Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

Everything Everywhere all at Once 

This is a visual feast for the eyes! Now Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert have crafted such a beautiful tale that not only is visually striking in its imagery but has a premise that will have your jaw firmly on the floor and also be crying at certain points in this film. Now I love A24 to me they are the best film studio in the last 10 years that have turned on high caliber films one after the other and just hearing their name is on a project is enough for me to go out and seek that film due to their incredible features over the years like The Florida Project, Uncut Gems, The Lighthouse and so many more. Now I went into this film totally cold I didn’t see a trailer I read a very short synopsis of the film and that was really it and I loved doing that because I feel if I had seen the trailer before hand it would of not spoiled the experience but I wouldn’t of been as shocked by the style of this film if I had seen it beforehand. This film is incredibly well acted stylistic in such a stunning way that I can’t express how visually gorgeous this film is and the narrative is so original and unique it’s a cinematic experience that will amaze you and truly give you a journey unlike anything I’ve seen in a very long time. 

Firstly, We have to talk about the deep rooted meanings and the sense of style this film gives off as it’s off the charts. Now this story breaks down themes of family trauma, abandonment, finding one’s purpose, keeping to your dreams, and most noticeably the importance of love and family. Now the film brilliantly shows this in such a visually gripping sense while giving you a punch to the heart of sheer raw emotion that is felt through every frame of this film. As the film is split into three acts and it’s perfectly executed In it’s layered design of the story as it shows this mother who’s barley meeting her deadlines for her bills in a crippling marriage with very little love in it and a strained relationship with her daughter. And you see the bubbling of stress eating at her and the films sound design and brilliant editing makes you feel that paranoia and sheer emotional weight on the viewer through its sharp and well done sound design and then when the mother is thrust into this life changing experience you can see that delves head on into the topics I mentioned like family love abandonment in such a very realistic depiction because you at first don’t know what to make of this mother as she’s pretty tough but can come across cruel at times and it’s not until you see why she’s the way she is that you start to really feel for her and she goes on a journey of self discovery and self healing. It’s shown in a visually beautiful way but also it’s presented by such an outstanding performance by Michelle Yeon  anchored by a truly mesmerizing screenplay. This narrative and it’s incredible deep thematic themes it gives off is so powerfully presented wrapped in such a style you cannot look away from. 

Secondly, the performances in this film incredible you have Stephanie Hsu giving a emotionally cutthroat performance where you can tell she’s having a blast as this character but at the same time is able to go through the depths and shades of who the daughter is and the sheer frustration she shares with her mother. Then you have Ke Huy Quan who gives a sincere and emotionally weighted performance as the father who’s longing for his wife to have that spark they used to share for one another and it’s not until he thrusts her into this adventure that she comes to realize he’s always been their for her. He packs quite the punch of emotion with such a tenderness that makes you cry a puddle of tears he delivers a truly outstanding and moving performance. Then theirs the performance that is monumental the lead actress of this picture Michelle Yeoh who delivers honestly one of the best performances of her career with her knockout role in this film. She brings such a layered nuance to the Mother as she has so much trauma and heartbreak she’s felt through her life and Michelle Yeoh conveys that emotion so beautifully in this picture while chewing up the scenery in such a incredible performance that is for sure to have you truly mesmerized by what she’s delivering onscreen. Everyone in the cast delivers top notch performances regardless of how big or small their role is everyone gives their absolute all in this film. 

Lastly, Everything Everywhere All At Once is a film that is easily a top five best of the year film no doubt. As The experience and emotional journey this film takes you on is a cinematic treat for the senses and heart. As A24 knocks it out of the park once again with a truly genius screenplay that will be talked about for years to come and studied and on top of the great story at hand you have incredible performances from the entire cast and a tour de force performance by Michelle Yeoh while discussing themes of trauma love and family in such a real and raw way that will touch your heart. This film is  visually gorgeous it packs outstanding performances and truly brilliant direction Everything Everywhere All At Once is a modern day masterpiece and one of the most emotionally and visually beautiful experiences I’ve ever had with with a film this is definitely one of the best films I’ve seen this year. 

