Production company A24’s newest film “Everything Everywhere All at Once” offers audiences a transcendent look into the multiverse. Having premiered in all theaters across the globe on April 8, the film’s narrative indulges in absurdity, surrealism, family and empathy.
Directed by the duo Daniel “Dan” Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, collectively known as Daniels, the sci-fi film follows Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh) who is a Chinese immigrant consumed with the mundane obligations of work, family and life. Wang’s character is neck-deep in stress, struggling to keep the family’s self-owned laundromat, her marriage and relationships with her daughter and elderly father afloat — essentially allowing her business to become the target of an inconvenient IRS audit.
Mere moments before the audit ensues, Evelyn’s seemingly meek and cautious husband takes on a sudden change in demeanor, frantically announcing that he is not only a completely different version of himself from an alternative timeline within the complex multiverse but he also believes that the present Evelyn is the only person powerful enough to save the entirety of the universe. The overwhelming information that falls upon her metamorphosizes the film into a pastiche of beauty, heartache, action and wonder that is nearly impossible to look away from, mixing artistic elements of media not typically expected of movies alone.
”Everything Everywhere All at Once” is separated into three distinct parts: part one being about the “everything,” part two being the “everywhere” and part three acting as the “all at once.” Each division transports the audience and Evelyn further into the complicated interconnectedness of the film’s multiverse and the infinite parallel timelines that unravel. Singular and minor choices a character makes spawn a new and altered universe.
As expected from an A24 film, the cinematography within “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is completely and utterly gorgeous: splendiferous montages containing frame after frame of individual versions of Evelyn’s life — each vastly different yet equally detailed and full of stunning and intricate make-up — and costuming, movement and setting, with each new concept being more creative than the former. Dynamic and unanticipated camera angles and movements are highlighted further contributing to the interesting cinematic experience.
When Evelyn first accesses an alternative version of herself, the screen, the present Evelyn and the subtitles become cracked and doubled, mirroring her fragmented sense of self in the present and infinite existences within the multiverse. Equally captivating is the use of color and light throughout, specifically in close-up shots of Evelyn looking at the camera straight on as an array of colorful light circles the screen, altering her appearance through the changing angles and shadows across her face. These particular moments show the many versions of Evelyn contained within herself — just as her face contains various appearances based on how it’s illuminated.
Similarly, scenes with the multiverse’s villain Jobu Tupaki — the alter ego of Evelyn’s daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu), who experiences all versions of the universe and herself literally “all at once” — hold applause-worthy attention to detail. In the blink of an eye, Jobu’s physical appearance transfigures in its totality: hair, make-up and incredibly stylish outfits included, showing the talent of costume designer Shirley Kurata and the movie’s overall visual pleasantry at the hand of its cinematography, art, set-decoration and makeup crews.
The clever meta-film false ending that concludes part one, where an alternative movie star version of Evelyn watches the present Evelyn’s life unfold in a theater, is also an example. The false ending not only surprises viewers but also exemplifies the film’s attention to the power of imagination and fiction that asks everyone to suspend disbelief in exchange for the opportunity to enter the lives and journeys outside of our own.
There are endless scenes within “Everything Everywhere All at Once” that are cinematically, visually and emotionally unforgettable. The film’s striking soundtrack enhances each of these aspects throughout, especially during the high-intensity action scenes, and grants a surprising grace and waltz-like quality amongst the chaos — serving as both a fight and an elegant partner dance.
With endless universes contained within the umbrella of the multiverse, each individual world takes on a unique absurdity, executed in a bewitching, alluring and often grotesque manner. In one universe, everyone has floppy — and frankly disturbing — hot dog fingers. In another, Evelyn works as a chef whose competitor is only successful thanks to his pet raccoon that sits beneath his chef hat and controls his movements, echoing the plot of Disney’s “Ratatouille.” There is even a universe in which no life exists at all, and Evelyn and Jobu take on the form of sentient rocks instead of humans.
While all immensely clever and increasingly unpredictable, the variety of universes hold a commonality by the film’s end that affects and cascades throughout the multiverse in an incredibly meaningful manner. So much of the film surrounds the choices unacted, the moments not seized and the paths not taken; the multiverse allows Evelyn to explore career and romance outside of the journey she’s traveled, and it forces her to confront the effects of her actions and limited perspective within the present, especially concerning her family.
Evelyn’s inability to outwardly acknowledge Joy’s sexuality in front of her traditional father (James Hong) under the guise that he’s “from a different generation” causes a noticeable strain on the mother-daughter relationship. With a version of Joy representing the film’s ultimate villain, the cosmic complexity of the multiverse’s destruction becomes a surrealist allegory for Joy’s internal rejection and pain that hinders her happiness. Although Evelyn initially dismisses her husband’s non-confrontational and child-like behavior, she comes to value that kindness is his “strategic and necessary” reaction to adversity, and it’s his lesson on empathy that eventually prompts her to support Joy with the love she deserves. Thus, empathy becomes the vehicle for salvation.
Like all aspects of “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” the cast is incredible. Yeoh’s portrayal of Evelyn is truly amazing; her multifaceted acting and performance skills, such as her comedic timing, movement within martial arts action scenes and emotional range make her the perfect lead. Ke Huy Quan’s performance as Waymond Wang also processes earnestly, which tugs at everyone’s heartstrings time and time again. Like Yeoh and Quan, Hsu brought talent, intensity and layers to her portrayal of Joy/Jobu Tupaki, marking it not only as one of the best performances of the film but arguably the best performance of her career. Jamie Lee Curtis’ role as tax auditor Deirdre Beaubeirdra is also enjoyable and well-executed.
Although its presentation is trippy, chaotic and all-containing, the film is deeply human. Among rip-tickling and ludicrous visuals, the importance of kindness, understanding and unconditional love are present and continuously stressed. By the film’s end, it is clear that empathy, family and love are at the core of “Everything Everywhere All at Once” because those values transcend through the multiverse no matter the differing universes’ strangeness.
The film is unlike any single form of media out there, processing a uniqueness and originality that the film industry has been unfortunately deprived of. While concepts like the multiverse escapism-based entertainment have gained more popularity in recent years, the film’s Asian representation and cast diversity work also to tell an important story surrounding cultural, familial and generational pressures through an explosion of cinematography that is yet to be matched.
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” can be summed up as the following: messy yet calculated, disorienting yet groundbreaking, gentle yet strong and whimsical yet full of an emotional intensity that grabs hold of one’s heart with an unswayable persistence.
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” is, in one word, unforgettable.
Clairesse Schweig is an Entertainment Staff Writer for the spring 2022 quarter. They can be reached at cschweig@uci.edu.