Everything Everywhere All At Once Movie Review

Ever since it first premiered back at South by Southwest, the new A24 film from filmmakers Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert has been receiving quite an unfathomable number of praises. Many calling it not only the film of the year but going as far as to label it as "masterpiece" or "one of the greatest films I've ever seen". That's certainly some high praise that have quite skyrocketed my own expectations in the recent weeks. Aside from the nearly perfect critical reception it has been gaining, the trailers for this were also very intriguing and looked like a wholly unique dive into the multiverse concept. I was also a huge fan of The Daniels previous film Swiss Army Man, the weirdly endearing farting corpse film. But when you have a film like this that so many are also essentially hailing as the next Citizen Kane, I always feel it is best to keep those expectations in check when sitting down for my own experience.

I'm here to tell you though that Everything Everywhere All at Once is worth every bit of the hype you've been hearing for weeks. The Daniels have already proven themselves to be very distinctive artists with their previous work, but they've outdone themselves with what is one of the most masterfully crafted genre film in many years. It feels all too rare these days that we see a genre film with this level of creativity and pure heart shining through the big screen. Every single frame feels so loaded with so many details that it feels nearly impossible to pick up on all of it in just one viewing. From all the comedy, family drama, and sc-fi, it's very hard to put a film like this in a box, but The Daniels manage to seamlessly balance all of these very different elements so well. The action set pieces are inventive and all of it is so well choregraphed, it certainly demands to be seen on the biggest screen possible.

Even in the middle of all the multiverse shenanigans though, the film never loses sight of crafting a very heartfelt and emotionally resonating story. This screenplay is very funny, surprisingly emotionally mature, and unpredictable at every single turn. I was surprised by just how emotionally wrapped up I was in this story and these characters. I was laughing at one moment then just about tearing up the very next. Whenever a film dives into the multiverse it runs the risk of being far too convoluted and being an emotional disconnect due to an abundance number of characters, but the gamble pays off here in the hands of these smart filmmakers. I know it feels way too early in the year to be talking about next year's Oscars but considering how genre films in recent memory from Get Out, Mad Max: Fury Road and Black Panther have been embraced, I sure hope a film like this isn't forgotten about come awards time.

Michelle Yeoh has always been an underappreciated goddess for far too long and it's such a great treat to watch her completely knock it out of the park with a lead performance that just might be the finest work of her entire career. It's a challenging role where she gets to be charming, funny, sympathetic, and yet still also display that fierce bad assery that she always brings with her screen presence. It's time to get that Best Actress campaign rolling already. Stephanie Hsu also does equally impressive work as Yeoh's daughter Joy and does a great job playing so many different personalities. The always great Jamie Lee Curtis and Jenny Slate are also wonderful in supporting roles. But easily the biggest surprise and MVP for me was Ke Huy Quan (who for those that don't know was Short Round in Indiana Jones 2 and Data in The Goonies). Quan gives such an emotionally vulnerable that will tug at the heart strings many times and he really is the heart of the film. It's so great to see him in a big film again and I certainly hope we see a big resurgence from him after this.

I don't really have noticeable flaws to pick from with this one. It maybe does run a tad too long, but I can't say I ever particularly felt the length. It is also a lot to unpack with just one viewing as the Daniels are throwing so much at the screen and I won't pretend I could completely comprehend everything all the glory I was witnessing. But that's also exciting and exactly the sort of element that just has me immediately itching to go back to see this one again already. Rewatches and time are always going to be rewarding for a film like this. The Daniels have crafted a true marvel of a film with their latest and it's one I certainly can't wait to watch again (and again). It could be very hard for a film that is receiving this much praise to live up to all the hype but believe me this film is very much the real deal and I can't imagine it not cracking my Top 10 of the year once it's over too. Make sure to seek it out if you still haven't, original genre films with this level of creativity and pure heart need our support.

Final Grade: A-