Everything Everywhere All at Once
(B+ or 3/4 stars)
'Everything Everywhere All at Once' (directed by Dan Kwan & Daniel Scheinert, or "The Daniels", of Swiss Army Man) is a trippy, sci-fi/fantasy/comedy/drama martial arts actioner - got all THAT!? - that centers on a laundromat owner who discovers that she must save the multiverse during a fateful trip to file her business taxes. I admire SO much in this film. There are also aspects I do not love. On the whole, I liken it to something similarly ambitious like 2012's Cloud Atlas ... if Cloud Atlas was on high on crack. More on that later. Michelle Yeoh stars as Evelyn Wang, the laundromat owner who is, quite LITERALLY, living her worst life.
A perpetually distressed Evelyn owns said laundromat with her timid husband, Waymond (Ke Huy Quan, of Goonies, Temple of Doom fame), who is about to serve her with divorce papers. She can't connect lately with her daughter, Joy (Stephanie Hsu). And Evelyn is embarrassed to admit to her ailing, elderly father, Gong Gong (James Hong) - who is visiting from China - that his granddaughter is dating a girl. The family has an appointment to file their taxes at the IRS office because their laundromat's business taxes are under review. On the way to see their agent, Deirdre Beaubeirdra (Jamie Lee Curtis), Evelyn has a bizarre encounter with Waymond, who explains that, at the moment, he is a 'different' Waymond from the multiverse. It appears that she is the version of Evelyn that he is looking for in an attempt to defeat a powerful entity named Jobu Tupaki, {who resembles their daughter, Joy} who is about to destroy the universe with her minions. Yes, you read that correctly.
She is just one of many Evelyns across the multiverse and, in order to 'verse jump' & attain skills from other versions of herself, she must perform tasks both bonkers & mundane; like eating lip balm, switching shoes to the wrong feet, giving paper cuts, drinking half-&-half and, even sitting on a butt plug can reap rewards. Utilizing all of the Evelyns-of-the-Universe skills, she just might prevent Jobu Tupaki from sucking everything into the void {which, naturally, happens to be an Everything Bagel}.
I recommend 'EEAAO' for its bold, audacious vision of the infinite, and a heartfelt examination of a woman & her family coming to grips with themselves. Because of its propulsive pacing, this art film comes across as a surprisingly accessible popcorn flick; chock full of superhero-like components & exciting Martial Arts action scenes. That said ... the manic editing of it all provided me an excessively mind-numbing experience for nearly its entire 135 minute run time. For better or worse, the film really IS everything everywhere all at once.
Michelle Yeoh - of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon & Crazy Rich Asians fame - carries the film with aplomb. As Evelyn, she's funny, she's serious, she kicks some butt & then leveled me emotionally in a parking lot scene. It's a wide-ranging performance that most actresses could only dream of giving. Ke Huy Quan is great as Evelyn's husband. Like Yeoh, he also gives a varied performance; as his multiverse Waymonds are so different from one to the other. Stephanie Hsu is fantastic as Joy, whose character ranges from melancholy daughter of Evelyn to enigmatic villain of the universe. Prolific James Hong - now 93! - is wonderful as old Gong Gong. This actor has over 450 acting credits in his career; which dates back to 1950. And Jamie Lee Curtis is having a blast as frumpy, dumpy tax agent, Deirdre. She looks ridiculously over-the-top, acts over-the-top, & nails the tone that the directors aimed for.
This movie bursts at the seams with imagination. The directors throw everything into the story hoping for it all to stick. This leads us to some hilarious, if nonsensical multiverses; like one where everyone has hot dogs for fingers, one where a talking raccoon {Racacooie, not Ratatouille} hides beneath a chef's hat and instructs him on how to cook, one where Evelyn & Joy simply exist as two rocks, one where they are pinatas, one where Evelyn is a hibachi cook, one where she is a glamorous movie star, & many more. "The Daniels" somehow find peace, beauty & meaning in each of these worlds.
I praise this movie highly, and yet, I have issues with the mid-section. Where something like the aforementioned Cloud Atlas was wackadoo, it also felt like a well-balanced symphony & its deeper meanings felt assembled in a way that wasn't ever confounding. For me, the directors here are unable to corral the enormity of the multiverse. After a thrilling opening 30 min., "The Daniels" toss too many ingredients into the blender and, the film slowly loses its mojo; relegating to an onslaught of psychedelic images, frenetic pacing & thoroughly redundant action maneuvers to show how the worldly butterfly effect impacts the characters. A truer line of dialogue was never uttered: "This is all just a swirling bucket of bull sh*t". The cleverness starts to wear thin and, there are so many visual & thematic ideas being tossed at us that some of them simply fail to resonate; at least on my 1st viewing.
