My Old Ass review: laughs and tears at the joy and pain of youth

If you could go back in time and give advice to your younger self, what would it be? The question is posed in its most literal form in My Old Ass, the new coming-of-age dramedy from Canadian director and screenwriter Megan Park.

The Margot Robbie-produced film follows high school graduate Elliott (Maisy Stella), freshly 18 and on the precipice of leaving her sleepy cranberry farm for university. With her two best friends, Ro and Ruthie (Kerrice Brooks and Maddie Ziegler), the trio head into the woods to celebrate by getting high on hallucinogenic mushrooms.

In an unexplained, mystical turn, Elliott’s 39-year-old future self (Aubrey Plaza) appears. With hilarious repartee – teen Elliot asks the older if she can kiss her – Older Elliot informs the younger of what the future holds. She provides sage wisdom, encouraging her to wear her retainer, but ensures not to give too much away – only asking her to stay away from someone named Chad.

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In a panel interview for the Los Angeles Times, Park shared that Elliot’s older self was originally written to be in her 50s, but did a last-minute rewrite when asked what ‘middle-age’ was like by her young cast members, sparking the idea that ‘late-30s when you’re 18 is old’. It’s with this concept in mind that the film’s humour shines brightest. Teen Elliot is disappointed to learn she is still single and studying, rather than in a successful career with a family; a defensive older Elliot argues that the dating scene is terrible and alludes to a one-child policy.

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Emotional and comedic beats are delivered with a talent beyond her years by 20-year-old Stella, as Elliott grapples with her sexuality, blooming romance, and the painstaking realisation that everything around her is going to change forever. With the weight of the film on her, Stella makes equal match with the seasoned comedy of Plaza.

Although her screentime is scattered throughout the film, Plaza shines with her trademark deadpan delivery. Following the incident, the Elliots discover they can converse over text and phone call, and older Elliot continues to give advice and share titbits from the future (a retreat run by Penelope Disick, among other things). But it’s following a sudden plot reveal that Plaza carries heavier moments with gravitas and emotional weight.

Cinematographer Kristen Correll poignantly captures the dreamy rural Canadian landscape with care and reverence. Pink and orange hues fill the sky, the lake shimmers in the afternoon light.

Lauded for the realistic Gen Z dialogue in her debut film The Fallout, Park writes with irreverent humour and wit (Elliott’s younger brother creates a poster wall dedicated to actor Saoirse Ronan). Her young characters don’t feel like generational clichés but rather true, messy teenagers, adding a necessary realism to the film’s fantasy-esque elements.

In a hilarious sequence that pays homage to Justin Bieber’s 2009 song One Less Lonely Girl, Park evokes the bittersweet feeling of finally reaching an age old enough to see callbacks to your youth on-screen. As a 27-year-old, I’m almost smack-bang between the ages of young and older Elliott. I can still feel the recent, blissful unawareness of my teenage years but am now painfully aware of how quickly time can pass.

Nostalgia and growing pains are evergreen themes for media, seen in films such as Eighth Grade and Little Women, TikTok users sharing a viral scene from the 2003 film Uptown Girls to symbolise their inner child and Djo’s hit song End of Beginning.

Although My Old Ass doesn’t have anything particularly groundbreaking to add to the canon, it doesn’t need to. It’s an unexpected tear-jerker, serving as a gut-wrenching reminder of the feelings we so often and easily push down: the cruel passage of time, the impermanence of youth.

Through a simple premise, Park reminds us of the beauty of being ‘young and dumb’; that if we knew how scary life can be, we’d never leave the house. But we do it anyway.

My Old Ass is in Australian cinemas from 26 September.