I Just Wanna Do the Laundry and Taxes with You (‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ Review)
After waiting for quite long, ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ is finally arrived in Indonesia theaters. Or I’d say selected theaters. Because not all theater showing this film here in Jakarta. When we’re saying the word “multiverse” maybe our mind will directly recall to a Marvel frencise that is released several weeks ago, which ‘Doctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness’. I haven’t watched it (sorry I’d not comparing both of the films). But I read this one review on Letterboxd saying that: EEAAO is the best film talking about multiverses. And if we’re looking at the bigger picture, people who are having that stance actually pretty alot. So I assume it as a bold statement from viewers.
Going into theater auditorium with big amount of expactations since there were also alot of people who wanted to watch EEAAO. Seriously it was pretty alot like 3/4 capacity. And it makes me kinda surprise. I don’t know, but I think the Daniels as directors have to compete with films who are also having a big exposure, say like ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ by Joseph Kosinski that is still playing now, there’s also ‘Ngeri-Ngeri Sedap’ by Bene Dion who also gets alot of good review among the people and film reviewer. Plus, it seems like the film from A24 is also not familiar here in mainstream theater. Or maybe because Maverick has been released quite far from EEAAO, so the majority of the people has already checked Maverick out, so they’re lookimg for something new to watch, but point is: the excitement for this film is kinda something.
A lil bit about EEAAO, it tells a story about Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh) who own a laundromat and having a trouble with taxes. Her husband, Waymond (Ke Huy Quan) somehow has been connected to himself from other universe called Alphaverse by using something like — I don’t know — airpod or sth (pretty absurd, right?), for one mission, which stopping the main villain, Jobu Tupaki who enforce people to be in such a cult (?) and come into a fucking BAGEL which a manifastion to nihilism (another pretty absurd, right?). The conflict also comes from her husband that she always use the word “silly” to describe him, her daughter, Joy (Stephanie Hsu) that is the rebel one, and lately on the film, it reveals her inner struggles to her father Gong Gong (James Hong). Just like what happened to her daughter in the nutshell.
“Multiverses, Multi genre” could be a slogan of this film. It’s action, drama, romance, sci-fi, and comedy in one package. At the beginning of the film, the situation was pretty chaos, like exprincing ‘Uncut Gems’ for once again. Then when it connected to its sci-fi, it drives us confuse, I love the way people reacting like “WTF?”, or “Huh?”. But I think the best part is its comedy. It somehow always has sense of comedy regardless the situation. So it always appears as an ice-breaker. I’d say this is one of the best cinema experience I’ve ever had. Because emotions that the film trying to deliver to us most likely working out. I can hear the laugh in this side, then I hear someone’s sobbing in the corner, so it’s not just a bunch of people sitting down and looking at that big screen without actually showing up the energy that the film trying to deliver.
Speaking of the techniques of this film, that was amazing. Visual effects, camera movement, everything was very good. Jim Hemphill from Indiewire already writes about behind the handmade of EEAAO that is once again suprises me. Which the fact that 80% of the visual effects were only developed by 5 people. (you can read the article here: https://www.indiewire.com/2022/04/everything-everywhere-all-at-once-visual-effects-1234716610/). I also love how this film puts a tribute to classical martial arts, a legend director’s style, Wong Kar-wai, and other movies references like ‘Rattataouille’, ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’, ‘Paprika’ and more, blending with jokes.
I’ll just make this short, fast, and without spoil the film too much. I’m trying to write this review to a point where the people who are not into films can understand. So I’m not gonna explain about the concept of, say like: “existential crisis” that the film trying to bring out. Sorry, intermezzo. Eventhough I love this weird feeling about to be perceive “sophisticated”. I know it’s kinda norak, please do not blame me. Hahaha. Continue, I think how do people feel after watching this film is the more essential thing any other than that. Plus, I think sci-fi films are also one of the hardest thing to make. Because if it doesn’t have a strong foundation, it would be look stupid and make no any senses, right? So, Kudos for the directors, writers, and team who made ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’.
