by Scott Batchelor, Contributing Writer
If I were to sum up this movie, I would tell you: hot dog fingers, an everything bagel, and Ratatouille. Imma leave that there because you are not allowed to know anything else. Everything Everywhere All at Once is best viewed by trusting the people who talk about it. The most you really get to know are just the bare bones of the plot. The absurdity is best left to experience for yourself. But if you need to know anything, all I feel comfortable revealing is that the plot mainly focuses on the concept of a multiverse.
Once a year a movie comes out that you will have heard nothing about but has a firm grasp on the cinephiles who are shouting from the rooftops for you to seek this movie out and just let yourself go. Everything Everywhere All at Once will be regarded as one of the best movies of the year. And in eight years, we will be discussing it as being one of the best films of the decade. And in 20 years, one of the best science fiction films of all time.
If a movie is going to go hard at the craziness, the most important aspect has to be the cast to make it work, and oh boy does it work. Michelle Yeoh leads this film as the ultimate failure in life, Evelyn Wang. A Chinese immigrant living the “dream” with husband Waymond Wang (Ke Huy Quan). Rounding out the family is annoyed, only child of the Wang family, Joy (Stephanie Hsu), who is trying to help her mother come around to the 21st century line of thinking. Joy wants to integrate her girlfriend into the family, but Evelyn is still ashamed to even acknowledge her daughter’s sexuality, which leads to parallel conflicts that play a much larger part in the grand scheme of the motivations of all the characters involved.
The real standout of this already stellar cast has to be Ke Huy Qaun, best known for screaming, “I don’t think so Doctor Jones!” in his first movie role — now, he has not acted in a movie for 20 years. And this is what he comes back to do! Quan does not miss a step at all and is truly impressive in his range. When we first meet Waymond, he is pathetic and annoying, but as the movie progresses, you are captivated by him. You long for more scenes with Wayland because he pulls you in. His charisma, even when playing a loser, is addictive, and I hope I get the honor of watching him read the phone book one day. Quan was so dedicated to the craft that the parallel versions of himself sound different from each other because he hired a dialogue and a voice coach to set them apart from each other. These actors went into this movie prepared to play different versions of the same character, and the end result is a clinic on how to make a fun movie stand out as great.
The supporting cast is what nails this as one of the best ensemble performances. Jamie Lee Curtis is about as far from Laurie Strode as possible. James Hong is 93 years young and feels just as sharp as he was 40 years ago. This is a powerhouse of a cast that will be remembered for years. They somehow make a scene about an IRS audit entertaining. And that is before the mayhem ensues. If this film can make you want to watch a discussion about taxes, imagine what it does when the action kicks off.
This is where I have to pull in the reins. There is not a single action set piece that you should experience in written form. Each action scene is unique in ways I have never seen before, and each action scene is different from each other both in tone and what is at stake. One scene is action packed, the next is funny, the next is emotional. As the plot moves forward and more is revealed, each character begins fighting for a different reason. It is a dynamic that I have not seen explored. Usually you have movies where you see consistent fight scenes, but it is almost always good versus evil for control of the world. But here you have good versus evil and the reason they are fighting changes as you learn more about each character. And of course none of this works unless it is pretty to look at.
As this movie opens up with the Wang family moving around the laundromat they run, I couldn’t help but notice how boring the colors were; but how somehow, they were gorgeous to watch. The lighting of this movie in even the dullest of settings like a laundromat and an IRS office keeps you invested in the story until it ramps up and gives you more to look at. Oddly enough though, once we get to the main location at the IRS, we are there a majority of the runtime. The most exciting movie of the year takes place in a location nobody ever wants to be, which fits nicely with one of the themes this movie is trying to get across.
What I would want any viewer to take away from this movie is something that I can relate to personally. The Evelyn that we meet is noticeable for being the worst possible version of herself in the history of all Evelyn Wangs. Making mistakes in life and being unhappy with where you end up is a very real thing that people have to live with. If I can take anything away from this movie, it is that life is not over because of a choice you made — you can always better yourself. It is never too late to learn something new to get yourself out of whatever situation you may find yourself in. There is always hope to be better.
Everything Everywhere All at Once is brilliant. This is the type of movie that you show somebody to prove how awesome movies are. If there is anything to gripe about, it is that I feel like the ending did drag on, but that doesn’t take away how I feel about it now. I want to go back and watch it right away. I often wait years before seeing movies a second time, but this is one I am going to rewatch at least two or three more times by the end of the year. It’s beautifully shot and wonderfully acted, and includes stunning action pieces and themes that make me think or reflect. This is an absurd movie, so maybe if you can’t get behind an abstract concept, this isn’t for you. If you love cinema, then you will find something to love about this masterclass of storytelling. I would suggest you see this as soon as possible and as much as possible.
Score: 9/10
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