CineVegas 2009

In this thoughtful look at modern problems, director Mitch McCabe sets off across the United States to look at the ins, outs, nips, and tucks of the anti-aging industry. From Minnesota to Texas, from eye lifts to hair transplants, McCabe talks to those – too saggy, too wrinkled, too bald – who have undergone some form of age-reducing surgery or treatment, leaving the director to question her own appearance and (surgical) potential.

McCabe, the daughter of a plastic surgeon, touches upon the American fascination with beauty, culture, celebrity, and vanity, combining unique perspective for a sensitive yet amusing outlook. McCabe doesn’t distance herself from the subjects but engages them, admitting her own desire for youth and her fear of aging — even if it means thousands of dollars in debt from attending film school and a low-paying temp job that will never cover it, the desire for a smooth and youthful complexion is hard to resist. McCabe combines more than two years of interviews with more than a decade of home video footage, giving us an engaging and enlightening behind-the-scenes look at the least wrinkled, most compelling people behind the $60-billion-a-year industry.