I Was Younger Yesterday
Martin Hudson is a man who lives in constant fear of change
and finds himself having a midlife crisis… in reverse.
Isn’t growing older supposed to make you WISER? Or perhaps just more desperate. Peeking in the mirror makes it more obvious every day that slides by: YOU weren’t the exception to humanity’s collective fate, after all. Your body’s breaking down. The clock’s ticking. The precious moments you have left in this world are inexorably, far-too-painfully running out.
And when it comes to desperate, Martin Hudson (40s) is “desperates” poster boy. Draped in clothes designed for the Gen Z crowd, Martin’s sporting bleached hair and a hoop earring; all signs of a middle aged man screaming, begging that nature take a few years off. No need to roll back the clock to Day One. Just one decade... or two! As Sean Ryan’s I Was Younger Yesterday opens, Martin’s begging literally, too. Hands in air, he’s asking an unseen someone for a “deal”.
MARTIN
Put it down and slide it back to me.
(beat)
We can both walk away from this.
Slide back what: the years? And walk away from aging? Sorry, Martin. The world don’t work that way. You can’t.
Though, it soon turns out Martin’s not arguing with the Grim Reaper. Nope, this predicament is far more pedestrian. And pathetic. Let’s just say it involves money. And – at its core, no surprise – A GIRL.
A certain someone named “Jessica”. As twenty-something as Martin’s over-trendy clothes, Jessica’s the lifeline Martin’s grabbed onto to keep feeling alive as his life winds down… and his ever more blazing mid-life crisis burns. Jessica is Martin’s obsession. His reason to live. His curse.
For Martin, Jessica’s almost a drug; an addiction he’s willing to spend every dime on - to keep on his arm, and at his side.
But addictions often end badly. Will Karma blow Martin off – or send him a needed wake up call?
On his way home from that not-so-successful deal, Martin spots an ad for Dan Walker, Addiction Specialist. Desperate and down-and-out as he’s become, Martin rings Dan up for a meeting. It’s just a consultation – why not?
At first, Dan’s reluctant. He’s no couples therapist; but as Martin begs ever more strenuously for help, the challenge becomes Dan’s enticement. The fee he’ll charge is motivation too, for sure!
MARTIN
We go out clubbing every night.
I'm exhausted. From that and...
DAN
I get it.
Dan shrugs.
MARTIN
I'm running on viagra and power
drinks. One of my knees is shot. My
back isn't much better. I can't sleep
because I'm too tired.
(whispers)
I have a damn lower back tattoo!
(beat)
And now we're Vegans! You know what's
the worst thing about being a Vegan?
That's pretty much all they talk
about. Between this and the constant
selfies. She's spending money quicker
than I can earn it.
(beat)
And I just can't say no to her.
Can’t say no? Yup, that’s definitely an addiction. No guarantees, but Dan agrees to take the case. And since Jessica’s the heart of Martin’s mess, she’ll have to attend sessions, too.
Which she does – making their meeting’s a menage a trois (of COMMUNICATION. Get your minds out of the gutter, folks!) Turns out Jessica loves to talk. And she looks a lot like Margo Robbie. Slap those factors together, and questions abound: will Martin finally find peace with the aging process? Aching back aside, will Martin muster up the energy to say no to his boo? In the long run, what’s really best? Coming to peace with the Circle of Life – or going out with viagra and a bang?
A gently humorous look at the human condition and how some of us face our age, Sean Ryan’s I Was Younger Yesterday is an extremely easy shoot. And a sure to be fun watch for audiences, who’ll come out with a chuckle. And maybe a little insight, too.