What would happen if someone met their 39-year-old future self? Would the world come crashing down? Would they become best friends or fight about every little thing? Or would everything be ok? Megan Parks’ film “My Old Ass” answers those questions.
The story follows Elliot, who meets her future self while on a mushroom trip in the woods and has to grapple with her current life choices as a result. Actor Maisy Stella “was manifesting” being a part of Parks’ film and when she “read this script” she said that “if I’m given the opportunity to get near this, I will literally do anything.” Stella embodied teenage Elliot and Aubrey Plaza played Elliot’s older self.
Following their first meeting, the pair kept in touch over the phone. Elliot’s future self gives her teenage self advice about how to live their life to the fullest. Future Elliot stressed the importance of family time and encouraged teenage Elliot to get involved in her brothers’ lives before it was too late.
The film was entertaining and relatable, juggling both a heavy theme and comedic moments. Elliot (Stella) found herself having a fantasy of singing “One Less Lonely Girl” by Justin Bieber while on mushrooms, but also had the common teenage experience of facing the realities of life and its unfairness.
“My Old Ass” showed audiences that people cannot protect themselves from the past or the future, and oftentimes, that is a positive hindrance. Instead, people should live in the moment in the face of failure or pain. Future Elliot tries to protect her past self, but realizes that she is preventing herself from living the fondest moments of her life. Living is about feeling everything, so if Elliot is always jumping ahead or focusing on the past, she cannot live life to the fullest.
Although the film was effective in the end, it was slightly predictable. The ending scenes were tearjerkers, but the feeling was underscored by the fact that audience members probably guessed it beforehand. However, Parks felt that by making Elliot’s future self only 39, “it made it more hopeful at the end… to leave people with ‘Oh, she has so much of her life left to live.’” Unfortunately, the plot seemed to include two stories occurring simultaneously until the final 30 minutes, and the ending felt misplaced when connecting it back to the first hour of the movie.
Not only was there disconnect, but the science behind the appearance of Elliot’s future self was confusing. At first, it seemed as though 39-year-old Elliot was only a figment created as a result of the drugs. However, the pair kept in contact over the phone throughout the film, which made little sense and was a distracting plot point. Even by the end, Elliot’s older self was able to talk to both Elliot and the people around her. If the logistics were planned out better, the film would have been more engrossing and take the audience on a deeper journey.
Despite these issues, the film did showcase impactful situations that many teenagers face, such as sexual identity and making career decisions with the future self twist. The film is worth the watch as long as the science behind Elliot’s future self and the end’s predictability are not dealbreakers. People who relish in watching a fun-loving film can enjoy “My Old Ass” on Amazon Prime Video today.
