The Meaningful Meaninglessness of Multiverse Movies: EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE (Daniel Kwan/Daniel Scheinert, US 2022), Camus, and Qoheleth

Abstract

Until recently in Western culture, the “multiverse” has most typically been limited to the abstractions of theoretical physics or to the imagination of comic-book writers. However, in EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE (Daniel Kwan/Daniel Scheinert, US 2022), the multiverse functions differently, becoming a deeply affecting metaphor particularly suited to the Asian-American immigrant experience, but also more generally to the absurdity and chaos of contemporary life. The multiverse functions in the movie as a symbol of life’s vanity, its absurdity, which paradoxically throws both characters and viewers back on the need for kindness and love. After unpacking the film narrative, the essay moves to an inter-textual dialogue with two philosophers who also note the need to recognize life’s meaninglessness in order to live meaningfully: Albert Camus and the unknown writer of Ecclesiastes.