Battle of the flicks: The Wolverine vs. The To Do List

The Wolverine

Not your typical superhero movie, The Wolverine is dark and not for little kids. Logan has real, adult problems and gets ensnared in a criminal plot in Japan and loses his quick-healing ability.

Hugh Jackman portrays Logan as a man struggling with his immortality and then facing his certain death all while falling in love with the angelic Mariko, played by Japanese actress Tao Okamoto.

The Japanese landscape and styling make this film better than any others in its genre.

Here’s what some other women thought:

Tasha Robinson of The Dissolve said, “The Wolverine does stand out, and even excels, in many isolated places… it’s just that the great pieces don’t fit together to suggest a whole.”

Joanna Langfeld of The Movie Minute, “Even though its best scene doesn’t happen until halfway through the ending credits, this sequel is, at least, better than its predecessor.”

MaryAnn Johanson of Flick Filosopher said, “There’s plenty of good summer-popcorn fun, with fresh and exciting action setpieces, but this is mostly an intimate story about Logan, as a mutant and as a man.”

You can read my full review here.

The To Do List

Nerdy bookworm highschooler Brandy (Aubrey Plaza) knows she has a lot of catching up to do before she heads off to college. Sure, she’s read all the classic lit from the Greeks to Stephenie Meyer, but none of it really tells you how to prepare for your first sexual experience.

Set in the 1990s, Brandy does what every brainiac chick does when she wants to become an expert on something — she creates a “to do list” of sex acts and becomes determined to master them.

This premise isn’t new for a coming-of-age comedy, but usually, it’s a boy who’s desperately seeking this info and experience. We enjoyed seeing a young woman be as curious and calculated as a young man.

Here’s what some other gals thought:

Claudia Puig of USA Today said, “Like the fumbling around of first-time sex, The To Do List has its enjoyable moments but doesn’t exactly feel like a peak experience.”

Catherine Monk of Canada.com said, “It’s… got more insight and honesty behind its use of expletives than any other piece of writing to hit the screen this summer, and as a result, the humour finds different layers to bounce through.” 

Carrie Ricky of the Philadelphia Inquirer said, “I thought it was awesome, I really enjoyed the way they combine the action and the love story. The special effects were really great.”