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Movie Review: Piece by Piece 
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What Would You Ask Your Older Self?: "My Old Ass"
October 10, 2024
By Bessy ADUT
When I heard the title of the film I thought it was very strange. However, when I saw the trailer it peeked my curiosity. I can admit that this was one of the best coming-of-age stories I have seen lately. It felt like a genuine modern story and the characters were portrayed perfectly by a good cast ensemble. It took us to a different world where we could say “poetic realism.” The film really takes you into its own world. I personally both laughed and cried as I was watching it.
In terms of genre, it is defined as comedy-drama and science fiction and I can see that. There is a comedy element of watching a young girl’s life, family and friendships. There is drama especially in her love life. And it is science fiction because a young girl meets her 39-year-old self from the future when she is high on magic mushrooms.
The film is directed by a woman director: Megan Park. I really enjoyed the energy of the entire cast, namely, Maisy Stella, Percy Hynes White, Maddie Ziegler, Kerrice Brooks, and Aubrey Plaza. I was not surprised to find out the film had premiered at the Sundance Film Festival as it really does feel like a Sundance movie.
Below this point, I am going to talk about the story/screenplay with my commentary on it, so SPOILER ALERT!
We are introduced to Elliot and her gay best friends Ro and Ruthie on a boat at the lake. We find out it’s Elliot’s 18th birthday as her family waits for her at home but she doesn’t know and wants to hang out with her friends. She has a girlfriend named Chelsea and Elliot tells her she will be leaving for college soon. Then Elliot and her friends decide to do what bunch of teenagers around their age group would like to do, go on a trip and camp with magic mushrooms.
We are nicely introduced to the main protagonist and her friends/family circle. She is in a phase of experiments and explorations about herself.
The 3 girls go set up their tents and brew their mushroom tea; this was also used in the previous movie I wrote about. Ro and Ruthie are on a good trip. Elliot doesn’t feel anything at first but then she receives a visit from her future 39-year-old self Elliot who is now a PhD student.
I guess we all dreamed of going back to our old selves and giving them some advice and direction in life. It’s a nice fantasy. And just like a big sister would Elliot tells her to spend more time with her family. As for love advice, she tells her to stay away from Chad but doesn’t tell her why that is.
Shortly after, Elliot meets this Chad in real life and does her best to avoid and stay away from him. She takes the advice and spends more time with her brother and mother.
The more Elliot tries to avoid Chad, the more he comes around everywhere.
Elliot can’t wait to get out of this small town and be an independent young woman on her own but when she finds out that her family has sold the farm house, she gets really upset. The family doesn’t think she would care. Elliot confronts her dad about it.
We all take things for granted until we lose them. At the brink of losing the farm life, Max also realizes how much her home means to her.
Chad comforts her and helps her to sell her boat. There is some romance and kisses. There are some fun, musical scenes.
This is new for Elliot as she identifies herself differently, she explores that she likes both genders. It’s nice to be open in life. Her older self disappears for a while and reappears.
I don’t want to tell this part even in the spoilers but Elliot finds out something about Chad and why her old self advises her to stay away from him. Elliot understands but she decides that it doesn’t matter no matter what’s going to happen, she still chooses to be with him.
I think that’s the best lesson and advice from the film: Spend time with your loved ones. They are not always going to be around. And things might not always resolve happily with someone you love romantically. Yet, it is beautiful to enjoy every possible moment that we can. Each breath we take is precious with loved ones. If we try to avoid pain, we also lose the gain. No pain, no gain in this life. There must be something to learn, we are all guests on this earth. It’s best to live our lives to the fullest.
Here's the movie trailer with great reviews/score on Rotten Tomatoes:
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