A unique coming-of-age dramedy that appears to star Aubrey Plaza but doesn’t actually star Aubrey Plaza, My Old Ass is about an 18-year-old who encounters her 39-year-old self and begins a journey of self discovery.
From writer/director Megan Park, the filmmaker behind the excellent and sadly overlooked drama The Fallout (which made my Top 10 Movies of 2022 List), My Old Ass is an amusing little film that really doesn’t amount to a whole lot.
Maisy Stella is very good in the lead role, playing Elliott, a hard-headed girl who is a) looking to break away from her family and head off to college; and b) convinced she is a lesbian until she meets a dude at a local swim hole. The role is quietly complex and Stella navigates the various aspects of her character with ease.
Plaza, who gets second billing but is really operating in an extended cameo to, presumably, draw a bit more attention to this picture, is pretty good, though as Young Elliott points out early on, Plaza doesn’t exactly look or feel like an older version of the same person. No bother.
More bothersome is that My Old Ass, while well made and well acted, is your pretty routine coming-of-age drama save for the little time-link hook. And that hook is underutilized and not nearly as compelling as you’d think, save for some early self-boob grabbing.
Stella and Percy Hynes White have good chemistry with one another, but sizzling that chemistry it is not (it probably doesn’t help that I predicted immediately why Old Elliott tells Young Elliott to avoid Chad at all costs). More importantly, the rest of the small cast of characters are pretty much DOA, which interestingly makes everything feel a tad flat.
My Old Ass isn’t a poorly made movie, but it fails to take advantage of its clever concept in meaningful ways. Largely forgettable though not without its fine moments, My Old Ass sags more than it flexes.
Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.