This film centres around a mother who can barley make ends meet and when she’s told she can look back on what lives she could of had and the trauma she’s had she goes on a path of self discovery that also could save not just herself but the world

Rated R : Some Violence|Sexual Material|Language

Michelle Yeoh : Michelle Yeoh gives one of the best performances of her entire career with her work in this film. Now I’ve been a fan of Michelle Yeoh since Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and she’s gone onto such great things such a overlooked performance in the critically acclaimed Crazy Rich Asians. She constantly is pushing herself emotionally into new depths as an actor to shed more layers of her emotional range on the screen and it’s incredible to watch. Now her work in Everything Everywhere All At Once is one of the best performances she’s ever given for the fact she sinks her teeth into such a complex and emotionally closed off character who does have such raw feelings bubbling under the surface just waiting to come out. As in the first 20 minutes of this film they make you view her as a woman with a hardened heart and cynical view on things and it’s not until she goes through this life changing experience that they can chip at her heart and she can finally recognize the importance of love and family. Now Michelle Yeoh was able to bring that tough edginess to the character in such a great way as you can see the emotional stress, the anxiety, the way she has a short fuse for her husband and daughter the constant need to be on her feet and rushing and going and not really stopping to acknowledge what’s right in front of her. And due to those actions she comes across a bit cold hearted and that’s exactly what she wanted to give off from the character and she does it brilliantly so when she makes that transition emotionally it works effortlessly because you can see the massive shift of who she was from the beginning to what she evolves into by the last scene of the film. She also could be very vulnerable with the character as well as their are moments she visits parts of her heart and life that are fragile and extremely personal to her and when she has to revisit those moments and see the lesson she learned from it is at times painful for her to see. You see that hurt and heartache wash across her face in such genuine emotionally it’s felt deeply through the way she delivers her dialogue. She was able to show so many fantastic sides to this character and take such a deep dive into this characters heart and soul in a way that has your eyes glued to her performance the entire film as it’s such a rich and gripping character and Michelle Yeoh just devours the character head on and knocks it straight out of the park delivering raw emotion and commands the screen presence with a iron fist overall Michelle Yeoh gives one of the best performances of her entire career with her tremendous work in this film. 

Dan Kwan & Daniel Scheinert : The direction given by this two is fresh and genius filmmaking that grab your attention the moment you see the first frame of this picture. Now these directors I have not heard of due to their film Swiss Army Man that came out a couple years ago that was the talk of the town due to its originality and incredibly striking screenplay now they like to craft films that are visually pleasing to the eye while delivering truly originally crafted stories. Now what they brought to this film is nothing short of genius as they amazed me with their ability to tackle very real and emotionally deep messages head on in a way that was not sugar coated or watered down. They talk about trauma, chasing  your passions, loving others and the importance of family and so much more and it never felt like it was preachy or over the top but it was impactful enough that it hits you right in the heart and has you swept up in each scene of this film. The style I can’t even describe as their are so many different strokes of genre in this multi layered story it’s a drama then theirs action and dark comedy and you can argue theirs even horror/ thriller beats to the story as well it really samples all of those genres I mentioned and wraps it up into this single film and it never feels overstuffed or over stylized in its execution. It knows exactly what it is which is a visual experience anchored by a truly incredible screenplay and it never gets bogged down in the visuals it keeps the focus on this mother who is the heartbeat of the film and the journey she goes on. And the direction is so well done as they give this out of this world experience I haven’t seen anything like since Jordan Peele’s Get Out or even Ari Astra’s Hereditary as their is such a striking image with the sheer scope and look of this film the film has a big canvas but it’s so intimate on its message which I love and Dan and Daniel truly give incredible direction while also getting truly amazing performances from his whole cast all the while showing us something truly incredible that it’ll be talked about for years to come and studied in film classes Their direction on this film is brilliant sheer brilliance.