I had great plans to see this when it was out in the cinema but it was around the time when I still wasn’t ready to go back to the cinema. Covid memories were still in my head so I missed it. When it came to Prime, I was ready to watch it but, yet again, it didn’t happen. Last week I had decided it was finally time but then I went and watched the live-action Pinocchio. After that went terribly, this felt like my reward. I don’t know what I really expected from this film but it certainly wasn’t that I’d come out of it with a bit of a thing for Data from The Goonies. Not something I considered for my 2023 bingo card but here we are. But, unexpected crushes aside, was this film worth the wait?

Remember how Dr Strange and the Multiverse of Madness promised a lot but only really delivered 2 multiverses? Everything Everywhere All At Once isn’t so restrictive. It gives us a few glimpses into some odd new worlds and it’s great. The film follows in the same vein as the Daniels debut film Swiss Army Man. In case you’ve forgotten, that’s the film in which Daniel Radcliffe plays the farting corpse. It was a strange film but fun. I would say that Everything Everywhere All At Once is just as strange but even funnier. It is the film that Dr Strange 2 wishes it could have been. It’s certainly the film that I wish it had been.

It’s sort of hard to sum up everything that happens in Everything Everywhere All At Once because it’s often really mad. Although, even in its most outrageous moments, it all comes together. It helps that the jaw-dropping moments of insanity are always balanced out by sincere emotions. It’s a spectacular feat and the Daniels have pulled it off beautifully. This isn’t just a weird film but one that has depth and a strong central message. Something that is helped by a strong cast and wonderful storytellers in the Daniels. Not to keep banging on about a certain Marvel film but Everything Everywhere All At Once had a fraction of the budget but manages to make something profound and incredibly entertaining.

The basic story involves Evelyn, a Chinese-American immigrant who runs a laundromat with her husband, Waymond. She has a difficult relationship with her daughter and is dealing with her her aging, infirm father. Evelyn made the decision to come to America with her husband against her father’s wishes. The pair are now moving further apart, dealing with an IRS inspection and trying to throw a Lunar New Year party for the family and customers. It might seem like a very specific narrative but the themes are universal. This is about love, motherhood and acceptance. Evelyn is dealing with the ‘what ifs’ of her life and wondering if she made the right choices. Something that many people can sympathise with.

At this point, things start to get a bit less every day. When her husband is taken over by another version of himself, Evelyn is thrown into a world of action and danger. She suddenly finds out about the multiverse and gets a glimpse into the lives that she could have lived. Had events gone differently, she could have been a famous singer or a martial arts expert. It’s not all fun and games, of course. All of these universes are under threat from a foe who wants to destroy everything and this Evelyn might just be the key to stopping them. Can she figure out how to save the world without ruining her tax audit?

There’s very little that I can say about this film that other people haven’t said better elsewhere. What I can say is that you should believe the hype. This is an absolutely wonderful and fun film. It’s exactly the kind of film that people complain that we never get. It’s original and memorable. Yes, it’s weird but in such an excellent way. I already want to watch it again.