I saw this last Spring and since it kicked ass at the Oscars®, something I find impossible given how the so-called Academy prefers boring-ass shit released between Christmas and MLK Day. You know…Woody Allen’s navel gazing or people in period-piece clothes just blathering. But now and then they throw us unwashed masses, without degrees from Film Schools or the University for Spoiled Children, a bone. e.g. The Lord of the Rings.
Admittedly, I was already biased in seeing Everything because it stars Michelle Yeoh! The element involving a multiverse was the whipped cream on top!
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you may already know the story. Its premise is pretty cool despite MCU and DCU rolling out their multiverse plans or executions so here it is. The Wangs are longtime Chinese immigrants who’ve operated a laundromat for a couple decades (their apartment is above it). Now they’re being audited by the IRS and there’s a good chance they’ll lose it since neither Evelyn or Waymond understood how the overcomplicated US tax codes work. Adding to the collective stress, the marriage is falling apart, their only child is troublesome (rebellious and gay, two things traditional Chinese culture has difficulty with, even in Red China) and Evelyn’s dad (the ever awesome James Hong) is visiting for the Lunar New Year. During a consultation with the IRS worker handling their audit (Jamie Lee Curtis!), Evelyn meets an alternate Waymond in a supply closet. He explains how an evil force is trying to conquer the multiverse and he needs her assistance defending it by uploading the skills of other Evelyns, namely the martial arts. Few people don’t enjoy watching Michelle kick others’ asses. ‘Nuff said!
Some parts were over the top via the sex toys (real and improvised), earning its R rating (another element the Academy is squeamish about) but I loved the snippets showing all the different paths Evelyn could’ve taken if she made different choices and/or where that universe’s rules are really goofy: people have hot-dog-based fingers, Ratatouille via Remy is a real thing, etc. All these possibilities share one common thing, all conflicts in them can be solved if Evelyn resolves the growing alienation she is responsible for with her daughter Joy and defeated husband Waymond.
This is when and how Science Fiction truly shines! You haven’t got a story, just flashy effects, if you don’t address the human condition! It’s why Abrams’ Star Trek movies suck ass while Wrath of Khan and The Voyage Home stand the tests of time. Check it out, even if Martial Arts isn’t your thing or Multiverses or whatever. It’s a great film with a strong narrative with its roots about one of the oldest relationships humanity has.
Alamo Extras: Sadly all the cool stuff they showed was on my old LEGO notebook I used to take to the movies and I lost it after seeing the last Doctor Strange flick. Yeah, so everything between Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings to Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, all gone. Lucky you. Super bummer for me as I wanted to fill it up. What I can tell you though, Alamo did a great job emphasizing all the great work Michelle Yeoh has done with Jackie Chan; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; and how little she got to do in Tomorrow Never Dies. She did a handful of Shaw Brothers’ flicks in the Eighties as you can easily tell by the hairstyles. I’m sure there was a bagel ad or two to throw us off.