Everything Everywhere All at Once won the best picture Oscar at the Academy Awards ceremony Sunday night in Los Angeles, California.
The unusual movie about a Chinese-American immigrant family won seven Oscars, including three acting awards for Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee Curtis.
The Malaysian-born Yeoh became the first Asian woman to win a best actress Oscar. In the film, she plays the laundromat owner with superpowers in a different universe.
“For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities,” the 60-year-old actress said. “And ladies, don’t let anybody ever tell you you’re past your prime,” Yeoh added.
As a boy, Quan starred in the 1984 Indiana Jones movie and The Goonies in 1985. The 51-year-old said he quit acting for many years because he saw too few opportunities for Asian actors. On Sunday night, Quan won the best supporting actor Oscar. In the film, he plays Yeoh’s husband.
Quan, who was born in Vietnam, cried as he gave his speech Sunday. He said, “My journey started on a boat. I spent a year in a refugee camp. Somehow I ended up here on Hollywood’s biggest stage.”
“They say stories like this only happen in the movies,” he added. “I cannot believe it’s happening to me. This is the American dream.”
The 64-year-old Curtis won best supporting actress for her role as the tax agent in Everything Everywhere All at Once. In her speech, Curtis looked upward and addressed her parents, Academy award nominees Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh. Both of her parents have passed away. “I just won an Oscar,” Curtis told them.
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert together won best director and best original screenplay. Everything Everywhere All at Once was made with a small $14.3million budget and has brought in more than $100 million so far.
Other notable winners
The fourth acting award went to Brendan Fraser who won best actor for his work in The Whale. In the film, he plays an extremely overweight man trying to reconnect with his daughter.
A German remake of the World War I story All Quiet on the Western Front was named best international feature film. The movie, which streamed on Netflix, shows the horrors of war through the eyes of a young man. The movie also won Oscars for music, production design and cinematography.
Director Edward Berger thanked the film’s young star, Felix Kammerer, who joined him on stage. “This was your first movie, and you carried us on your shoulders as if it was nothing,” Berger said.
Navalny won the Oscar for best feature documentary. The movie is about Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny who was nearly killed by poison and has been jailed since his 2021 return to Moscow.
“Alexei, I am dreaming of the day when you will be free and our country will be free,” his wife, Yulia Navalnaya, said at the award presentation. “Stay strong my love.”
Naatu Naatu, the song from the Indian movie RRR that created a viral dance, earned an Oscar for best original song.
I’m Ashley Thompson.
Hai Do adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting from The Associated Press and Reuters.
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Words in This Story
laundromat – n. place that has machine for washing and drying clothes
beacon of hope – phrase. something that holds the promise of hope
past your prime – idiom. no longer as good as something as one once was
opportunity – n. time or situation in which something can be done, chance
journey – n. the act of traveling from one place to another
stage – n. a raised platform in a theater where the performers stand
role – n. character played by an actor
original – adj. made or produced first
horror – n. strong feeling of fear, shock and dread