There was a time (roughly a year ago) when people were gushing over a little-known sci-fi/dramedy/who-knows-what-genre-to-classify-it-as film that was billed as being equal parts zany as it was heartwarming. It was also directed by a duo calling themselves "Daniels."

'Everything Everywhere All at Once' is surely a unique film, but its quality is very much dependent on what movies you're into. To call 'Once' an "over the top" story is an understatement - there is so much packed into these 139 minutes that it's hard to keep track of it, and I think that's probably the point. Despite the ridiculousness going on all around her, Michelle Yeoh proves that she can take on a challenge, as she is able to roll with the punches (quite literally from Jamie Lee Curtis' IRS auditor) and do so while maintaining a sense of dignity. Ke Huy Quan and Stephanie Hsu do alright in their supporting roles, but Yeoh is clearly the main attraction here.

As for the rest of the film, it's a complete mess. The plot is mid (as the kids say), the execution is poor, and there's really no redeeming qualities to 'Once.' Sure, it's clear the theme is the importance of family and righting the wrongs from one generation to the next, but there is a way to get at this in a much more straightforward way. But the counterpoint to this is, "well, yeah, then this film wouldn't be unique," which may be true. But who cares!

While there clearly is an audience out there for these types of stories, I'm hard-pressed to figure out why.