Everything, Everywhere, All At Once (2022)

A woman who struggles with everyday life engages with every aspect of her multiverse self to save every universe.

Funny, exciting, surrealistic, and absolutely brilliant! The opening sequence at the laundromat sets the film’s pace and rhythm. It introduces the heroes and heroines, establishes their characters, and clarifies where everyone stands in the world. The dialogue is sharp, the editing is “snappy,” and the inciting incident (Alpha Waymond) moves the story forward to the second act.

From then on, The Matrix (1999) meets The One (2001). The Multiverse and the infinite versions of everyone’s self clashing create a concoction of euphoric and exciting emotions that, combined with the action and the underlying drama, offer a unique cinematic experience. I am certain that full analyses of this film will be written in the near and distant future, but for now, I’ll just leave you with these few comments in an attempt to urge you to watch it. If I were still a film student or ignorant of how ropes work, I couldn’t figure out for the life of me how writers/directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (aka the Daniels) pitched that script to production companies. Honestly, how does anyone ask for funding, pitching sequences where a butt-naked security guy jumps out of nowhere and lands on an oval tax award, aiming to connect to a different universe and engage with a more equipped-to-occasion self? How about a female couple with hotdog fingers licking each other’s mustard… Yes, hotdog fingers. Licking each other’s mustard – no euphemisms here!

Being a bit more pragmatic/cynical nowadays, though, and by reading the end credits, I can only assume that executive producers Joe and Anthony Russo made the green light turn a lot easier just by showing up. The Russos believed in the Daniels’ script and helped bring it to life. And, personally, I applaud them. Actually, I applaud all cast and crew for giving themselves 100%. And by doing so, Everything Everywhere All At Once became A24’s greatest financial and critical success. Michelle Yeoh matures like the finest wine and, for over three decades, has offered nothing but excitement, crying, and laughter, and, here, all of the above. Alongside her, Ke Huy Quan, best known for his stellar performances as Short Round in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and Data in Goonies (1985), Stephanie Hsu, James Hong, and the one and only Jamie Lee Curtis who will have you in stitches.

Everything Everywhere All At Once is your must-see for this year, and so is Men (2022), another A24 cinematic achievement. I may constantly sound like I’m sponsored by A24, but rest assured, I am not. I praise them because they have the guts to produce scripts that other production companies wouldn’t even read ten pages. They are phenomenal in what they do, and they immensely contribute to the evolution of worldwide cinema.

P.S. I certainly didn’t speak highly of Russo’s last film The Gray Man (2022) but, here, even as producers, they utterly redeem themselves.

P.P.S. Language, generational differences, and political/existential beliefs are the film’s underlying themes. Look out for clues while watching.

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