The rock scene is one of my favorite scenes I’ve ever seen on screen. It’s this long breath of space after an overwhelming amount of stimuli and it is simultaneously so irreverent and so meaningful. It’s funny and its sad and all you’re doing is watching two rocks and hearing wind blow in a desert.
I can't get this movie out of my head. It's like catharsis. I'm at 10 views and counting. And I still laugh, cry, and discover new story elements at every viewing! Movie magic, indeed.
My favorite scene in the last fight is the stairs where the wang family is trying to save jobu/joy from the bagel by holding each other up. Like it's such a small moment, but it shows how it takes the support of an entire family to (arguably) save the youth, to save Joy. Because she's ultimately the one who is influenced and has to pay the price caused by all of the intergenerational trauma. And it takes the community/family to pull Joy back to living
The line "your clothes never wear as well the next day, your hair never falls in quite the same way..." Is from the chorus of the onehitwonder, Absolutely, by Nine Days. The rest of the very memorable chorus is, "This is the story of a girl, who cried a river and drowned the whole world, and while she looks so sad in photographs, I absolutely love her when she smiles." And in general the song's lyrics are broadly applicable to the film's story.
I clocked this immediately as this has always been one of my favourite songs. I nearly fell out of my chair when Waymond quoted it and I just went "Oh. Oh no." It made the entire movie such a much more visceral watch and it was so interesting engaging with it on that emotional level and then discussing it with my friends who had no context for it at all.
The rock scene was impactful for me because it suddenly made me aware of every other person in the audience. We were all on the same ride, laughing and crying at this ridiculous spectacle. It was a connection to the other movie goers that I never expected to have, nor have ever had previously in any other movie in theaters.
Same, the connection with other people that we have all needed after Covid isolation and negative politics. It's about love and family. Not perfect love. Not a perfect family. But a big warm hug of a movie nevertheless...❤
I saw this film with two people who thought it was 'too much' and didn't get it. I understand why but I felt adrift and ended up in the bathroom crying harder than I've ever cried and I've never cried AFTER a movie outside of the theater. And it wasn't all sadness, but more of out of catharsis and joy.
So I saw immediately the first time I saw the film that Evelyn was disassociating and daydreaming to escape her unhappy failing life. Then I heard the interview where Daniel's said that this was originally going to be a film about ADHD but they switched it to be those sentiments couched in a Multiverse movie. So I think in Evelyn's mind Jobu Tapaki is the physical embodiment of Joy's sexuality that threatens the Universe of her family. And the Alpha verse is telling Evelyn to let Jobu go or kill her. In the cooking scene in the beginning Evelyn confuses pronouns and mocks how Becky and Joy dress. Then when Jobu shows up her clothes get more and more outrageous but mostly feminine. Except for the Elvis inspired gender bending jumpsuit where she challenges authority and Evelyn asks " why do you look so stupid" and tells her to respect authority. Jobu transforms herself and a male police officer into flamenco dancers but Jobu is male and the officer is the female who gets shot to death. Then she transforms the police button into giant dildos. The challenges and defeats authority with sexuality. Female golfer outfit? Hello! Then later the Alpha verse needs the fighters to put a stick up their butt to defeat Evelyn because she is breaking/opening her mind to be like Joy. This film is so deep and so layered and absolutely amazing.
The whole hotdog finger universe was Evelyn trying to open her mind to see Joy's world and she pulls in her other adversary in Dierdra Beaubeirdra. She actually learns to love Deirdra just like her first jump pad made her do. It all comes back around and it all makes sense. Even the most absurd or "raunchy" parts.
I actually paused this and went to watch the movies and yeah, it’s best if you go into this movie without knowing anything, but even if you asked someone to describe it before you watched it… I don’t think you could
Something I loved about this movie that I realized on my second viewing is the Yin and Yang of the bagel and the googly eyes. The bagel being the nihilism and googly eyes being existentialism. Even the colors or both are opposite just like Yin and Yang. A small detail but very beautiful.
I agree that alpha Waymond isn't good, but he was the only one appreciating and believing in Evelyn's choice to become like her daughter to save her daughter. I feel like that's the supportive aspect of Waymond that goes across the multiverse.
I got the sense that the alphaverse denizens had an unconscious arrogance (they are the first temporal colonizers after all) but their moral compromises are a byproduct of a long and vicious war against Jobu Tapaki where the absolute criticality of their end goal (to restore balance by defeating a threat they inadvertently created) has justified the means. And of course, that disruption of the balance in order to achieve that worthy goal leads to making the goal impossible to achieve. Also OMG Joy had a huge body count.
