During a recent icebreaker, I was asked what my favorite arts moment of 2022 was. Not only did I not have an answer, but I could not even think of a single arts moment that occurred in 2022 that held any notoriety. I skipped my turn and the next person to answer said, “It has to be ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once.’”
Not to toot this individual's so-called horn, but I completely agree with them and was immediately kicking myself for forgetting how this A24 film had me experiencing laughter, joy, confusion, anger and fear all within the first 20 minutes it was on screen. Through all the emotions this movie evokes, there is also a deep and relatable story about generational trauma and learning to love your family despite the flaws and scars that they exist with.
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (2022) is a visual masterpiece that screams for the attention of the audience with every shot. The lighting and camera angles create a sense of chaos that mirrors the protagonist's personal life, and all of this creates a prolific experience for anyone watching.
The story follows Evelyn, a Chinese American immigrant, who is being audited by the IRS when she begins to connect with parallel timelines of herself and sees lives that she could have led.
Spoiler alert: This is a movie about a multiverse where the main character focuses on her daughter's sexuality. This fact makes me laugh in a comedic yet traumatic way. Both Evelyn and her daughter Joy face these demons of wanting to be loved and seen by their parents. For Evelyn, this is equivalent to her finding success in America, and for Joy, this is her want for her mom to accept her lesbian identity.
This movie culminates in a huge fit of rage and pain and anger. It takes a while for Evelyn to realize that she is the one who has caused the misery that Joy feels. The journeys they experience through the multiverse show them that, in the end, nothing matters except for themselves, and Evelyn takes responsibility for the trauma she's inflicted on her own daughter. Often, queer stories are filled with invisible families and lack a theme of unconditional love. There is always a pain when it comes to generational gaps and queer relationships. The stories emphasize tragedy. “Everything Everywhere All at Once”turned a mournful narrative into a visually captivating space to feel grief and notice hope.
