Megan Park's directorial debut, The Fallout, offered a breathtaking look at the residual, varying mental effects a generation faces in the aftermath of a school shooting. While an overwhelmingly American issue, the Lindsay, ON-born filmmaker traversed borders and found authenticity and connection in a culture and generation not of Park's own upbringing or experience.
For her follow-up effort, My Old Ass, Park returns home to tell a heartfelt rom-com in two parts: the millennial's nostalgic what-if and Gen Z's desire to simply live unencumbered.
Set in the summer months before Grade 12 and first-year university, Elliott's (Maisy Stella) main goals are to hang with her friends Ruthie and Ro (Maddie Ziegler and Kerrice Brooks, respectively), have hot sex with her girlfriend and aimlessly boat around Lake Muskoka. One evening, her, Ruthie and Ro decide to try mushrooms for the first time, and each of them begin tripping around the bonfire. For Elliott, a strange woman (Aubrey Plaza) appears next to her, claiming to be Elliott from the future at 39 years old.
Wisely, Park doesn't explain why Older Elliott is able to appear with Younger Elliott outside of the trip, or how they're able to call one another and leave voice notes; instead, Park leaves it as an odd peculiarity that bewilders both Elliotts as well. Older Elliott does acknowledge the standard butterfly effect rule of time travel, though, and only warns Younger Elliott not to fall in love with Chad. Of course, Younger Elliott meets Chad (Percy Hynes White) shortly after and, against her older self's better judgment, can't help but fall head over heels.
There's a predictability to My Old Ass that successfully reads as familiar rather than cliché, and in large part that's due to the incorporation of Plaza's Elliott. While most viewers will be able to suss out the big reveal, the impact of the film doesn't lay in the reveal, but in Older Elliott's confrontation of it. Plaza, typically known for her deadpan comedy, brings her signature sensibility into the film while putting forth a truly moving yet subtle dramatic performance that is the lynchpin of the story.
Although the subject matter couldn't be more different, the same endearing and complex soul that existed in The Fallout can be found in My Old Ass. Park, who also wrote both films, finds a way into the heart of the matter that will feel relatable to the older-ass crowd, especially those who look back on their youth with apprehension or remorse, and to the young-ass crowd who simply wants every other generation to leave them alone and let them be young and dumb, just as we once were.