I’ve seen this film several times and I’m excited to own it. For all the reasons discussed here and more, the movie is so impactful, fun, and Subverts common tropes in the best of ways. It shouldn’t work but it totally works. Thanks for this deep dive exploring one of my favorite films in a long time.
@@Masta2Playa i definitely think so. The first time you watch trying to figure out what the ef is going on and to enjoy the story. Second time it appreciate all the little details and decisions that really bring the film to life.
This was lovely. My boyfriend did not enjoy the movie because of the sausage fingers it was to much for him, in my case I understood that scene as a way to show how far she had to travel to find a universe in which she had a good relationship with the other woman (something that was impossible for her to imagine at that time) but as she was able to understood the other women she was able to accept that type of reality. Also she is a homophobic, so that is way to portray how disgusting she sees sex between people of the same gender and as she accepts that sex she accepts the sexuality of her daughter. Lastly this movie for me is a United State story on a Chinese movie. This movie reminded me drunken master for the type of action, comedy and feeling it feels very Chinese.
Waymond plays such a crucial and dominating role in this movie that KeHuy should have been nominated and won the best actor in a lead role instead of supporting.
Always excited to see this film. Reminds me of Terry Pratchett's Disc World series in how much it empathizes with the human experience with humor and depth.
Old Mother Dismass is untethered in time. When you ask her a question you never know where or when she’s answering from. I can’t remember which book of Terry Pratchett’s that was in.
I enjoyed listening to this audio about this movie, I watched it three times and watched the 4th time after hearing it won the Oscar’s. Every time made me cry.
“Your clothes never wear as well the next day and your hair never falls in white the same way” - when Waymond says that I laughed. They’re song lyrics from this song called Story of a Girl by Goo Goo Dolls. If you pay attention you can hear that song played in the background through out the movie. Often slowed down even. The lyrics of the chorus go “This is the story of a girl. Who cried a river and drowned the whole world. And she look so sad in photographs but I absolutely love her when she smiles.” - that’s Joy, right?
“My face - it’s leaking.” LOL but it also happened to me. I only saw EEAAO once so far, but I planned to rewatch it even before I listened to this. There’s just so much to take in. This discussion did help me understand the movie a little bit more.
Multiverse is time travel. And a lot of earlier time travel films in the past also would have been marketed as multiverse in the 2020s but still... I felt that this multiverse film really explored that idea coherently (despite the chaos) and also really explored the idea of "the path not taken" in a very profound way.
My friend told me he watched it 6 times and he cried every single time and so I was very curious about what that was. Then I watched it twice in 2 days and I will watch it again in the future for sure!!!
14:40 that's in interesting take. I actually think there's way too much RU-vid/online critique of film that is super story-forward. Not enough youtube critics actually look at the visuals and sound design that help tell a story/create a mood/etc
One implicit thing I love in this movie is how the Alpha-characters try to optimize their verse-jumps by selecting the perfect 0.0001% person with the perfect skills and whatever, while Evelyn just randomly throws herself out into the multiverse, because even before she's able to articulate the idea, she intuitively understands that every person in every universe has value, and she's discovering a Waymond-esque ability in herself to look for and find that value in anyone, and therefore everyone. This movie is SO good. ❤
Ya this movie isn't an escape from reality, if you want to shut off your brain for a few hours and mindlessly watch this movie it won't work, you have to buy into it and think. First time i watch this i couldn't get through it but gave it another shot and was blown away.
I believe it can be perceived as a) everyone were their own heroes and villains exemplifying the statement "we are our own worst enemy"or b) there are no villain, this movie does not follow the standard structure of storytelling; which makes this movie so iconic in more ways than it seems. I truly believe things happened for a reason - and this movie is the perfect example on where humanity stands today. We can be seen chaotic, childish, but beneath it all if we are able to surpass all that noise, there are issues that needs our attention and now is the time to address them.
I saw the movie in theaters, thought it had a lot to say about the asian immigrant experience, brought my asian immigrant parents to another screening, and they hated it unfortunately. So there's your people who didn't like it :(
Actually both Waymonds (CEO & Alpha) are versions from the fantasy of being a 'real men'. One is successful by money standards. The other is by physical standards. And 'loser' Wayond is by emotional standards.
Great great discussion here folks. It's my film of the year so far (though I haven't seen the Northman yet ). Only seen it once though. Really jealous that you folks saw it MULTIPLE times. Good stuff!!!!
