An aging Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure, where she alone can save what's important to her by connecting with the lives she could have led in other universes.
FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/everything-everywhere-all-at-once-spoiler-free-review
"Everything Everywhere All at Once is undoubtedly one of the best movies of the year, finally putting Daniels on the mainstream radar.
With such a low budget, it's almost humiliating that so many expensive Hollywood blockbusters can't even reach the heels of so much originality, imagination, excitement, and emotion. Michelle Yeoh leads the troops in a film that also pays homage to the iconic career of the actress who, at 59 years old, accompanies the fantastic stunt team in truly outlandish fights.
The mother-daughter relationship as the emotional core of the story follows a surprisingly predictable path and needs a few more dialogues to deliver an even more powerful climax, but it still induces tears and a genuine sense of concern for the characters.
Technically, all the elements are so creatively unique that it warrants the clickbait "you've never seen anything like this".
See it in theaters!"
Rating: A
A truly sensational film! The utter definition of a must-watch.
'Everything Everywhere All at Once' is impressive from every single viewpoint. I had heard murmurs of it being a great film, yet it still managed to completely smash my expectations. This 2022 release features a superb cast, a fascinating story and some top notch visuals. The editing and pacing, in particular, are brilliant.
The onscreen talent are all fantastic, but Michelle Yeoh is still the absolute standout from this. What a performance! I could watch her in this role over and over and over. With that said, Ke Huy Quan (welcome back!) is awesome as well, as are Stephanie Hsu, James Hong and Jamie Lee Curtis. Everyone plays their part very, very well.
All of the humour lands, with some parts being truly funny. It also manages to show supremely enjoyable action alongside a highly meaningful side too. In short: EEAAO is outstanding - you must see it if you get the opportunity!
Raccacoonie 👀
I loved both Michelle Yeoh ("Evelyn") and Jamie Lee Curtis ("Deirdre") in this entertainingly surreal take on the latest multi-verse theme to hit the cinemas. The former is a lady trying to balance the books at her failing laundry who must face the wrath of the latter - an imposing IRS investigator. Add to her woes, she has her hapless husband "Waymond" (Ke Huy Quan); her recently out lesbian daughter "Joy" (Stephanie Hsu) and her imperious and disapproving father "Gong Gong" (James Hong). Frankly, this poor woman does not have her troubles to seek. Then, all of a sudden, there is a rift - and in best Lewis Carroll tradition, "Evelyn" finds herself in not just one, but in multiple realities where she has everything from superpowers to a need to save the world from beings that would permanently unravel all the layers of existence on planet Earth. It's frankly impossible to adequately evaluate the plot - it lurches, veers, wobbles and meanders all over the shop with precious little linear to guide the viewer. It is a tour de force from Yeoh, well directed and scripted - frequently amusingly - that asks just as many questions as it strenuously attempts to avoid answering. It is aptly titled - and you need to have your eyes (and your brain) on wide beam to get the most from this feast of ostensibly nonsensical, but often poignant, series of escapades that search for what could constitute any degree of life-satisfaction for "Evelyn". A second viewing is highly recommended - it has plenty more to give once you've calibrated your senses after the first time, and big screen shows off some great VFX that do not impose themselves on this character-driven movie.
Very imaginative movie. I will give it that much.
However, in my opinion this movie is not as good as all the hype. The title made this seem to me like a multi dimensional sci-fi film but the sci-fi elements are just dressing to a core plot that's quite bland. Maybe that's what the film makers were going for. To me though it was just a good movie 7/10.
Full Analysis at Spotamovie.com - **Intro** - Everything Everywhere All at Once is one of the best movies of 2022 and it can easily target some Oscars. It’s an incredible journey through multiverses to discover something mind-blowing that may change your existence. - **The Story** - The Wang are an, apparently, happy family. But when we begin to observe them, we discover fascinating characters with their needs, dreams and frustrations. Evelyn, in the middle of a midlife crisis, needs to learn how to cope with her anxieties, fears and family. On the other hand, her loved ones must understand how to deal with Evelyn, with their needs and how to re-think a life together. All of these crushes with the ongoing crisis of their business. An IRS auditor is making their lives challenging between invoices, debts and the risk of shutting down their business. What are Evelyn’s fears?
