If you have not seen the critically acclaimed 2022 film Everything Everywhere All at Once, what are you waiting for? 

“Everything Everywhere All at Once,” directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, is the first science fiction film to take home the best picture award, along with winning three of the four acting awards at the 95th Academy Awards. Everything Everywhere All at Once dominated the Oscar awards this year, winning the best actress, best director, best supporting actor, best supporting actress, best editing and best original screenplay categories. This movie raised the bar for all other science fiction films. It showed the world that Asian-American actors and actresses deserve just as much credit and recognition as anyone else. 

So what is the hype all about? At the very core, this science fiction film is about an intricate relationship between an Asian American mother and daughter, but there is so much more to it. Everything Everywhere All at Once follows the story of a retired woman named Eva (Michelle Yeoh) who discovers that she has the ability to access parallel universes. She embarks on a journey to save the world from an evil force known as the “Dark Wave” with the help of her daughter and a diverse group of other versions of herself from different universes. The film combines elements of science fiction, action, and comedy. It features stunning visual effects and a unique, mind-bending storyline. Along the way, the characters encounter various obstacles and challenges, both physical and emotional, as they navigate the complex web of parallel universes to try to save their world from destruction.

The film not only swept the floor with other film award ceremonies, like the 2023 Screen Actors Guild Awards and Spirit Awards, but it transformed the narrative of Asian-American actors and actresses in the United States. Until 2023, only one non-white woman, Halle Berry, had ever won the Best Actress Oscar. Michelle Yeoh, a Malaysian actress, ended the mostly white-dominated actress award recipients with her outstanding, vast and impressive lead role in Everything Everywhere All at Once. In Yeoh’s powerful and emotional speech at the 95th Academy Awards, she said, “For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibility. Ladies, don’t ever let anyone tell you you are past your prime.” Yeoh recognizes the white male gaze cast over the production studios in Hollywood and encourages the younger generation to let their voices be heard and to continue to follow their dreams, regardless of age, sex and ethnicity. 

“Everything Everywhere All at Once” grappled with the challenge of multidimensional possibilities while following a cohesive, intellectual and entertaining plot. Every award this movie received was well deserved. I can see why “Everything Everywhere All at Once” has already gone down in the books, destroying nominees and award records with a predominantly Asian cast.