Reviewed by Hannah Spencer.
Director: Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert. 2022, A24, MA15+, 139mins.
Everything Every Where All At Once is a brain explosion of creativity and absurdism in the best possible way.
The second film from directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert is an action, sci-fi, comedy, packed with martial arts, pop culture references and ingenuity.
If this sounds like a lot, it is.
But it’s the perfect amount.
Chinese American Evelyn is not having a good day; her marriage is failing, the family laundromat business is about to be repossessed by an irate tax agent (Jaime Lee Curtis, Knives Out) and her cantankerous father is visiting from China.
She was not expecting to also deal with a camp archvillain/ agent of chaos bent on the destruction of the multiverse.
Evelyn must quickly learn how “verse jump” to tap into the skills she has in alternate realities to save her family and the entire multiverse.
Thankfully, the alternate Evelyn’s are masters of martial arts, teppanyaki chefs and some even have hotdogs for fingers (just go with it).
All the while, she still really needs to do her taxes.
Evelyn is played by Michelle Yeoh (Crazy Rich Asians, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon).
The chaotic multiverse filled with innumerable alternate Evelyn’s gives her the opportunity to play a thousand different, perfectly executed roles in the space of two hours.
She is the steady anchor in this warp-speed film.
Evelyn’s husband is a little hopeless but also endearing and warm hearted.
If his face looks familiar, that’s because he is played by actor Ke Huy Quan who people may remember as the child ‘Short Round’ in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
After a long hiatus, this will hopefully mark his return to the world of acting.
Despite the completely chaotic, reality-bending nature of this film it is never overwhelming.
It is however hilarious and at times very touching.
Movies about the “multi-verse” seem to be a dime a dozen at the moment but they all pale in comparison to the absolute gem that is Everything Everywhere All At Once.
4.5 out of 5 stars.
Screening nationally
