Hello, minions of the multiverse. I trust you are all wreaking havoc in every reality you find yourselves in.
Everything Everywhere All At Once.
It recently won seven awards at the 2023 Oscars and I do believe it might be my current favourite film.
The plot follows Evelyn Wang (played by Michelle Yeoh), a rather cold, perpetually stressed-out and tired laundromat owner who has tried her hand at pretty much everything under the sun and finds herself under audit by the IRS. With her cheery and seemingly-bumbling husband Waymond (Ke Huy Quan) trying to open up communication with her about their marriage, and her daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu) who desperately just wants her mother to see her and accept her queer identity and relationship with her girlfriend, Evelyn is pursued by a great, inter-dimensional danger that leaves chaos in its wake, and in her attempt to escape it, embarks on a multidimensional adventure that takes her not only to scary and
wonderful new places in the universe, but also within herself, leading her to better understand herself, as well as her family.
Plus there’s a universe where they have hotdogs for fingers and it’s great. if anything you should watch this film just for that.
Sounds weird right? It absolutely is. It is the most heart-warming and soul-nourishing story I have ever seen, and it literally involves buttplugs as a plotpoint. Buttpoints. Or Plotplugs? Whatever. It’s glorious, and heart-warming, overwhelming at times (but in the best, most cathartic way) and it is just so so incredibly strange.
It’s essentially an exploration of destructive nihilism vs cheerful nihilism. Our lives may not have a grand purpose, but they can be good if we’re in a position where we’re lucky enough to have people around us whom we love and love us in return, we can create moments of joy and bring meaning to meaninglessness. Spots of light amongst the darkness.
Ahem. If you’re into that kind of thing. Regardless If a film can bring cheer into the heart of a Sith Lord such as I, it is definitely something special. And Everything, Everywhere All At Once is definitely a very special film. Do yourself a favour and give it a watch.