After grabbing an everything bagel from Call Your Mother — a reference you’ll understand if you’ve watched the movie — I decided to rewatch “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” The movie was a surprise smash hit in the box office, crossing genres almost as well as it tells a deeply human story. Let’s take a dive behind the scenes to figure out what makes this movie different — and how it advocates for the many groups involved in the telling and creation of the story.
After quickly surpassing $100 million at the box office, people were left wondering exactly what made “Everything Everywhere” so appealing. The answer lies in the wide range of emotions and genre styles that directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, referred to as Daniels in the credits, are able to portray, mixing tear jerking drama with thrilling sci-fi and wushu-style action.
The film also uses its meager $25 million budget well, featuring unique filmmaking techniques such as shooting primarily in one location, which adds a nostalgic quality.
However, “Everything Everywhere” is more than a series of zany misadventures tied to a central plot. Its representation of Asian Americans, LGBTQ+ people and humans in general has received widespread praise and indicates a shift in the movie industry.
For instance, the apartment of the Wangs, the main characters in the story, is directly based on the house of director Daniel Kwan’s grandparents. The primarily Asian-American cast, including Ke Huy Quan (Short Round from “Indiana Jones”), adds to the film’s unique makeup.
The film’s nostalgic vibe recalls great Asian American hits from the past like “Minari,” “The Farewell” and “The Karate Kid,” and incorporates multiple homages to Hong Kong filmmaking.
In fact, Jackie Chan was initially supposed to be the protagonist. Chan and film lead Michelle Yeoh were close friends, and the film’s fight sequences really show the mark Chan’s classic films left on the writers.
After other recent Asian American media breakthroughs including “Minari,” “Crazy Rich Asians” and “Never Have I Ever,” “Everything Everywhere” takes the movement into uncharted territory and adds its own flair.
Indeed, “Everything Everywhere” expertly wields and subverts the caricature of the immigrant “Tiger Mom” through the main character, Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh), to highlight the shared humanity between all of us, despite our differences. These connections are able to effectively touch the soul of Asian Americans’ ever-changing role in shaping larger pop culture.
But the success of “Everything Everywhere” is also due to the universality of its message, with a family trying to find each other in the chaos and noise of modern life.
Jamie Lee Curtis, perhaps initially the most well-known member of the cast, set out into the film with a mantra of “no concealing anything,” and it really shows.
Stephanie Hsu, who played Joy, said her experience working on the film helped her overcome intense imposter syndrome that she said is magnified by being a queer person of color. As one can imagine, pulling together this many identities in defiance of a traditional Hollywood role can be a bit of a challenge, even in an explosive film like “Everything Everywhere.”
The film’s rewatchability is amazing, and its heavy reliance on sci-fi and Kung-Fu tropes set it apart from other films. While the superb acting and writing allows tough, honest stories of mental health and queerness to be told while showcasing Asian-Americans in modern culture, it is important not to overcomplicate a movie that really sets out to say so little.
But let us not forget what the writers really meant for us to take away, the lesson that Evelyn learns we can use over and over in our everyday lives where everything truly does feel like it’s happening everywhere, all at once: One of the most powerful acts of love you can give someone is just to pay attention to them.
