"This friend of yours sounds... rather elusive." Never fully clicked for me. Still, it was sweet and wholesome and made me nostalgic for an uncomplicated adolescence I never had. Definitely could've benefited from more Aubrey Plaza. But then, that's true of most movies.

A cute and charming little time. This rests on Malay Stella’s shoulders and she meets the occasion. She’s real but likable, earnest even when she’s trying to be cool. The whole movie has an empathy for your younger self you might not expect from the premise. Plaza does good in her scenes, but this is Stella’s movie and she delivers. That empathy extends to its Frank and modern discussion on sexuality. Few movies really tread these waters, afraid of the controversy or the history of ‘turned straight’, but labels are tools, not prisons, liking a guy doesn’t mean you stop being queer, stop being who you are. It’s not a poison that rips you from your community to like someone of the opposite sex. And the family scenes were a treat too. The romance itself was fine, if not hitting me too hard personally. On one hand I admire not relying on the conceit, but I kinda wish we either got more of it or even more of the identity and family stuff. There’s a little bit of a struggle between the two that makes the ending a little limp, and keeps the film from being great, but it’s certainly a good time worth seeing.

My daughter is only seven but man this movie made me feel a lot of things. Really enjoyed this. These characters felt very real. I only remember Maisy Stella from the brief time I watched Nashville but she was really great in this. Up and coming actress. Plus Aubrey Plaza is always great.

I was expecting Aubrey Plaza to be in this movie a lot more than she actually is. She has barely any screentime and even her presence isn't felt that much throughout. A lot of the marketing (including the poster) heavily emphasizes her role, so this was certainly disappointing. Beyond that, I was expecting something to be more insightful and introspective about growing up. The movie sort of eschews that. It does focus a bit on the importance of family, and I enjoyed the bucolic scenery throughout. But outside of that, most of the movie is sort of a teen romance. It's done well with decent acting from Maisy Stella, but it didn't really resonate a ton with me personally. The movie tries to make it all have more weight to it in the 11th hour, but I thought leaving that element until the very end short-circuited its impact on the movie. In the end, I think my expectations were very different from what the movie ended up being, and I think it would have been better served by being more straightforward in its marketing. It's an above average teen drama/romance and not much more than that.

'My Old Ass' is very cute. It features an impressive Maisy Stella performance, too. The lead is honestly great throughout, the type that is so convincing that it barely feels like you're watching someone act; Stella is particularly good when it comes to her character's more emotional side. Elsewhere, Aubrey Plaza doesn't appear terribly much but still manages to leave a mark - she's always a person I enjoy seeing act. Obviously it isn't a perfect movie or anything, one or two bits of dialogue are a little iffy and the ending is a tad rushed (?) and easy to predict. Don't get me wrong, though, I'm not actually criticising this as I really enjoyed the whole 90 or so minutes. Amusing. Sweet. Recommended.