Loved the portrayal of change as a choice in Evelyn's character arc tbh ... Her having the ability to go through such Major change set up by the fact she's never chased down any of her passions through life and has all these dropped hobbies and missed potential and instead of having all of her eggs in one basket, has nothing, and could step in any direction she chooses and make a major change no matter what.

The way she clings to believing the need for change is unnecessary when, even after hearing that she's died in other universes, that Jobu Tupaki was pushed too far by her, and watching this alternate version of her own daughter leave carnage in her wake; she still puts the blame for her current life and the misery in her relationship with her daughter, on Jobu Tupaki; and tells herself that by defeating her, everything will go the way it should with no change on her part.

The way by the end, she realizes that standing by and watching her life fall into place and accepting her role as forever being stuck in a cycle of watching short-lived passions burn out and never reaching for what she cares about, and never making that active choice to change, harms not only her but the people around her. Joy through the multiverse made the choice to seek change, and went through countless universes seeking a version of her mother who would hear her out, and finally make an active choice, but for that active choice to be the climax of the rift between them, caused by their passive actions, and for Evelyn to push Joy away and let her die.

Instead, Evelyn for the first time reaches out and chases what she wants and what she cares about. And Joy happens to be what she cares about enough to break her cycle of watching her passions, her unfinished hobbies, her career opportunities, her possible lives, just slip away. And she makes her active choice to change, and reaches out and holds onto what she loves.

yes yes characters doomed by the narrative always slap BUT what about characters saved by the narrative? characters who have already given up hope and don't know they have a happy ending? characters who believe they are a lost cause, characters who feel irredeemable, characters who think there's nothing left for them, but the narrative does provide a way out? what about the characters who don't expect anything good, who don't even remember how to wish for it anymore, who get the things they need anyway? what about the characters who actively run from being saved getting saved in a way they can't stop or control. what about being saved by the narrative!!!

when florence and the machine said "I find that happiness is an extremely uneventful subject" and when romeo x juliet said "a simple life with you would be paradise" and johnathan coulton said "it's okay, I like you in glasses" and everything everywhere all at once said "in another life I would have really liked just doing laundry and taxes with you"

(edit: I made a longer thing with more examples here)

Sucked into…a bagel

she put everything on a bagel

I've connected the dots

Stephanie Hsu as Joy/Jobu Tupaki in Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

An Ode to 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' by David Gate

You’ve been feeling it too, haven’t you? Something is off. Your clothes never wear as well the next day, your hair never falls in quite the same way...

EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE (2022)

Jobu Tupaki

i'm sorry but how do you look at an array of performances including ANGELA BASSETT and JOBU TUPAKI and then decide that the fucking irs lady was better. i'm gonna die mad about this

I guess this isn't surprising....

And I guess neither is this...

Stephanie Hsu ♕ Breaks Down Her Looks From

"Everything Everywhere All At Once"