@@reneedailey1696 Oh I finally saw the Northman earlier this year and boy was it good. Totally agree with your assessment because it was way more thoughtful and reflective than I thought it would be. Also, Anya Taylor-Joy was amazing in it!
A family at the brink of falling apart, travels through space and time, at the end of there journey, return to the present. They come to terms with their flaws, then develop a working solution to reunite.
Please make video essays of Anime and Manga. There are some underrated pieces of fiction that are misunderstood by the many people just because they are 'cartoons' or 'comic books'. Shows like Attack on Titan, HunterxHunter, Golden Time are so fucking incredible. Berzerk, Vinland Saga, Osayami Punpun, Kingdom, Vagabond are some of the most Popular Manga out there but are overlooked by so many people. I'd love to hear your opinions and criticisms on them.
@@Anubhavsengupta1902 The writing + the world building + character development + dialogue + background music + voice acting + foreshadowing + more good stuff (like animation, CGI, drawings in Manga, etc) are things you can appreciate and analyse about. Also, I mentioned the word 'criticism' too, which anyone who understands English knows the meaning of. Also, you'll never find a perfect show that checks all the boxes to not get criticised/ cancelled.
Okay two things i want to add: 1. I really like that at the Point where Evelyn let's Joyce go..and then tells her that she doesn't want her to, Joyce is the one reaching out so that Evelyn kann pull her Out of the bagel 2. I think the amount of Fight and violence was really good in that case, because while i watched one Fight Scene after the other (even tho they where choreographed very well) they lost all meaning...and inbetween laughs i waited for it to be over..
hey, do you think you could do a follow up on your stranger things hopper video in season 3? you covered some really interesting points about that season (which i rlly didn’t like) and i’d love to hear what you have to say about it
Hello there! I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions on the pop culture hit, Yellowstone. I find it to be strangely entertaining. In many ways, I know it is problematic on several levels, but as a form of entertainment media, it is great. Anyway, thank you for the continued output of content.
The absurdist qualities of this film had me thinking of court jesters and tricksters telling the truth with humor. Even unorthodox humor. The Sacred Clown of some cultures teaching valuable lessons of existence.
I am frustrated, mostly with myself I guess; because, while I LOVE Waymond [prime] and at least in theory fully endorse the message the directors were giving us-- a part of me *still* would like to see Waymond gain more confidence. Not through aggression and violence, but-- he still _feels_ "passive", somehow, even while we have been clearly shown that he is not. -- I don't know... I don't want him to change by learning to dominate, but... there's some part of alpha-Waymond that I kind of miss. And I know I'm not supposed to! (I really don't think, by the way, that alpha-Waymond is actually an awful person. At his core, Waymond is still Waymond, across every version of himself-- just as Evelyn and Joy are still themselves, in all iterations. Those qualities which are his strengths didn't get as much chance to develop, in the alpha-verse; he is not as true to himself; and this perhaps is why he does not survive. But I don't believe he is truly, _essentially,_ a different person. I can see that Waymond-ness, the empathy and compassion in him, especially as he dies. When he tells Evelyn that she is living her worst version, he is not putting her down, he is sincere: I mean, he really does believe that she can do it; once convinced, his faith in her never waivers again; and he defies alpha Gong-Gong to help her.)
my first viewing I saw the alphaverse crew more like centrists/neoliberals than conservatives outright, in that they generally agreed on the problems of the world but their solution was still punishing the same kinds of people and trying to get back to the status quo, but honestly the distinction between centrists and conservatives is blurring constantly
Seems like a mistake to think that EEAAO has any kind of a villain, per se. It's not even nihilism, rock bottom, or the freedom of absolute moral ablation each of those states are necessary conditions for the awakening of each of the characters (except Waymond), even if each represents potential danger for the suffering individuals and those around them. It is, in fact the quintessential hero's journey.
around the 30minute mark when they mentioned alpha waymond has a conservative perspective, I think that could also be intrepreted as a anti-capatalist perspective. Clothes arent designed to fit, disconnected world, etc.
Like most reactionary talking points, it starts off sounding like it makes sense (the clothes fitting thing is a line from a rock song) but it very quickly turns into a longing for some idealized history that never actually existed and a demand to return to more “transitional” values.
