Everything Everywhere All At Once Review

Everything Everywhere All At Once, the latest genre-defying masterpiece from filmmaking duo Daniels, is one of those movies that is next to impossible to write about. It’s so weird and so dense, with each new plot development somehow being stranger than the last. I don’t want to go into too much detail about its plotline, both because I want to refrain from sharing spoilers and because I genuinely don’t think you would believe me if you read some of the things this movie does. It’s definitely best to stay as in the dark as possible about this film prior to your first viewing, so I will be brief: this movie knocked me out.

The film follows Evelyn (a brilliant Michelle Yeoh), a Chinese-American woman struggling to find a balance between her challenging work as a small business owner and her messy relationships with her husband (Ke Huy Quan) and distant daughter (a scene-stealing Stephanie Hsu). During a routine meeting with an IRS agent (Jamie Lee Curtis), Evelyn is suddenly awakened to the infinite alternate versions of herself from parallel timelines, and a raging conflict that threatens the multiverse. 

Similar to Daniels’ last film Swiss Army Man, Everything Everywhere All At Once is a grab bag of tones and genres. The film juggles its heady existential sci-fi premise along with intimate family drama and some proudly stupid middle school humor, all to create a movie unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. The film has you laughing at the dumbest nonsense one minute and in tears the next. Sometimes these tones overlap in sequences that are truly emotionally disorienting yet utterly beautiful. For example, a very tender character scene is set in a universe where everybody has big floppy hot dog fingers. Truly silly and absurd, yet grounded and heartfelt at the same time.

The entire cast brings their A-game to these dense characters, with everyone playing multiple identities throughout the film’s runtime. Michelle Yeoh anchors the movie in what might be my favorite role of hers. She plays such a real, grounded person, giving us something to latch onto amidst the chaos of the story. Ke Huy Quan makes a stunning return to film acting after a nearly 20-year hiatus and absolutely kills the contrast between his alternate selves. Jamie Lee Curtis is giving the type of performance usually reserved for Nicolas Cage roles. It’s absolutely unhinged. She’s made such big weird choices for this character, and it’s absolutely hysterical. The real star-making turn, however, comes from relative newcomer Stephanie Hsu, who handles what is arguably the most complicated character with ease. Similar to Curtis, she has made some frankly bizarre choices for her Alt-Universe Super Self, all of which serve to demonstrate how those timelines have affected her. I would not be surprised to see Hsu’s career absolutely blow up in response to this movie. We have not seen the last of her.

Overall, Everything Everywhere All At Once is one of the most unique movies I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing on a big screen. It’s visually astonishing, laugh-out-loud hilarious, and heartbreakingly earnest all at the same time. It was particularly refreshing to see the perspective of an immigrant family explored in such a high genre movie, which I’m sure will only help it resonate with many audiences. It is certainly an acquired taste, but if you can handle such a big, goofy, head trip of a movie, it’s worth seeking out. This movie will blow some minds.