“When you really put everything on a bagel, it becomes this, the truth; nothing matters. Feels nice, doesn’t it? If nothing matters, then all the pain and guilt you feel for making nothing of your life, it goes away. Sucked into a bagel”
A movie that stands by its title, Everything, Everywhere, All at Once, this movie indeed has everything in it; it is now all over the place and at the same moment. It is a story about the multiverse and how we are living in so many ways at this very moment. It is not just a sci-fi thriller but also an insane emotional rollercoaster ride. The script, the direction, and the cast are all beyond excellent. The representation of the multiverse is very different from what we have seen till now. There is a universe where the only difference is the occupation of the person, and then there is also a universe where we exist just like a rock. This movie is just another family drama, but in a very thought-provoking and ‘greater than all good’ kind of way.
So the story is about a woman, Evelyn, who owns a laundromat, and her life’s biggest problem is understanding English, doing taxes, trying to get her daughter on the right path and making sure that her father is pleased with her. But like every other movie, life had something else in store for her. She is visited by another version of her husband, who has verse-jumped into her universe, to inform her that she is the only one who can save everyone. And the threat to all the verses is Jobu Topaki, an omniverse agent that causes chaos. Even before she understands everything, she is a part of the battle, and almost everyone near her starts verse jumping and fighting her. As a result, she, who is not good at anything, ends up fighting people who are very dangerous. She meets Jobu Topaki, who is someone she had never thought of; she learns to verse jump; and she understands her family in greater depths. This movie is about the relationship of a mother and daughter through various universes and the fact that they hold the same expectations in every one of them. It discusses how conversation is the solution to answering questions. And more importantly, it discusses the impact that expectations can have on a person, which is so deep that it can suck the whole world into it. It also shows how rebellion is not about opposing and fighting others but just about having someone who can understand. But all this is shown in an interesting and comic way, not letting you lose attention even once. The initial half hour of the movie is a bit confusing, but after that it picks up pace and everything falls into place. Although you will never realize what the real universe is because everything is real until you are a part of it.
When it comes to the film-making part, there is nothing that is flawed. The direction and storytelling are on point. The action sequences are clean and real, and the editing is just perfect. The role of Evelyn has been beautifully played by Michelle Yeoh. She has shown her amazing comic and martial arts skills, along with superb representation of varied human emotions. Every other person in the cast has also nailed their roles. It’s difficult to point out which is my favorite part from the movie because there are so many, but the part where there is a universe in which everyone is a rock is just serene.
Finally, it is a must-watch because this is surely a movie that will remain in your favorites for a very, very long time, and this applies to everyone irrespective of age or genre preferences. If not this review, then at least the innumerable awards won by this movie are proof of that, including the seven Oscars it just won. It is a matter of just 140 minutes, so just take out some time and have an amazing, hilarious, emotional, clever, chaotic, love-filled, and profound experience.
Because in the end, when you put everything together, nothing matters.
