As 2022 draws to a close, year-end movie ranking lists have forced Everything Everywhere All At Once director Daniel Kwan to send a message to overexcited fans bashing critics. Co-directed by Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All At Once stars Michelle Yeoh as Evelyn Quan Wang, an aging Chinese-American immigrant who, while being audited by the IRS, learns she must connect with multiple versions of herself in alternate planes of reality in order to save the multiverse. Blending across black comedy, science fiction, fantasy, martial arts, and the animation genre, the absurdist film stars Stephanie Hsu as Evelyn’s daughter, Joy, and Ke Huy Quan as her husband, Waymond Wang. Largely regarded as the best film of the year by both critics and audiences alike, Everything Everywhere All At Once is slated as a top contender for this year’s awards season.
However, not all critics have included Everything Everywhere All At Once on their list of 2022’s best films, forcing director Daniel Kwan to confront overexcited viewers bashing them on Twitter. Kwan highlights a thread calling out Everything Everywhere All At Once fans for being toxic and aggressive, comparing them to Marvel’s audience. Kwan responded to the hate with his own thread, urging fans to stop the aggression and bullying toward critics. See Kwan’s statement to fans below:
Why Everything Everywhere All At Once Fans Are Wrong To Bash Critics
Kwan’s message to Everything Everywhere All At Once fans explains why ranking lists are often a double-edged sword. On one hand, Kwan highlights how they are a great opportunity for people to discover movies they haven’t heard of, and immerse themselves in a genre or film they normally wouldn’t. On the other hand, Kwan recognizes they can be a winless battle, as it’s a deeply personal and subjective task to rank art.
While it’s fun to have online discourse surrounding the year’s films, it can often become a toxic environment for those simply expressing their opinions. Kwan, who co-directed the equally polarizing Swiss Army Man alongside Scheinert before Everything Everywhere All At Once, recognizes this, and offers a response people can use against others when they see heated discussions taking place online. Kwan makes a case for the aggression to stop, as there are ways to express opinions that don’t involve bashing, but rather thoughtful, respectful, open dialogue.
2022 was a great year for cinema, as Hollywood began its return to normalcy following the COVID-19 pandemic. There will undoubtedly be stiff competition in this year’s Oscars race. However, with a passionate fan base on its side, it’s clear there will be a great number of people rooting for Everything Everywhere All At Once. Breaking the global box office record for A24 studios, surpassing Hereditary, fans should be rest assured knowing Everything Everywhere All At Once stands a fair chance at being one of the most highly-decorated films of the year.
Source: Daniel Kwan/Twitter