Despite its name, Megan Park’s unapologetically Canadian film My Old Ass is a heartwarming, delightful coming-of-age film, completely in tune with gen-z and all the anxieties that come along with it. Star Maisy Stella of Nashville (2012-2018) is brilliant as the down-to-earth, sarcastic Elliott, supported by Aubrey Plaza and a wonderfully fun cast, making this a new release that will have you laughing one minute, and crying the next.

Director Megan Park’s sophomore feature, following 2021’s The Fallout, stars Canada’s own Maisy Stella as Elliott who, while tripping on mushrooms in Muskoka, Ontario, gets to talk to her future self – her “old ass” if you will – played by Aubrey Plaza. At a turn in her life, leaving home for Toronto and dealing with new relationships and self-discoveries, Stella’s Elliott uses her connection to her future self to explore her own identity, and what choices she should make when directly faced with the version of herself she will become as a result.

The standout of My Old Ass, right off the bat and throughout the entire runtime is the performance from Maisy Stella as Elliott. Her comfort in front of the camera, after growing up in the spotlight, is evident, and her charisma is enchanting. Her comedic timing is on point, brought to the forefront by a hilarious script from director Megan Park. Yet her sarcasm never outshines the more affecting scenes, in a performance that remains perfectly balanced throughout, perfectly capturing the life and inner-workings of a late teens gen-z.

There is a hilarious scene that takes place about halfway through the film relating to Justing Bieber, one that could only be pulled off by someone as uber comfortable in front of the camera as Stella, boasting the multi-talented star and all of her gifts that have lead to this role. It is obvious to see why she was chosen to play the younger version of the sarcastic and awkwardly-charming star Aubrey Plaza, who perfectly complements Stella’s performance in their few yet crucial scenes together.

I saw this film after it premiered at Sundance at the Inside Out Film Festival in Toronto, an annual Canadian film festival, which presents a program of LGBT-related film. Going into this screening knowing it would somehow be related to the LGBT community, I was so pleased with the direction this film went. Elliott is a proudly queer young woman, as the film opens with her racing her boat with her friends over to the shop where the girl she is crushing on is working. She talks openly with her friends and family about being attracted to women, but faces a crossroads when introduced to Chad, a boy working on her family farm, who she begins to develop feelings for. There is such a unique exploration of identity here, replacing the question of “what if I am queer?” to one of “what if I have grown into different labels than the ones I have identified with for so long?”. A specific and special scene between two best friends brings these explorations to a head, in a lighthearted and hilarious, yet still touching moment.

I was quite charmed with the direction this film went in. Instead of following a woman who learns she is queer, it provided a new take, showing instead how labels change, even for people already out under a certain label. This clearly articulated a recognition that for many people, identity is fluid. It was a refreshing approach to see in film, letting Elliott explore her identity, without it beginning from a point of hiding or being “in the closet”. It benefitted talking about what it means when labels change or no longer work for someone, and how this is a totally normal result of growth and change, rather than the more familiar approach that has a specific focus on the discovery of a queer identity after an assumed period of straightness.

One tiny qualm I did have with the film was in its structure. Heavily leaning on the plot point of Elliott meeting her older self, this moment happens almost immediately in the film, leaving the remaining runtime to the aftermath. What decisions will Elliott make given the limited information her older self gives her, and what, if anything, will she change with the advice she has been given. Since so much of the film seems to ride on conversations between Stella and Plaza’s Elliotts that occurred within the first 20 minutes of the film, some of the film’s overall structure feels a little awkward. Elliott makes changes almost immediately that we usually don’t see in a character until the third act, while leaving other growths and decisions to occur in a more traditional place within the common three act structure. While this doesn’t take away from the film too much, it does result in a bit of a rocky start before properly kicking off a little bit after the mushroom trip scene, which acts more like a very essential prologue than a traditional first act.

My Old Ass is first and foremost a hilarious and fun time. It perfectly balances being a lighthearted comedy about friendship and relationships and the more sober aspects of coming to terms with one’s identity and coming-of-age. It will have audiences laughing out loud, as it fully celebrates love and growing-up, backlit by the gorgeous summer sky of the Muskoka, Ontario lakes. It asks audiences to look at their own relationship with identity, and what it means when label’s we have created for ourselves no longer fit, while also making them wonder, if you had one night, tripping on mushrooms, what would you ask your “old ass” about your future?

My Old Ass was screened at the 2024 Inside Out Film Festival, and will be released in select theatres across Canada on September 13, 2024.