Movie Review: 'I Used to Go Here' is a Delight

I Used to Go Here strikes deep into the heart of those who’ve reached their 30s and 40s and have not quite figured out where you’re headed. Gillian Jacobs stars in the movie as a published author who feels like she may have blown her shot at the big time by compromising her art for commerce. Jacobs’ Kate Conklin knows she’s a good writer but when she wrote her novel she compromised and added elements that were more commercial and less specific or personal.

She knows she did it and the compromise is reflective of her life in general. Kate compromised to marry Michael before realizing her mistake and running him off. She still pines for him but it’s clear that pining comes from a place of deep insecurity and uncertainty. Kate’s in her thirties, her friends are married and pregnant and their growing families and careers. Kate has no such anchor to the world.

Kate could be one of those happy, pregnant, thirtysomethings, but for the first time in her life she’s beginning to do things for herself. That’s the story of I Used to Go Here, Kate finally choosing what her life is, choosing who she is as a person. She’s allowing herself to stumble, fall and get back up because it’s who she really is. Being a mess is kind of her brand and she’s embracing it for the first time, almost by accident.

Why is Kate suddenly inspired to find herself? It starts with an invitation to return to her Alma mater. Kate graduated from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale in the early 2000’s and it was among the best times of her life. Her former professor turned pal, David Kirkpatrick (Jemaine Clement), has invited her to visit and read from her book in one of his writing courses. She will be put up for a few days, read and meet with young writers.

In a serendipitous coincidence, Kate’s bed and breakfast in Carbondale, happens to be directly across from her former sorority house. I say sorority, it was more of a writer’s hangout with Kate and her friends partying and encouraging each other’s writing. It’s still the best time of Kate’s life and the most herself she’s ever been. Hence why she finds this trip both inspiring and enlightening. It’s not without some cringe inducing lows but the highs, literal and figurative, are pretty great.

Once Kate musters up the courage to go explore her former home, the plot of I Used to Go Here kicks. The disparate characters of the new owners of her writer’s retreat are a wonderful group. First up, there is the hunky, Hugo (Josh Wiggins), the kind of young, attractive heartthrob who inspires older women to wish they were several years younger. Then there is the sweet and supportive couple, Animal (Forrest Goodluck) and Emma (Khloe Janel), who give Kate a place to crash in a pinch.

My favorite of the group is Tall Brandon (Brandon Daley), a funny, awkward, wonderful oddball who lights up every scene he’s in. Daley is the definition of a scene stealer but a generous one. He’s not stealing the spotlight, just making the most of his time in that spotlight. Tall Brandon is the kind of funny I love in a comic supporting player. Writer-director Kris Rey wields Daley like a comic weapon, deploying him at just the right moment in just the right way.

I don’t want to go off on a rant here but I cannot stand the way most directors right young people today. I know that makes me sound either like an old man or that I am about to do some ‘virtue signalling’ but, sincerely, I have seen some awful, hacky portrayals of young people lately. Take for instance, 2020’s worst movie, Babysplitters, starring Gillian Jacobs’ Community chum Danny Pudi.

That god awful mess of a movie features millennial characters of the most thoughtless and hacky variety. I can’t help but feel that some fiftysomething comic who whines about college audiences on Twitter for being too easily offended wrote these caricatures. Each of the millennial characters in Babysplitters are uniformly obsessed with their phone, offended by everything they hear and call out the term ‘Trigger Warning,’ as if it were a catchphrase.

I Used to Go Here proves that with a little honest effort, even the smallest roles for young actors can be turned into memorable, funny, and thoughtful characters. During Babysplitters, I rolled my eyes so hard at the hack caricatures of young people that I nearly hurt myself. I Used to Go Here soothed me with wonderful characters even in the most minor of roles who are given dimension and room to breathe and live.

Those wonderful characters surround Gillian Jacobs' lovely central performance make I Used to Go Here a real treat. I relate strongly to the feeling of not being fully formed or accomplished at an age when so many others have already surpassed their goals. Jacobs makes the feeling familiar and offers a safe place for us to rest our weary, striving minds for a few minutes. I Used to Go Here reminds us that failure happens and the world doesn’t end. Opportunity may seem like once in a lifetime but accomplishment and praise aren’t everything. Don’t forget to just live.

I Used to Go Here will be available for rent on many streaming platforms on Friday, August 7th.