How is her relationship with herself, with his daughter, husband and father? And what is the multi-verse? - **Enjoy the film and our full analysis at https://www.spotamovie.com/everything-everywhere-all-at-once-review-and-explanation-movie-2022/**
**Overall : an unparalleled bizarre cinema masterpiece that approaches the multiverse in a fresh, new, ingenious way.**
I have no idea what I just witnessed. Everything Everywhere All at Once is unlike anything anyone has ever seen before. This brilliant goofy, zany, ridiculous genius movie will fry your brain cells. This film instantly establishes itself as a necessity for any true cinema lover. Ground-breaking writing that feels like a Christopher Nolan script with no limits and some eccentricity mixed in. I’m not sure if I fully enjoyed the movie, but I also can’t say I fully understand everything Everything Everywhere All at Once is. Not a film for everyone but an absolute must for movie fans or sci-fi enthusiasts.
Interesting idea about a really multiverse of madness, not for everyone, but I liked it. But I still wanted more of a multiverse, still family relationships make the idea more local, one does not feel the scale of what is happening.
It’s literally just THE MATRIX (1999) for an internet generation.
It examines its themes of modern nihilism in a somewhat similar way to SORRY TO BOTHER YOU (2018) examines capitalism and racial division; by abstracting the flaws in their thesis with an intense flavor of absurdity, excellent stuff. On a more nuts and bolts level, it’s still insanely impressive; my brain hurts just thinking about being in the editing room for this. The cinematography is surprisingly coherent given the almost manic visual quality the story demands, and it manages consistently to look great. The production design, lighting, costuming, VFX, etc., are all outstanding and are just a joy to watch. The performances are fantastic too! The main cast all knock it out of the park.
Hilarious, beautiful, hard-hitting, empathetic, and kinetic filmmaking. I’m so glad I got to see it in a theater!
Shoutout to Jenny Slate’s dog and the Randy Newman raccoon for enriching my life.
Felt way too much like the film was giving 'nods' to itself about how groundbreaking it was. Didn't feel that way to me and I could only get through 1/3. Not at all recommended.
I loved it from start to finish. Also it contains few powerful messages. Probably not a masterpiece but a very enjoyable movie I am sure.
Everything Everywhere All at Once had lofty expectations to fill, and unfortunately it fails to deliver the five-star rating I was expecting going into the film.
There is nothing inherently wrong with the movie in general, there was a surface level plot with complex themes at play, which somehow balances the zany world of the multiverse with an intimate connection between mother and daughter. This connection had a nice arch throughout the story but failed to draw me in emotionally. I understood what I should feel in those impactful moments but had a hard time connecting.
The performances were great. Ke Huy Quan was incredible and one of the highlights of the entire movie. His switch from clueless doppy husband to multi-versal warrior had me hysterically laughing. Michelle Yeoh is fantastic and deserving of all her praise and award buzz.
Despite my problems with a lack of connection to the story, the action really raises this movie as a whole. There is something so captivating about 60-year-old women performing incredible complex kung fu against one another. The brutality is superb and incredibly fun to watch. Another layer to the action is the actions our characters must perform to tape into their multi-versal selves. These are crazy, vulgar, and some of the most shocking things I have seen on screen.
Score: 85% |
Verdict: Great
“Everything everywhere all at once” is a joy to experience.
A family, who’s business is currently being investigated for tax fraud, find themselves thrown into the realm of the multiverse in order to save existence itself. Jamie Lee Curtis is the investigator challenged to gain answers to questionable tax deductions while Michelle Yeoh ( Evelyn Wang ) is tasked with providing those answers while being distracted by her husband Waymond ( Ke Huy Quan ) jumping from universe to universe.
What ensues is a fun filled, emotional, SCI FI adventure that keeps the audience guessing the probable outcomes throughout. The performances of the four main actors, who juggle with very different characterisations of the family members, are magnificent. The Standout performances however are from both Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan who not only showcase their martial art skills but also highlight their fantastic comic timing as they switch between different versions of their characters in each universe they visit.
The optimism and love the central characters show to each other as well as others contrasts so well with the cold uncaring multiverse. What this achieves is “Everything everywhere all at once “ manages to deliver something so unique that it ensures the film will stay with its audience for a long time after.
