Netflix’s chart-topping romantic dramedy The Life List is a story of personal growth, maternal bonds, and the complexity of romantic fulfillment. Based on Lori Nelson Spielman’s acclaimed novel, this film stars Sofia Carson as Alex Rose—a contemplative Brooklyn native who, on the surface, appears fine, but somewhere deeper, she’s making sense of life in a real way.
She’s just experienced the loss of her mother who was taken suddenly by terminal cancer. Before her mom’s passing, she left Alex with a mission: in order to receive her inheritance, Alex must complete a bucket list she penned at thirteen and she must do it by New Year’s.
With each accomplishment, the family’s lawyer Brad presents Alex with a video message from her late mother, narrating her daughter’s journey from the other side.
The narrative takes a turn when Alex uncovers a revelation that destabilizes her core identity: her mother had an affair. This means that the man who raised her is not her biological father, sending her on a trip to Vermont to meet her birth father. Their connection, symbolically captured in a song he once composed for her, remains unfulfilled when he fails to appear at their meeting spot the following morning—a subtle commentary on the fallibility of romanticized paternal fantasies.
Perhaps the greatest challenge Alex faces is finding authentic love. The film presents three distinct romantic possibilities: Finn, Alex’s initial partner whose preoccupation with zombie gaming doesn’t quite jive with her self-actualization journey. Garrett, the seemingly perfect match and a coworker. And, finally, we have Brad AKA the aforementioned lawyer and unexpected third choice, whose presence throughout her journey creates a cognitive foundation for deeper emotional connection.
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So, how does this movie end?
Beyond her mother’s videos, Alex forms a deep personal connection with Brad, who accompanies her to Vermont to find her biological father. As it turns out, the Brad romance is the one to end it all, bringing Alex to the end of her mother’s list, a challenge to fall in love. Their spark catches fire when Alex, having achieved the practical milestone of obtaining her driver’s license, literally crashes her mother’s car into Brad’s house.
Watch ‘The Life List’ on Netflix
Having completed her mother’s mission and fulfilling every goal on her “life list,” Alex learns that she’s inherited her family home. In the end, we wrap everything in a nice little bow, with Alex hosting a New Year’s Eve part in the same living room where the film started.
