In film history, there have been quite a few irreverent filmmakers with a style all their own. They’ve made some very unique films. A more recent pair of oddball filmmakers are the Daniels: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert. Their movie Swiss Army Man took the world by storm back in 2016. The Death of Dick Long, not so much. Still, these guys swing for the fences every time and Everything Everywhere All at Once is a grand slam. It’s the wildest, craziest film they’ve directed yet.
Michelle Yeoh (Crazy Rich Asians) plays a Chinese woman who owns a laundromat with her husband (Ke Huy Kwan, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom), who has been out of acting for a while. They also have a daughter (Stephanie Hsu) who is like other daughters. Regarding her attitude towards her parents, she has a bad one. The family goes to a tax auditor (Jamie Lee Curtis) to get their taxes done. This whole situation involving their tax preparation and family drama comes to a head.
This film deals with many zany situations that will hardly ever be able to be done again. Marvel is dealing with various situations involving the multiverse in the most recent films. That being said, this film might take the cake when it comes to movies about multiverses. It goes back and forth in time to various points in Yeoh’s character’s life and alternate versions of her and her husband. These versions range from a noir version to a far-future version to the hotdog hands version. While trying to traverse the multiverse, she realizes she has an enemy named Jobu Tabecky. She has to stop her to save her timeline and the multiverse.
Like Daniels’ other films, this film has some laugh-out-loud moments, many of which are too good to believe. This film is as bonkers as any film I’ve ever seen. It has incredible editing dealing with various multiverse situations and cutting back and forth between the timelines. The technical aspects besides the editing are also very good, including the makeup, hairstyling, and costumes. The visual effects are also outstanding in this film. The Russos knew what they were doing getting behind this film because it’s a masterpiece. I use that word very sparingly.
Michelle Yeoh has been an actress who’s been around a long time. She’s done quite a few stellar films (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Memoirs of a Geisha) and television projects. Her role in this film is by far the best of her remarkable career. She does so much it’s so hard even to describe how incredible she is in this film. She speaks in multiple languages and has many action and martial arts scenes. She has a lot to do in this role, and she succeeds thoroughly at everything she does and says.
The film is divided into three segments named after the film’s title. Each piece gets wilder and wilder and crazier and crazier the further the film goes. The various versions of the main characters are all done very well. They all each have their own personality to them. Not to get confused with any of the other versions. The villain is off the wall as well. That all being said, all of the zany, crazy, wild stuff is just a disguise for what this film is really about.
The Daniels did all this to tell their version of a family drama. This film is about a mother who has to come to terms with her daughter who doesn’t love her. She does everything to get the love of her daughter and husband. All mothers want their families to love them, and at some point in their lives, they love them sometimes. I lost respect for my mother because of what she did to me. Yeoh’s character is just trying to get that love back. In some twisted way, this is Daniels trying to say how important a mother’s love is. And no matter what trouble or problems a child or husband has, they want a wife and mother who is present in their lives. She has been worn down by life and everything that goes along with it.
I’ve seen a lot of insane films in my time. All the wild and crazy sci-fi and horror movies I’ve seen can’t hold a candle to this film. The Daniels have outdone themselves this time. But on the other hand, they also made a straightforward family drama the way only they could. The family dynamic of this film might be the best I’ve ever seen. I know it’s early, but it is the best film of 2022. Hopefully, it will stand the test of time, and we’ll be talking about it at this time next year at the Academy Awards. Michelle Yeoh gives the performance of her career and should be considered for Best Actress next year at the Oscars. The same goes for the Daniels. They have made an absolute masterpiece I will be thinking and talking about for weeks and months to come.
5 stars
Dan Skip Allen
Sean Boelman Founder/EIC disappointment media
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