A mediocre episode of Rick & Morty.
Thanks to good acting, directing and editing, ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ manages to tell its complicated concept of the multiverse quite coherently, even though I sort of lost interest in the story about 30 minutes before the ending. Yet overall, it was all very enjoyable, with references to ‘2001: A Space Oddysey’ and ‘Ratatouille’, and with a surprisingly quiet and funny scene of talking rocks.
7/10
Everything is fake.
**things I liked in the movie and things I didn't like.**
A Chinese immigrant lives in America and embarks on a crazy and strange adventure in multiple universes. This movie should be called the multiverse of madness. The things that were written in "Doctor Strange 2" I saw in this movie in terms of the worlds, the characters, and the strange things that happen.
Critics expressed their admiration for this film and it won the admiration of many, but from my point of view, yes, it was enjoyable, but the duration of the movie was unpleasant and long for me. There is a good message in the movie, which is an atmosphere that contains a rush about oneself and how important we are in this universe, at the same time you discover that you aren't important in this universe.
There is a strong emotional factor in the movie, which is the story of a mother with her daughter and the love of the family, but the film sometimes took unexpected comedic paths and was affected by the emotional factor. At the same time, there are things that are supposed to be funny and they actually made many viewers of the film laugh, but at the same time you see Some of the comedy scenes were disgusting and nauseating.
The movie is special and it is one of the best good movies you will see in 2022, but at the same time the movie needed a better balance in terms of comedy and drama in a way that summarizes this is similar to the movie The Matrix, which is a person who can enter another world through his mind. Here you see the idea is similar, but in multiple universes, and you see these multiple universes and you see the options.
This movie makes you think about your personal decisions and makes you think that there are people like you, but in other universes they made decisions that affected you. Here this idea is creative, but what bothered me was the comedic situations at the wrong time. There are emotional scenes that were touching. Great dialogue scenes, but they were damaged by the comedy because sometimes the movie Reminds me of Marvel movies.
The cinematography, editing, and music were wonderful, which was an essential factor in the film's story. The scene of the rocks was eye-catching, wonderful, deep and poignant, but at the same time the director decided to show this story and how he used somewhat disgusting comedic tools. It was something for me that was inappropriate and inappropriate.
Yes, I know that this movie has Hollywood agendas, and this is a large part that contributed to it receiving very high and fabulous ratings, but in general, there are things I liked in the movie and things I didn't like.
Thematically, this movie has something to chew on. Unfortunately the metaphor used to explore the theme is constructed in a sloppy way that falls apart under any scrutiny. Well performed actions sequences are irrelevant to the progression of the theme and only serve to mark time between the tidbits of character drama spread out over the movie.
The superficial plot and setting similarities to The Matrix also bring these shortcomings into sharp focus. Whereas the former takes pains to communicate it's ideas to the audience with precise foreshadowing, EEAAO tries to throw as many ideas at you as fast as possible hoping that you won't notice they have no substance, and ultimately don't matter. The former has action scenes that are relevant to the theme, progress the story, and matter to the character's journey. The later simply has me waiting until they're over for the story to pick back up. It's not that there's nothing this movie has to say, it's simply afraid to say it without constant 'lol so random!!' memes.
**A magnificently anti-nihilistic and brutally well-executed film, with a cast of deeply committed actors and an insane story.**
I just saw this film and felt an irresistible need to talk about it and comment on it. However, I recognize that a text of just a few thousand characters is completely insufficient to make a fair assessment. This is one of the most complex films I've seen, and so I'm going to try to make an extra effort not to spoil it, even though I feel like I'm going to need to address some things in more depth to be able to write what I need. Let's start by saying that the film was an overwhelming success, both at the box office and with critics, and that it is worth every cent of our cinema ticket. He was also acclaimed at the 2023 Oscars ceremony, with seven statuettes (Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Editing and Best Original Screenplay) in ten nominations. And in addition to the Oscars, many other prizes and awards that seem completely justified to me.
The script is one of the most creative and insane I've ever seen: it all starts with a middle-aged Chinese lady who tries to deal with the organized chaos of her normal life: a half-bankrupt business, a marriage in ruins, a bad relationship with an authoritarian father and a lesbian and protesting daughter. And problems with income tax. It is in the midst of this that she discovers that there are billions of other universes, with several other versions of the people she knows, and that she needs to help defeat an evil, an evil force that threatens to destroy them all.