'EEAAO' is a whirlwind whose hyper, over-edited mish mash of genres typically "isn't my thing". But once I became engaged in Evelyn's self-realization, the film's themes about parent-child bonds, small decisions with big consequences, & our place in the world ... I was sold. We need more films like this in the universe; pun intended. When people ask why there aren't any original, non-Marvel/DCU movies out there anymore, we can point to this one. There is much to admire & praise; to laugh at, sit in wonderment at, & even cry at -- loved the emotionally-charged final Act. I just wish that it all congealed into the kind of cinematic magic that others felt. I suspect and, more importantly ... hope that it goes up in my estimation with subsequent watches.
A perpetually distressed Evelyn owns said laundromat with her timid husband, Waymond (Ke Huy Quan, of Goonies, Temple of Doom fame), who is about to serve her with divorce papers. She can't connect lately with her daughter, Joy (Stephanie Hsu). And Evelyn is embarrassed to admit to her ailing, elderly father, Gong Gong (James Hong) - who is visiting from China - that his granddaughter is dating a girl. The family has an appointment to file their taxes at the IRS office because their laundromat's business taxes are under review. On the way to see their agent, Deirdre Beaubeirdra (Jamie Lee Curtis), Evelyn has a bizarre encounter with Waymond, who explains that, at the moment, he is a 'different' Waymond from the multiverse. It appears that she is the version of Evelyn that he is looking for in an attempt to defeat a powerful entity named Jobu Tupaki, {who resembles their daughter, Joy} who is about to destroy the universe with her minions. Yes, you read that correctly.
She is just one of many Evelyns across the multiverse and, in order to 'verse jump' & attain skills from other versions of herself, she must perform tasks both bonkers & mundane; like eating lip balm, switching shoes to the wrong feet, giving paper cuts, drinking half-&-half and, even sitting on a butt plug can reap rewards. Utilizing all of the Evelyns-of-the-Universe skills, she just might prevent Jobu Tupaki from sucking everything into the void {which, naturally, happens to be an Everything Bagel}.
I recommend 'EEAAO' for its bold, audacious vision of the infinite, and a heartfelt examination of a woman & her family coming to grips with themselves. Because of its propulsive pacing, this art film comes across as a surprisingly accessible popcorn flick; chock full of superhero-like components & exciting Martial Arts action scenes. That said ... the manic editing of it all provided me an excessively mind-numbing experience for nearly its entire 135 minute run time. For better or worse, the film really IS everything everywhere all at once.
Michelle Yeoh - of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon & Crazy Rich Asians fame - carries the film with aplomb. As Evelyn, she's funny, she's serious, she kicks some butt & then leveled me emotionally in a parking lot scene. It's a wide-ranging performance that most actresses could only dream of giving. Ke Huy Quan is great as Evelyn's husband. Like Yeoh, he also gives a varied performance; as his multiverse Waymonds are so different from one to the other. Stephanie Hsu is fantastic as Joy, whose character ranges from melancholy daughter of Evelyn to enigmatic villain of the universe. Prolific James Hong - now 93! - is wonderful as old Gong Gong. This actor has over 450 acting credits in his career; which dates back to 1950. And Jamie Lee Curtis is having a blast as frumpy, dumpy tax agent, Deirdre. She looks ridiculously over-the-top, acts over-the-top, & nails the tone that the directors aimed for.
This movie bursts at the seams with imagination. The directors throw everything into the story hoping for it all to stick. This leads us to some hilarious, if nonsensical multiverses; like one where everyone has hot dogs for fingers, one where a talking raccoon {Racacooie, not Ratatouille} hides beneath a chef's hat and instructs him on how to cook, one where Evelyn & Joy simply exist as two rocks, one where they are pinatas, one where Evelyn is a hibachi cook, one where she is a glamorous movie star, & many more. "The Daniels" somehow find peace, beauty & meaning in each of these worlds.
I praise this movie highly, and yet, I have issues with the mid-section. Where something like the aforementioned Cloud Atlas was wackadoo, it also felt like a well-balanced symphony & its deeper meanings felt assembled in a way that wasn't ever confounding. For me, the directors here are unable to corral the enormity of the multiverse. After a thrilling opening 30 min., "The Daniels" toss too many ingredients into the blender and, the film slowly loses its mojo; relegating to an onslaught of psychedelic images, frenetic pacing & thoroughly redundant action maneuvers to show how the worldly butterfly effect impacts the characters. A truer line of dialogue was never uttered: "This is all just a swirling bucket of bull sh*t". The cleverness starts to wear thin and, there are so many visual & thematic ideas being tossed at us that some of them simply fail to resonate; at least on my 1st viewing.
'EEAAO' is a whirlwind whose hyper, over-edited mish mash of genres typically "isn't my thing". But once I became engaged in Evelyn's self-realization, the film's themes about parent-child bonds, small decisions with big consequences, & our place in the world ... I was sold. We need more films like this in the universe; pun intended. When people ask why there aren't any original, non-Marvel/DCU movies out there anymore, we can point to this one. There is much to admire & praise; to laugh at, sit in wonderment at, & even cry at -- loved the emotionally-charged final Act. I just wish that it all congealed into the kind of cinematic magic that others felt. I suspect and, more importantly ... hope that it goes up in my estimation with subsequent watches.