SPOILERS AHEAD
Everything Everywhere All At Once (The Daniels, 2022) is a generation-defining film. Its unique style and masterful application of genre conventions stand out in the days of mass-produced studio films. It is interconnected with all film and the modern phase of mass media. When faced with everything, the characters have mental breakdowns at first and see life as meaningless, but after they learn to live in the moment and love each other, they see hope in the future. On the surface, it’s about how to cope with depression and suicide, but if you look at the style in connection to the content, it’s even deeper. Through maximalist composition, strong expressionistic color, breaking of genre, and unique use of visual effects, the Daniels share a message about the importance of love in coping with the over-stimulation and over-information of today’s media, in the internet age.
There are two key scenes, in the beginning and end, where the family is at the table preparing to go to the IRS office that visually represents the mental shift the characters undergo. First, consider the earlier instance. The film opens on the family singing karaoke in the living room with bright expressive colors shining on them from the TV. They look happy. Then we cut- They are gone and where they stood there is just empty space, creating a strong juxtaposition. They may have been happy before, but they are not now. Something bumps the mirror and we see Evelyn rushing over to a stack of receipts on the table. The composition is cluttered and chaotic, leading to a maximalist look. Layers of busy sounds create additional mental clutter. The camera dollies in on Evelyn, increasing tension and creating a sense of importance. There are multiple separate sources of movement, from the camera, fan, Evelyn, and Waymond, who enters the frame and steals a receipt from Evelyn. When her concentration breaks, the busy audio stops, showing that this is in fact internal diagetic audio, and she gets aggravated at Waymond. His first line in the film is “I know better than to ask to help you.” This scene has Evelyn trying to mitigate the chaos. She switches from task to task only giving partial attention to any particular one. There is a strong divide between Evelyn and Waymond, and they are too busy working to spend any real time on family matters. Now let’s compare that to later, at the end of the film. This shot mirrors the original with some key differences that highlight the characters’ mental developments. First of all, the shot is just as chaotic as before, but this time it feels more hopeful. Natural light shines in from screen right and gives a calming feeling to the shot. Evelyn sits in the same chair as the original, but this time family surrounds her: her father, Gong, sits on the left, Waymond in between them, and Joy sits on the right. The actors use a much calmer vocal tone this time around. The situation or problem itself hasn’t changed but what has is the outlooks of the characters. This shot also dollies out, the opposite of the previous one. If the previous scene’s dolly in increased tension and added importance, then this one acts as a release. It tells the audience this isn’t as heavy, and problems will resolve themselves soon.
When discussing a mental shift in a character, it’s important to ask what needs shifting. What is the problem? In Everything Everywhere All At Once, themes of overstimulation are central to the story, especially through the villain, Jobu Tupaki. Jobu suffers from a sense of meaninglessness caused by always seeing every possibility. For example, let’s look at the sequence where Alpha Waymond tells Evalyn about the origin of Jobu Tubaki. At the start of this montage, Joy is seen splitting into all the versions of herself at once. Multiple shots of Joy screaming are superimposed over each other with flares and other VFX added. Expressive colored lights flash across her face, spinning through the whole spectrum. Next, Five uniquely styled shots are match-cut, switching from one to the other in quick succession, each representing Jobu’s personality differently and in different genres. With access to everything, Jobu has lost touch with who she is, and this mirrors the struggles of many people on social media.
While people struggle with identity on social media, it can be especially difficult to watch others live your dreams, and this happens to Evalyn in the film. Evalyn verse-jumps to a universe where she is a Jackie Chan-style Kung Fu movie star so that she can fight well. Warm gold light shines down from the chandeliers, paparazzi cameras flash, and there are crowds of people all there to see her. In this reality, the key switch that led her there was not leaving with Waymond. Even Waymond looks better off. This makes her doubt that she made the right choice in starting her family. It unlocks a deep insecurity within her. Later in the film, she watches her movie star self go and talk to Waymond, and they talk about how they might have made the wrong choice. They talk about how in the absurd drawl of life, love is something to cherish. Waymond says, “So, even though you have broken my heart yet again, in another life, I would have loved doing laundry and taxes with you.” This line and its loving, careful delivery are at the essence of this film’s message.
Waymond and Evalyn’s relationship is a key lens that The Daniels give us to understand the film. Their perspectives stand in opposition, and that opposition is central to the film’s conflict and resolution. Evalyn is hardworking and caring, showing her love, as Joy says at the beginning, through criticism. She wants her family to be the best they can be. Evalyn sees Waymond as somewhat childish and stupid, as can be seen by her getting angry with him for putting “google eyes” on everything. However, Waymond addresses this belief later in the film. He says, “You tell me that it’s a cruel world, and we’re all just running around in circles. I know that… When I choose to see the good side of things, I’m not being naive. It is strategic and necessary. It’s how I’ve learned to survive through everything.” Waymond is tactically positive. He chooses to see the fun, love, and joy in everyday life. In the physical, emotional, and metaphorical sense, this reveal helps Evalyn find Joy, breaking through the defensive layers that are Jobu. When Jobu sicks all the fighters on Evalyn, she uses kindness to get through them. She is, in her own words, “learning to fight like [Waymond].” While she is fighting she places a googly eye on her forehead, resembling a third eye that has opened for her. This silly but tense fight scene is the culmination of all she has learned, and it’s the central turning point that leads her to finding peace.
Similarly to the scenes at the table, the IRS scenes in the opening and ending demonstrate a positive change in the characters’ outlooks. In the earlier scene, as they walk into the building, Waymond talks to Evalyn’s father, while she walks ahead, distracted and inattentive to them. One particularly telling moment is when Waymond says, “People always have dirty clothes, Father. It’s nice to feel needed,” and then he looks at Evalyn. Her attention is elsewhere, and his smile fades. A moment later, we cut to an elderly couple kissing in the distance. For audiences, this mentally connects the ideas of being needed, Evalyn and Waymond’s distance, and a longing for lasting love. This is put in opposition to the ending of the film when Evalyn stops Waymond from walking away to give him a prolonged kiss that ends with a shocked yet sincere smile. This shot is also filmed with a high shutter, leading to an adrenaline-fueled, giddy, youthful feeling about the kiss. In the earlier scene, Deirdre, the tax agent has a negative aggravated tone, emphasized by the butt plug trophy on her desk. She’s just a pain in the butt for Evalyn. In the later scene, after they have connected personally, her tone is much brighter and sympathetic. She is no longer just a roadblock, but a person with whom Evalyn can relate and be friends. The final shot of the film is a slow dolly in on Evalyn, where the sound again fades out with a chaotic chatter of voices from other realities, but this time, she has a bright, carefree smile.
The common thread in Everything Everywhere All At Once is its fast-paced, genre-bending overstimulation, and the peace found in caring about and having empathy for others. The only true change in the film is how they deal with the problems because the problems still exist through to the end. Everything Everywhere All At Once is a film of acceptance. It is a meta-modern reconstruction. It’s not looking outward to save the world, but rather it’s looking inward. To help Joy, Evalyn had to look into herself and fix her issues first. Culturally this film is timely with the rise of mental health awareness. Everything Everywhere All At Once shows viewers that peace isn’t found outward but rather within yourself and through acceptance of your situation.
Essay by Tyler Westmoreland
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