app's website, which describes their relationship as a successful 'networking experience' with no interest in romance. Brent exposes this at a carolling event, leading Mr. Grayson to believe Jeff was lying for the promotion and Jeff to believe Molly was just using him for business. In the aftermath, Jeff turns down the L.A. promotion, realizing he wants to stay in Cedar Falls to be near his family and Molly. Molly has a heart-to-heart with her mother, who finally validates her daughter's entrepreneurial spirit. At the final Christmas gala, Jeff arrives to support Molly's presentation to Helen Lange. They both confess that while the app brought them together for business, their feelings are real. Helen Lange invests in the app, and Molly and Jeff agree to go on a 'proper' first date, finally moving beyond the app's platonic parameters.