One Battle After Another

Putting all my cards on the table, I am not a huge Paul Thomas Anderson fan. While I respect and admire his work across his very acclaimed filmography, I view these films as well-crafted movies that I cannot connect to on an emotional level. There Will Be Blood is anchored by a phenomenal performance from Daniel Day-Lewis but ultimately left me at arm’s reach. Boogie Nights has a hilarious premise but falls short in its execution. And outside of Phantom Thread, which I actually think is the man’s magnum opus, you would consider my ratings for the rest of his filmography blasphemous. 

So with all that being said, I think I might be the kind of person you actually want to hear from when it comes to Anderson’s newest film. Warner Bros. gave this man $150 million to make what I assume they thought would be a high-stakes action-comedy destined to light the box office on fire, starring Hollywood’s number one leading man Leonardo DiCaprio. And to be fair, this is clearly a Paul Thomas Anderson spin on a crowd-pleasing blockbuster, filled with technically spectacular car chase sequences, a massive riot scene, and thrilling action sprinkled in here and there. But at its core, the hook of this film is its message, its movement, and its particularly resonant dialogue. Will this film make back its budget? Probably not, but I could not care less when we got a pretty darn good film nonetheless.

Now, if you’re unfamiliar with One Battle After Another, neither trailer for Anderson’s 10th film truly captures the spirit of this film at its core. It is marketed as an epic on a grand-scale, with revolution set pieces and comedy galore, but the film actually opens in a gritty, brutally honest way. We flash back to the core conflict at the heart of the revolution behind the French 75, the film’s liberation group. Surprisingly, the first hour is centered around Teyana Taylor’s character. Let me just say, I am so glad that she is finally getting her flowers. Any true fan of cinema should know her from her incredible, overlooked performance in A Thousand and One. That same energy, compassion, motivation, heartbreak is all here. She plays this aspiring, determined revolutionary leader who knows exactly what she wants and refuses to let anything or anyone stand in her way. She’s got laughs, action, and swagger… and I was all in.

But then, the movie shifts. Once the story moves away from Taylor’s Perfidia and pivots toward the revenge arc of Colonel Lockjaw (Sean Penn) and the comedic rumblings of Bob Ferguson (Leonardo DiCaprio), we start getting more of the film we were expecting from the trailers. This is not a bad thing, and the main reason is the film’s standout: Sean Penn. This man has won two Oscars, and if he does not have a third after next year’s ceremony, I am starting my own revolution. He plays one of the most despicable, hateful characters you will ever see on screen, and yet he is utterly compelling. It’s in his walk, his facial expressions, his random lines of dialogue that shouldn’t be funny but somehow are. This is one of Penn’s career-best performances. He masterfully portrays brutality and nastiness in the best ways possible.

But though Penn shines here, the entire ensemble is one of the film’s biggest strengths and stands out as one of the year’s best. DiCaprio is, as always, a major positive and does exactly what you would expect of him here. He is funny, charismatic, and engaging, keeping the audience locked in. Is it one of his most iconic performances? No, not really, but it is certainly an effective performance. Benicio del Toro is also on point comedically. A lot of his best gags were in the trailers, but every time the film starts to drag a bit, he shows up and jolts it right back to life. Newcomer Chase Infiniti is nothing short of a revelation. Her face-off with Penn in the back half is brilliant acting and she owns that moment against one of the best to ever do it. I for one cannot wait to see what she does next. The only somewhat underwhelming performance is Regina Hall, though through no fault of her own. She is solid with the material she is given! She just does not get that much to do because of the screenplay’s structure and the film’s editing. 

Beyond the performances, the screenplay itself is a huge highlight, especially in how it tackles the current state of U.S. politics. It is kind of wild that this is based on a novel from decades ago and was shot a year and a half ago but mirrors our current reality to a T. From police brutality to ICE to nationalist groups to hate speech, the ugliest parts of modern society are all present here and handled with sharp, often biting humor. Though I won’t go into any specifics, what Paul Thomas Anderson does with the “Christmas Adventurers Club” storyline might be one of the best pieces of political screenwriting I’ve seen in years.

There is so much to like about One Battle After Another. But I did not love it, and that largely comes down to the runtime. At nearly three hours, even though the film is always moving forward, it feels long. It does not help that the ending the film builds towards feels unnatural. The last ten minutes come across as an ending that arose after the writers got studio notes asking for a conclusion that would test well rather than one that grew organically out of the story we spent three hours watching play out.

Technically, though, the film is a stunner. Anderson’s visual style is as strong as ever, and it is elevated by absolutely gorgeous cinematography. I saw this in IMAX, and the sound design was honestly overwhelming at times, in both good and bad ways. You can practically feel the gunshots pierce your chest, but the score occasionally drowns out the dialogue. You win some, you lose some.

Speaking of which, Johnny Greenwood’s score is solid but a tad overhyped. I love his work, and his scores usually end up among my favorites of the year, but this one reuses a single motif a bit too much for my taste. That said, the opening track, which recurs a few times, is simply remarkable. Once that score hits streaming, I will be playing that track on loop. And like in Paul Thomas Anderson’s entire filmography, the music supervision in this movie is legendary. The needle drops are especially on point, selecting perfecting songs for the perfect moments.

All in all, One Battle After Another perfectly encapsulates the real-life horror of the United States at the moment. Backed by that phenomenal performance from Penn, Paul Thomas Anderson’s newest film stretches its two-hour-and-forty-minute runtime to the max, with high-energy chase sequences, laugh-out-loud humor from its ensemble, and just enough political honesty to spark some real revolution among your moviegoing group. It is not a perfect movie, but it is an impactful, important, and deeply engaging experience that I quite enjoyed. Is it the defining, generation-shaping masterpiece that early buzz tried to claim it was? Not quite. But that does not mean it is not still worth your time. Whether you adore it, love it, like it, or even have issues with it, it is undeniably a film that sparks conversation. It is well-crafted, filled with standout performances, and packed with thoughtful, timely social commentary. It is an important and intriguing film that is of the moment, and it demands to be seen on the big screen.

8/10