Minor Spoilers for One Battle After Another(2025).
Renowned Arthouse Director Paul Thomas Anderson’s new film One Battle After Another hit theaters nationwide on Friday, September 26th, garnering a stellar reception from both critics and standard audiences alike.
One Battle After Another follows former revolutionary Bob Ferguson (Leonardo DiCaprio), now in hiding with his teenage daughter Willa (Chase Infiniti). 16 years after his significant other, Perfidia (Teyana Taylor), sells their rebel group out to her abuser, Colonel Steven J Lockjaw (Sean Penn), the Colonel resurfaces, and Willa goes missing. Bob then goes on a perilous journey to recover her, aided by Willa’s Sensei, Sergio (Benicio del Toro).
For starters, every member of this stellar cast gave it their all. DiCaprio is amusing, though there isn’t much to his character besides being a bumbling—yet earnest—father. Major standouts included Taylor, Regina Hall—who plays DeAndra, a former revolutionary and ally to Bob—and most notably, Penn, who is looking to be a serious contender for the Best Supporting Actor category at next year’s Academy Awards. Chase Infiniti is also a standout, as, according to PTA (Paul Thomas Anderson), she was entirely responsible for this film being made in the first place. On the directing side, PTA delights with captivating and incredibly groundbreaking action sequences, as well as suspense in a way I have never experienced in a theater. This is undoubtedly a film that needs to be seen on IMAX or VistaVision. Each gunshot, explosion, and car crash packs a punch you can actually feel. The score by Jonny Greenwood, of Radiohead fame, is simple yet nerve-racking beyond compare.
I found little to dislike about the film, but there were a few things that caught my attention. After Taylor departs from the plot, the story slows a bit, instead focusing on DiCaprio’s character, which isn’t particularly interesting. Additionally, Taylor and Hall were given a criminally small amount of screen time, given the prowess of their performance.
Many viewers take issue with the non-specific interpretation the film seems to have of radical groups, the film’s supposed unwillingness to take a side, and its lack of a full grasp of horrors in modern America. While all of their gripes are understandable, none of them seemed to matter to the central idea Paul Thomas Anderson was trying to portray.
“The biggest mistake I could make in a story like this is to put politics up in the front…you have to care about the characters and take those big swings in terms of the emotional arcs,” Anderson rebuffs.
Regardless, it seems to me that the film does take a side when it comes to the actions of these groups: their tactics don’t accomplish much. At the end of the day, the French 75 didn’t bring about much change other than bombing government infrastructure, occasionally freeing people from bad situations and funding their activities with bank robbing. They didn’t change much in the world because chaos harbors chaos, not change. At the end of the day, Sergio, Bob, and Willa were the only protagonists who truly got what they wanted—to bring their loved ones to safety—because they were acting for love and for others’ interests instead of their own. Letterboxd user Joshua Dysart, who gave the film 4/5 stars, said it best.
“The real revolutionary act is raising a good, strong, honest, pragmatic revolutionary. Raising the next generation to subvert the will of the oppressor is the long game,” commented Dysart.
Based on my experience watching One Battle After Another, I loved the performances, the cinematography, the heart of the story, and the amazing acting. I do believe that the film could have done a better job covering the sensitive topic with grace, but it ultimately doesn’t taint my viewing experience. Initially, I rated the film 5/5 stars, but upon review, 4.5/5 seems more fitting. But what do you think? Should PTA have placed more focus on the politics at the forefront of this film’s plot? Or will his dedication to the heart of the story lead to true personal victory, as well as finally receiving an Academy Award for his efforts? Watch it and decide for yourself!
