My Old Ass: Movie Review

Cast: Maisy Stella, Aubrey Plaza, Percy Hynes White
Director: Megan Park

Maisy Stella's performance in My Old Ass is the kind of appearance that launches a star.

While the plot of the film and its subsequent twists and turns are nothing new and original as it teeters its way toward sentiment and mawkishness, it's her portrayal of Elliott that grounds the film from some of its narrative obviousness.

On the brink of heading away to university and leaving her family, Elliott (Nashville's Stella) goes for one last blast night away with her friends. Consuming a mushroom-infused tea, she suddenly discovers she's face-to-face with her 39-year-old self (played with deadpan and dramatic flair by Aubrey Plaza).

While nobody else can see the interloper, Elliott soon finds herself listening to advice from her future self and questioning everything she knows.

The mechanics of this relationship don't exactly make sense - how can a future self communicate via phone - but what does make sense in director / writer Megan Park's film is a complete sense of self and of time and place for My Old Ass.

Granted the film descends into sentiment as it ties itself up with a familiar message of appreciating what you've got before you don't have it, but over a brief 90 minute run time, what emerges from My Old Ass is a film that's stolen by its confident lead.

Having Stella's performance grounded in both ease and reality, the story's zanier edges are steeled against the traditional young adult fare that emerges in situations like this. And while the narrative's not immune from the genre's trappings, Stella sells the reality with an ease and perfection that's hard to deny.

Plaza once again shows off her dramatic depth (something built on by both The White Lotus and Emily The Criminal) but in truth, she's not on screen long enough to massively overshadow proceedings.

It's hard to deny some of the emotional edges of this, and while even the hard-hearted can see what's coming, thanks to a real and well-acted story, My Old Ass manages to serve up its message of appreciation is probably a good one to take on board as we near the end of 2024.

My Old Ass begins streaming on Prime Video from November 7.