Who knew that a multiverse movie set in an IRS office could be one of the year’s greatest movies?

In a time where movies have become stale and repetitive beyond belief, “Everything Everywhere All At Once” breaks Hollywood’s mold in every way possible – and it works. The film has quickly become Letterboxd’s highest-rated movie of all time and has near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes critics and audience scores.

Ambition is an understatement for what the directors (“the Daniels”) set out for within “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” as they created a family drama with aspects of sci-fi, action, comedy, romance, and thriller genres. Though it would be easy to get lost in the genre-mixing, the Daniels executes it flawlessly.

The film follows Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh), who is having a terrible week, to put it lightly. She is in the middle of a tax audit for the downtrodden laundromat she owns, her husband Waymond (Ke Huy Quan) is planning their divorce, her judgmental father (James Hong) is visiting, and her daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu) is becoming oddly estranged. 

While at the IRS office for her tax audit, Evelyn’s world descends into chaos, and she is sucked into the multiverse, finding herself battling the IRS agent Diedre (Jamie Lee Curtis). Deemed as the “worst” version of herself, Evelyn is the only one who can save the universe(s) from imminent doom created by “verse-jumping.”

Despite the insanity and seemingly endless layers of the multiversal conflict explored throughout the movie, nothing overshadows Yeoh’s portrayal of Evelyn. Yeoh’s role in this film differentiates greatly from the “tiger mom” stereotype she is usually cast for within Hollywood, and instead showcases her as a dynamic and flexible actress.

Another star of the movie includes Editor Paul Rodgers, who balances the lightning-fast pace of the film with match cuts, bringing the layers of the multiverse seamlessly together. His editing is a significant factor in making the chaos seen in the movie easily digestible for the audience. Additionally, choreographers Andy and Brian Le create a fight scene reminiscent of a ballet, with each step being graceful and intentional.

Everything Everywhere All At Once beautifully dances between being a hard-hitting action and a touching, teary-eyed family drama. If you are looking for a movie to leave you speechless, emotional, and looking at the beloved Disney film “Ratatouille” in a different light, then “Everything Everywhere All At Once” cooks up the perfect recipe.