Review of The To Do List (2013) by Andrew L — 08 Dec 2013

Aubrey Plaza is at it again with another hilarious yet sweet comedy, this time focusing on the idea of sex. Unsurprisingly, the movie hasn't necessarily been received well by critics and the public and I believe it has to do with its independent feel and simplistic jokes that are too obvious to be funny. However, the movie does get the peer-pressure part of the high school world right. The To Do List shows Aubrey Plaza's character conform to certain ideals that she feels she needs to, in order to "be a college kid." I was worried that the movie would be more of a raunchy comedy with very little to no heart but The To Do List talks about a tough and slightly embarrassing topic and makes it entertaining.

The Story follows Brandy Klark, a valedictorian of her high school who wants to get rid of her uptight image. In order to enter college as an "experienced" freshman she creates a to do list of things that she missed out on in high school. With help from her friends, new and old, she goes on a journey that just might be slightly out of her comfort zone.

The acting for a simplistic comedy like The To Do List was very good. The stacked cast features Aubrey Plaza, Rachel Bilson, Bill Hader, Sarah Steele, Scott Porter, and Connie Britton, among others. The characters, while slightly typecasted, were very well portrayed and while a character like Bilson's could be viewed as annoying, none of that comes through the mild laughs and slightly serious examination of sex. I do think that the stand out actor was Johnny Simmons. His character was the one with the crush on the main character but he played the character as if he doesn't do those things, but every guy wants/likes it. If there isn't anything else appealing about this movie to anyone, I'd recommend it just for the acting.

The one thing I liked the most was the examination of sex between men and women. There is one scene in the movie that sums it best: In a scene at the pool Aubrey Plaza's and Scott Porter's characters have kids spy on each other to figure out what the other one is saying to their friends. While there are differences within the dialogue, they are both essentially saying and thinking the exact same thing. I feel like the writer/director Maggie Carey tried to show a different side of women that we usually don't see in movies. I feel like Maggie Carey was trying to show both are equal. One isn't more high strung then the other or prudish. Both discuss the same topics with their friends, ultimately responding the same. Whether this was the intention of the director, I can not say, but I feel as if the movie should be viewed if only for this comparison. Definitely worth the rent.