In Kris Rey’s I Used to Go Here, one discovers that they either die a hero, or live long enough to see themselves become Winger. This joke references Dan Harmon’s cult television show Community, in which adults in various stages of their life search for a second chance at a dumpy community college. Gillian Jacobs is one of the stars of Community, and here she stars in Rey’s sophomore feature. Metaphorically, this suggests something cyclical about our perpetual search to find what is missing.
Jacobs is the one sticking point of I Used to Go Here. As Kate, an author at the crossroads of her life and career who returns to her alma matter as a guest speak at the behest of her former composition professor (Jermaine Clement), Jacobs is not entirely convincing. For Rey’s film to really work, it needs a convincing turn from the lead role. I try to avoid knocking acting in my reviews, but it’s difficult to discern exactly what Jacobs is doing here, particularly in her facial expressions which feel far too close to “the results of undisclosed tranquilizers” for comfort.
Yet, I Used to Go Here still hits, and hits hard. Likely, it’s a result of Rey’s portrait of life in turmoil at all ages. As a director, Rey manages to squeeze a feeling out of many shots in the film, from deep focus shots at baby shower to the weight of an unread book sitting on a shelf, I Used to Go Here is about that feeling of returning to a space you used to inhabit. It is the painful nostalgia that accompanies such a return, and the eventual need to move forward. It’s one critical aspect away from being magnificent, but it’s pretty good as is.
- Release Date: 6/23/2020
