Family therapy in the multiverse of madness – a review of “Everything Everywhere all at once”

I recommend everyone to go to the cinema once in a while with no expectations, no spoilers, no knowledge of the selected title. What if this time it is an absurd comedy. Or a juicy family drama. Or a specific action movie. Or crazy science fiction. Or even… everything (everywhere) at once.

 

Remember – a man is also an office

And it begins – at first glance – inconspicuously. The life of Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh) is relatively in order. Routine. Maybe even a little boredom. As a co-owner of a family self-service laundry, her problems are rather mundane, oscillating between the dying out of the marriage fire, demanding clients and maneuvering through the minefield of public administration. Things are likely to change when one day her husband turns out not to be who she thought him to be, and she herself has a bigger role to play than anyone could have expected … in at least one of her variants of her life.

The plot of the latest production of the duo Daniels (Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert) cannot be said so as not to reveal too much. The enormous power of the painting comes from skilfully playing with the surprise effect. A screening works best when there are no expectations associated with it. A duo of directors (so far known primarily for being equally original Penknife Manwith Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe in the lead roles) literally bombards the viewers with various stimuli – rushing action, dozens of more or less tasty jokes and gags, intertextual quotes and references. In this context, the title of the film itself seems to be both an announcement and a spoiler – the creators do not know (or consciously avoid) the concept of moderation. The creative feet of the directors reach only to the gas pedal, leaving the brakes in the workshop. It’s almost a constant ride on the ranks – so it’s good to sit comfortably in the armchair, but also hold firmly to the armrests.

Epileptic type film

Kwan and Scheinert also squeeze all creative juices from the concept of the multiverse, not limiting themselves to only slightly different variants of the same environment. The multiverse, as interpreted by the duo with open arms, welcomes even the most absurd and unreal versions of potential realities, without worrying about grounding them in known circumstances. It is much closer to the interdimensional cable straight from Rick and Morty than the rather conservative (despite its breakthrough at the time) Matrix . The artistic background of the two Daniels is also visible – the epileptic crowd and very dynamic editing finally fit into the poetics of music videos.

There is also a second, or even third, bottom hidden under the crazy shell. The bombastic form turns out to be only a pretext to charge the viewer with absurd, often borderline gags. However, the heart of the film is – to the enormous – positive – surprise of the writer of these words – an intimate and universal story about seeking acceptance and love, finding beauty in simplicity, and finally overcoming generational trauma and the value of family ties. Banality? Perhaps, but so skillfully woven that it strikes the most sensitive strings.

Who are they quoting ?!

The second full-length feature by the duo Daniels is obviously not a perfect film (although it lacks a little). At times you get the impression of choking on your own excitement, somewhere in the background you can hear a cackle of a joke told by himself – not necessarily digestible -. However, this is a small matter, because the artistic uncompromising attitude and fantasy with which the duo connects the seemingly most distant tropes and threads makes a great impression. All the more he wonders if the gauntlet thrown swaggeringly will soon be picked up by Stephen Strange . One thing is for sure – you will never look at bagels in a bakery the same again …

For the film Everything Everywhere at Once , we invite you to the Cinema City cinema network !