@@PopCultureDetective while i do think alpha waymond is selfish, i think it's a little reductive and chauvinistic to say his speech was anything alike "trump maga" rhetoric-- that analysis completely ignores his immigrant experience as a chinese person. chinese people really value community, so to me, the line "nobody trusts their neighbors anymore"* and his entire speech as to how i understood it as a third gen chinese diaspora, speaks to the loneliness they've felt in the hyper individualist lifestyle in america. longing for a community isn't inherently bad or regressive, and it's definitely not coined or created by conservatives going MAGA™ 🤕
*I hope you read this, because I'm going to blow your minds* None of the multiverse stuff is real. The real story being told is that Evelyn daydreams to escape her problems. The more stressful things get for her, the more she escapes into a fantasy world to avoid her problems. She's got a suicidal daughter, an unfulfilling life, a jerkwad father, and IRS issues, and when her husband serves her divorce papers she breaks down and falls into herself to escape. If you look at the metaverse stuff in terms of dream logic and where her character is in life, the random stuff starts to pop and really make sense. All of the metavers versions of all the characters are projections from Evelyn's psyche, and they're either caricatured versions of how she sees them, or wish fulfillment versions of how she wants them to be. Evelyn is a confrontational person, she fights, so when she can't take it anymore, she imagines an action movie, and an action-movie version of her husband who can fight along side her. It's not until later in the movie that she realizes her actual husband has been the one fighting with her all along, but fighting with kindness and cookies (even cookie can be kung fu 😉). It's how she gets the extra time to finish her taxes at the start of the movie and it's how the tax issue is resolved later at the laundromat. All the time that Evelyn has been confrontational and thinking her husband was weak, he's been behind the scenes actually winning battles for her, and she finally has a breakthrough in the end when she realizes this. Jobu Topaki is how Evelyn sees Joy. Joy is young, and hasn't painted herself into a corner with her life choices yet the way Evelyn has. She sees Joy as able to do anything, her life could take any direction. There is an incredible character arc hiding in plain sight. The false ending of the action movie is the moment when daydreaming Evelyn, sitting behind her desk at home, overwhemed by taxes, realizes that fighting ins't working, and she gives up to nihalism (until she makes her Waymond realization). If she can't fight, the action movie ends. The best hint that this is the way the movie works is that there is no multiverse BS in the last 'universe'. At the laundromat no one wears a bluetooth headset, no one knows kung fu and no one explodes into confetti. It's the real, normal world where Evelyn eventually applies the stuff she figures out in her fantasy. Another tip off is that Becky doesn't get to help Joy with her existential crisis. Evelyn could lean on Waymond to get her through hers, but Evelyn can't fanasize a relationship resolution for a relationship that she wasn't a member of, so there's no multiverse version of Becky to come and help talk Joy down from the edge. It's kept ambiguous on purpose, the scene at the elevator, when she clues into the divorce papers is where she really has her breakdown...and the only real tip off is that the aspect ratio changes for the first time. Just before that, with a throw away line, James Hong says 'you are always daydreamimg'. I would love to hear that the 3 of you sat down and re-watched it again with this in mind. It's really a skeleton key that opens an already deep movie into something way more subtle and complex.
This is an absolutely valid interpretation of the movie and is interesting in itself, but I don't believe it is the absolute final word. The film makers were absolutely informed by both cosmologists and metaphysicians. How do I know? Well it is implicit in the narrative itself, but I'd you want something more concrete then you should take a look at A-24's supporting book of the movie, which was edited by the Daniels. It includes essays and observations by metaphysicians, artists and physicists, many of which are on the idea of the multiverse. So it seems fairly clear that they want to leave interpretation very open. Where I do absolutely agree with you on is that what is key to the movie is learning how to accept where you are, right now, and that things that may seem small and inconsequential in the grand scheme of things are of vital importance. If you can save one thing - a relationship, a life, a dream - then you save all living beings, a world, even a universe.
If you wan lt a more prosaic explanation of why Evelyn no longer has the headset... Well, it is no longer necessary for two reasons. 1. The Alphaverse team had just been killed by Jobu Tapaki so who was she going to talk to? 2. More importantly, Evelyn has just received her dark enlightenment and had achieved the same state that Joy/Jobu has achieved. She see things as they truly are, unfiltered by ego or morality, while at her lowest ebb. She doesn't need the headset any more because she can travel as she wills. There's a reason why the rock scenes are interspersed as Evelyn hits rock-bottom (no pun intended by me, but probably by the Daniels). So there's the "should really just relax" explanation.
You are lockdown vaxxers with a womens study and a grant based degreed other guest reviewing a decent but tiring movie spoof. Maybe a bit of balance would improve this review. At least include a straight person for another angle?
