Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Shulgasser-Parker
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Childish woman relives her teens; language, drinking.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
One More Time (2023)
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
As ONE MORE TIME begins in 2022, it's Amelia's (Hedda Stiernstedt) 40th birthday, and, owing to her rudeness, she's fired from her less-than-fulfilling job that morning. She heads to the local bar and drinks the day away, friendless and pathetic. She wakes the next morning in her pink childhood bedroom to the sound of her parents singing "Happy Birthday." And when she wakes up the next morning, it's the same thing all over again. As Amelia acclimates to this new fate, she starts using her knowledge of 2022 to foretell the future. She advises investing early in Bitcoin, touts careers in fiber cable, and calls someone out on "mansplaining," a phrase not coined until 2008. Amelia is so sexually aggressive with her handsome 18-year-old boyfriend Max (Maxwell Cunningham) that he breaks up with her. She has also alienated her early childhood friend Fiona (Miriam Ingrid), a talented, shy, gay singer. Amelia and her "cool" friends hurtfully ignore Fiona socially, a heartless betrayal. She thoughtlessly betrays others as well. Amelia is initially ecstatic at magically reliving her happy teen years, but the repeating time loop gets old fast. Ultimately, she has to recognize her selfishness and alter her terrible behavior in the hope that a tweak will make her life at 40 happier and more fulfilling.
Is It Any Good?
One More Time has something truly lovely to say about friendship, but that satisfying outcome doesn't come until the movie's last 10 minutes. For the other hour and 15 minutes, we are forced to see the world through the eyes of a 40-year-old self-declared "idiot" who believes that the age of 18 was the peak of her existence. The way this emulates, and even cites, the far better movie Groundhog Day only underscores every way in which this fails to measure up. One More Time isn't about a selfish person who sees the light and changes. And Amelia's utter obliviousness just reinforces our understanding that she is (a) the idiot she admits to being and (b) not nice enough, kind enough, or interesting enough to make us care about what happens to her.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why it might take someone until the age of 40 to realize she's always been self-centered, oblivious, and "idiotic."
Do you think selfish people can suddenly be generous and interested in the welfare of others? Why, or why not?
Do you think Amelia changes her ways? Does the movie answer the question of why Amelia found herself in a time loop? Does it matter?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : April 21, 2023
- Cast : Hedda Stiernstedt , Maxwell Cunningham , Miriam Ingrid , Elinor Silfversparre
- Director : Jonatan Etzler
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s) , Female Movie Writer(s)
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Comedy
- Run time : 85 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : May 8, 2023
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate