The To Do List - Movie Review
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Even as this comedy strains to be goofy and transgressive, it catches us by surprise simply because it dares to explore first-time sexual experiences through female eyes. And Aubrey Plaza (Safety Not Guaranteed) brings her usual sardonic wit to the lead role, merrily offending the more timid moviegoers while making more adventurous fans wish the film went even further.
Plaza plays Brandy, who graduated at the top of her Boise high school class. But with that goal achieved, she wonders if she neglected to prepare properly for university social life, so she makes a summer to-do list of sex-related tasks leading, hopefully, to losing her virginity to the hunky guitar-strumming lifeguard Rusty (Porter). She works with him at the local swimming pool along with her nice-guy best pal Cameron (Simmons), who's of course secretly in love with her. But as Brandy works through the list with the help of her friends (Shawkat and Steele) and her experienced big sister (Bilson), she starts to worry that her emotions are getting in the way.
Thankfully, writer-director Carey refuses to let this turn into a romantic slush-fest, keeping the encounters jagged and often very funny. The script is packed with hilariously squirm-inducing conversations about sex, many involving Brandy's far too helpful mother (Britton). Although her dad (Gregg) and her loser boss (Hader) understandably don't want to know. Meanwhile, when the local guys (Glover and Mintz-Plasse) find out about Brandy's list, they are sure to tick off a few items themselves, as does a visiting rock star (Samberg).
Yes, all of this is very corny, but the underlying honesty about sexuality is refreshing, as the film playfully refuses make first-time sexual experiences into something earth-shattering. Indeed, the way Brandy approaches this as an academic task is very clever, as she doesn't take into account the intimacy involved. In the end, the film is both too cold and too nice for its own good. If filmmaker Carey had cut loose just a bit more, finding a sharper edge to what's essentially a nice comedy, this might have been an essential addition to the losing-your-virginity genre.
Facts and Figures
Year: 2013
Genre: Comedy
Run time: 104 mins
In Theaters: Friday 26th July 2013
Box Office USA: $3.4M
Distributed by: CBS Films
Production compaines: 3 Arts Entertainment, The Mark Gordon Company
Reviews
Contactmusic.com: 3.5 / 5
Rotten Tomatoes: 52%
Fresh: 55 Rotten: 51
IMDB: 5.8 / 10
Cast & Crew
Director: Maggie Carey
Producer: Mark Gordon, Tom Lassally, Brian Robbins, Sharla Sumpter, Jennifer Todd, Greg Walter
Screenwriter: Maggie Carey
Starring: Aubrey Plaza as Brandy Klark, Johnny Simmons as Cameron, Bill Hader as Willy, Alia Shawkat as Fiona, Sarah Steele as Wendy, Scott Porter as Rusty, Rachel Bilson as Amber, Christopher Mintz-Plasse as Duffy, Andy Samberg as Van, Donald Glover as Derrick, Adam Pally as Chip, Clark Gregg as Judge Clark, Connie Britton as Mrs. Clark, Nolan Gould as Max, Jack McBrayer as Hillcrest Pool Manager, D.C. Pierson as Hillcrest Lifeguard #1, Dominic Dierkes as Hillcrest Lifeguard #2, Bryce Clyde Jenkins as Benji, Kevin M. Brennan as Guitar Player (Van's Band), Lauren Lapkus as Girl Heckler
Also starring: Mark Gordon, Tom Lassally, Brian Robbins, Jennifer Todd