The latest film on Netflix starring Sofia Carson, named The Life List, has several positive aspects. It features a relatable yet messy main character portrayed by the always delightful Carson. The storyline is driven by a deep sense of sorrow. Moreover, it includes a charming male lead (Kyle Allen) who strongly resembles Glen Powell before his transformation for Top Gun. However, despite these strengths, The Life List falters due to the inclusion of a plotline involving infidelity.
Warning: Major The Life List spoilers ahead.
Adam Brooks, the writer and director of the movie (renowned for the 2008 romantic comedy Definitely, Maybe), adapted the 2013 bestselling novel by Lori Nelson Spielman with the same title. In The Life List, Sofia Carson portrays Alex, a woman grappling with self-discovery. Following the slow passing of her mother due to cancer, Alex discovers that she will only inherit her rightful share after completing her “life list.” This list comprises goals she penned for herself at the age of 13 and serves as her late mother’s way of guiding her out of a rut. To prove completion of each goal on the list, Alex partners with her mother’s lawyer, Brad (Allen). As she ticks off each item, she receives a new DVD from her mother. The ultimate goal on the life list? “Find true love.”
Viewers familiar with romantic comedy clichés will quickly identify Brad as Alex’s destined true love interest. However, there is a complication as Brad is currently in a relationship with Nina, a beautiful and caring girlfriend (portrayed by Maria Jung). The duration of their relationship remains ambiguous, although it is evident that Nina holds significance in Brad’s life, given the framed photo of her on his work desk.
As soon as Alex sees Nina’s photo, she starts doing that thing where she goes overboard to compliment Nina’s appearanceâas if she’s trying to aggressively demonstrate to Brad that she’s a down-to-earth guy’s girl, and totally not a threat to his relationship.
“She has amazing cheekbones and what appears to be a perfect body,” Alex says, examining the photo.
Anyone with eyes knows what’s coming, but I foolishly assumed The Life List wouldâin the grand tradition of taken men in romantic comediesâfind a way to break up Brad and Nina before Alex made her official move. But, uh, that’s not really what happened.
Instead, Alex gets dumped by her boyfriend (Sebastian de Souza), and needs a ride to Vermont to pay a visit to her estranged father (long story). Brad swoops in to be her knight in shining armor… with Nina at his side. And let me tell you, Nina is a freaking champ.
She pushes through the romantic tension between Alex and Brad, and still manages to have a good time. She’s warm and friendly toward Alex. She doesn’t make a single snide comment. She gamely sings along to “That’s Not My Name” by the Ting Tings, after Alex insists on controlling the music. (Everyone knows that privilege goes to the person in the passenger seat!) She doesn’t even call Alex out when she, once again, overcompensates for her crush on Nina’s boyfriend by gushing over her beauty (bordering on hitting on her). Alex even goes so far as to ask Brad an obviously flirty question about their sex life. Girl! You know Nina can hear you, right?
Honestly, I wish Nina had gotten at least one mean comment in before she disappears from the movie completely. She deserved as much. Unfortunately, the last time we see her, she’s watching Brad and Alex, once again, flirt in front of her in the hotel lobby. After that, according to Brad, she gets a work call and takes a flight home. Which leaves Alex and Brad free to engage in a drunken hook-up via their combined rooms. And they do!
Alex doesn’t seem to have any real qualms about hooking up with a man whose girlfriend she thinks is so, so, so pretty.
“This is crazy,” she tells Brad, after their first passionate kiss.
“Should we stop?” Brad asks.
“No!” Alex replies, immediate. And that’s that.
The next morning, there doesn’t seem to be any guilt on Alex’s end. To be fair, she’s preoccupied with her daddy issues, but still. It’s not until after a four-hour drive back to New York City that she even seems to remember that, oh yeah, she might have just ruined Brad’s relationship.
“Last night was wonderful, but it was a mistake,” Alex says. “You have this amazing girlfriend-“
At this point, Brad interrupts to inform Alex that, actually, Nina dumped him, and that’s why she left Vermont early. So, no, technically, Brad did not cheat on Nina. But it doesn’t matter. Because Alex thought she was the other woman when she hooked up with Brad. She was, apparently, more or less fine with that. That’s cheating behavior, even if it wasn’t, technically speaking, cheating.
In a bizarre turn of events, it’s only when Alex realizes that she wasn’t helping Brad cheat on his beautiful girlfriend that she gets mad. That’s a read flag if I’ve ever seen one. After that, it was impossible for me to root for Alex and Brad as a couple. All I could think about was poor Nina. It’s too bad, because The Life List is an otherwise cute and charming movie. But Nina deserved so much better.
(function(d, s, id) {
var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];
if (d.getElementById(id)) return;
js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id;
js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&appId=823934954307605&version=v2.8”;
fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);
}(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
