We live with a lot of regret. So much of our mental space is taken up by a giant question of “what if”—wondering what would’ve happened if you did X instead of Y and how that reverberated throughout your life. This is reflected in our speculative storytelling, with multiversal stories, time-loop tales, and time travel all exploring how small changes can echo outward to create a new reality. “My Old Ass” isn’t a time travel movie, per se, but it does involve the collision of the past and the future to alter the present. It’s a fun, lighthearted movie that is carried along by very naturalistic (and humorous) dialogue and performances that makes for an entertaining time. It doesn’t handle the more dramatic elements as well as it does the comedic ones, but writer/director Megan Park injects so much humanity into her high concept film that it’s hard not to fall in love with it.
With only three weeks until she leaves her sleepy town for college in the big city, Elliott (Maisy Stella) is looking to live it up. She and her friends (Kerrice Brooks and Maddie Ziegler) take shrooms one night, only for Elliott to be visited by her 39-year-old self (Aubrey Plaza). The two talk about how life has worked out for the elder version, while older Elliott tries to impart some wisdom on her younger self. The two continue to communicate, including older Elliott warning her 18-year-old self to avoid anyone named Chad…which just happens to be the name of the summer worker (Percy Hynes White) that Elliott meets one day. Unsure what’s going on, Elliott tries to follow her own advice but also her heart as she navigates this heady time.
“My Old Ass” is a gentle breeze of a film that never really has much in the way of true dramatic conflict, usually all being handled in a very humane and comedic fashion. That’s not to say there isn’t any tension or drama within the film, just that it always feels low stakes and avoids any sort of big “all is lost” type vibe when things get tough. This isn’t a major detriment (though it does make for a bit of a too-easy resolution to some issues) but is a testament to the humanist spirit that writer/director Park imbues within her film. Yes, there are big reveals and big emotions, but it’s all part of a broader tableau that includes lots of laughter and love that allows it to somehow feel more low key. “My Old Ass” would probably benefit from some pacing/editing fixes as some scenes breathe too long while the more dramatic beats are glossed over relatively quickly, but it’s hard to fault a film with this much heart that wants to spend time with its characters and not reduce everything to ridiculously outsized issues. Also, and this is beyond a minor point, but the titular phrase is simply said far too many times in the script where it becomes mildly distracting.
A big part of the success of “My Old Ass” is Maisy Stella, who turns in a great and winning performance as 18-year-old Elliott. This is especially important as she’s in every scene of the movie. Stella’s Elliott is that willfully confident teenager who’s ready to escape her rural hometown and take on the world, but soon finds that she may have overlooked some things in her own assumptions about herself, her family, and more. She has excellent chemistry with all her co-stars, with the family scenes feeling like that real push/pull of family dynamics where you love each other but also these people can be a bit annoying. But she is equally matched by Plaza who is fantastic as the elder Elliott. Unfortunately, the movie could’ve used one or two more scenes with her—she’s basically in it for a couple of scenes and a montage—as the energy between the two is really fun and the highlight of the film.
While “My Old Ass” could’ve used another pass at the editing bay, the cinematography by DP Kristen Correll is brilliant, creating beautiful vistas of the gorgeous Canadian lake setting that makes it all feel as idyllic as our memories of our 18-year-old selves. It’s hard to see it as a place worth escaping—though that is arguably the point—but instead that perfect summer that seemingly only exists in our nostalgia for days that we miss. It’s hard to watch the movie and not think back to your teenage years and wonder what you’d say to your younger self, which proves that Park is getting at something universal with our own feelings of regret and fear and hope for the future.
“My Old Ass” will make for a delightful comfort movie for people. It’s a great world to exist in for 88 minutes with people you like and issues you understand. They aren’t massive problems or giant swings at emotion, but the dramatic turns land well enough because of how much time and energy was invested in establishing these characters and this world. This is a place you want to hang out for a while, reminiscing about your own youth (and wondering about your own future) while watching an incredibly charismatic woman navigate her life. It may be sort of a slight film, but Park makes the most of it with so much heart and humor that it’s impossible to regret checking it out.
3.5 / 5 Stars
Starring: Maisy Stella, Aubrey Plaza, Percy Hynes White, Kerrice Brooks, Maddie Ziegler, Maria Dizzia, Alain Goulem, Seth Isaac Johnson, Carter Trozzolo, Alexandria Rivera
Directed by: Megan Park