The film starts from very bold physics premises, where there are some theories that address the possibility of universes parallel to ours, with our alter-egos living there, and goes further, stating that these universes are born from our multiplicity of options and decisions every day. For example, I'm here writing this, but in another universe, another version of me chose not to watch any movie and sleep. I'm not going to explain much more, not even how the main character discovers this, nor what kind of evil entity that is, but I can say that, deep down, the biggest message I took away from this film is the need to live in the present, but also have faith and cultivate love and good feelings, instead of futile sensations or meaningless nihilism. In effect, the main character needs to believe in herself and in the abilities she doesn't know she can have, in order to combat that malevolent force, which is, in itself, a good representation of nihilism, the feeling that nothing in this life it's really worth it. Still regarding the script, I believe it is fair to say that it was precisely closer to the end that I felt the inspiration running out, the creative overdose of the directors and screenwriters. This is, after so many bizarre and unusual things, the apparently simple ending (even though it wasn't) seemed strangely anti-climactic to me.
There's so much to say about the technical aspects of this film... directed by Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan, it's a surprisingly cheap production (a budget of around thirty million dollars, for Hollywood and considering what this film is, it's a small bag of pennies and quarters), which works incredibly well. On a visual level, it's one of the most devastating films I've ever seen, with cinematography and editing worthy of being studied by film schools. And then, we have the great work of designing sets and costumes, and the impressive work of the action doubles and makeup, among many other subtle details that are so tiny that we almost don't notice them, and that show the detailed, patient nature and commitment of directors and their team. The soundtrack is also a very positive point, with an atmospheric and sometimes very discreet sound. There are lots of references to aspects of pop culture, such as martial arts or even technological gadgets, and the fight and action scenes were made with maximum attention to detail, including sudden stops of the image in the most intense scenes, a style of cinematography very characteristic of kung fu films.
The work of the cast deserves praise. By playing a wide range of cinema styles in the same character, from comedy to physical action, Michelle Yeoh embarked on a tour de force so challenging that it would make any renowned actor think twice. The way she gives herself to the character is total, absorbing. Stephanie Hsu follows her closely and offers us profound work, full of feeling and emotion. Ke Huy Quan is also impressive and does a remarkable job. In smaller characters but still worthy of mention, we have the veteran James Hong, and the prestigious Jamie Lee Curtis, in a performance so far out of her comfort zone that it seems unimaginable for this actress, and yet it could become pivotal to her career from now on.
**Bloated nonsense, overlong and meaningless.**
If this movie wasn't so overhyped and so overrated, I would just dismiss it as a meh kind of movie. But as it is so overhyped and overrated, I kind of start to hate it.
But to not waste a lot more time on this nonsense, I will just point out the main reasons why the movie failed for me.
1.) The movie failed to establish an emotional connection between the viewer and what is happening on the screen i. E. in the movie. One of the reasons for that being: the movie was driven by nonsense. Whenever the main characters are stuck in a situation, the have to perform some nonensical bullcrap, so that they can crazy-deus-ex-machina their way out of the situation. Again and again and again and again and again.
2.) The other reason for the failed emotional connection is that there were no sympathetic characters given to connect with. Everyone is just a self-absorbed a-hole or douchebag. What they are fighting for is a chaotic piled up mess (because they are unable to fix anything and to improve, so they prefer having a meanignless mess to having nothing).
So, my main problem was: I just didn't care for anything happening in the movie.
If you think that it is a profound philosophical question to ask how your life would be if you would have sausages for fingers (just to give you an example), this may be a movie you. But if you think that such a question is just stupid and stopped being funny since you turned 8 years old, maybe you should avoid spending timeor money on this movie.
But there are some few reddeming qualities of this movie, hence I gave it 4/10.
Which are:
- The cinematography isn't bad.
- It doesn't look like a trash movie production-value-wise.
- Some of the acting wasn't too bad, if you can look past the garbage mess the actors had to work with.
- It has some funny moments, if you can take the nonsense and the stupidity.
But again, at the end of the day, I didn't care for the pile of nonsense that the movie is.