After the gut punch that was November 5th, writer/director Megan Park’s new film, My Old Ass, is welcome comfort food.
Elliott (Maisy Stella) is preparing to leave her small Canadian town for college, spending time with her friends, hooking up with a local barista, and ignoring her family. You know, typical stuff a self-absorbed teenager would do.
One night, she and her friends decide to celebrate her 18th birthday with an impromptu campout by the nearby lake. There’s a campfire, booze and it’s all fun… until the shrooms come out and craziness ensues. As she’s tripping, she meets her 39-year-old self (Aubrey Plaza). After the initial shock wears off, she grills her about her future life, but Older Elliott gives up nothing. Well… except for one thing: Stay away from Chad. “Who’s Chad?,” she thinks. She has no idea who Chad is and before she can ask more questions, Older Elliott disappears.
Wouldn’t you know, she meets Chad (a winning Percy Hynes White) the next day.
To say anything more would give the story away, but the rest of the film is incredibly charming, funny and sweet… and sad, but in the best way possible.
Over the course of the film, young Elliott grows from a selfish teen into a mature young woman and Stella nails it. Early on, older Elliot tells her to stop being so into herself and pay more attention to her family, which she does reluctantly. She actually tries too hard to make a connection with her brother, who then calls her out on it one morning while golfing together. As she realizes how much she’s been a jerk to him, the transition in her face and attitude was perfect.
As older Elliott, Plaza looks nothing like the younger Stella, but it didn’t bother me at all. I quickly forgot about it after their initial meeting because they had such great chemistry together. And Plaza, as usual, always delivers a killer punchline.
It’s one of those movies where I can see myself watching it again on a rainy, gloomy Sunday and being perfectly happy at that moment.
