It’s a testament to how far Hollywood has come in recent years that a mind-scrambling sci-fi action comedy, about a stressed Chinese American immigrant who has to save the multiverse, is leading the Oscars race with 11 nominations and is the favourite to win best picture – a standing reinforced by its sweep at the Screen Actors Guild on Sunday. The Academy likes serious prestige dramas; Everything Everywhere All at Once is anything but. It’s a ridiculously silly, outrageously hilarious and profoundly weird fantasy. And that’s exactly why it would be a worthy winner.
Made on a relatively modest budget of $25m by directing duo Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (collectively known as the Daniels), the surreal martial arts adventure seemingly came out of nowhere to become one of the biggest box office triumphs of the pandemic years. It’s increasingly rare these days for independent films to become commercial hits, but Everything Everywhere All at Once grossed more than $100m worldwide thanks to good old-fashioned word of mouth, with many fans heading back to the cinema for multiple viewings.
