My Old Ass is everything a coming-of-age story should be. Funny, endearing and emotionally impactful - this beautiful little film reminds us that all we have in this life is time, and we shouldn’t take a moment of it for granted.
During a mushroom trip on her 18th birthday, Elliot (Maisy Stella) spends the evening talking to a 39 year old version of herself. Older Elliot (Aubrey Plaza) tries to impart whatever wisdom and warnings she can, hoping her younger self will take the advice to heart. Plaza and Stella have a playful, naturalistic chemistry portraying the same character at different stages in her life. Plaza has a smaller role than expected, but her scenes are vital in shaping young Elliot’s trajectory through her final summer at home, before moving to the big city. Stella brings such genuine feeling personality to the role, capturing the ambitions and uncertainties of a naïve 18 year old.
What I loved most here, is how true to life young Elliot behaves at her age. Yes, I’m sure we’d all love to meet our future selves when we were 18, but would we ask the right questions? Would we be mature enough to truly understand what we’re telling our past selves? The movie does an exceptional job at throwing this wrench into Elliot’s headspace - as if she doesn’t have enough to figure out in life already. The film could honestly function as a fairly straightforward coming of age story without the time-travel angle, but that hook adds tremendous emotional weight, taking the movie from good to great.
Speaking of emotions, this movie will really put you through the wringer. The more of life you’ve experienced, the harder certain moments will hit you. There are several scenes that had me tearing up, but not one of them feels unearned. That’s largely due to how authentically this slice of life story plays out (apart from the time travel, that is). It’s also very, very funny, with plenty of laugh out loud moments that had me shedding a different kind of tears. The balance of comedy, drama and sentimentality is perfectly in tune.
My Old Ass puts a fresh new spin on the coming of age genre. It’s both hilarious and heartbreaking, but most importantly, it rings true to life in ways we can all connect with. Don’t wait for your older self to tell you what an excellent movie this was. Go watch it now.
4.5/5