Political unrest. Abuse of power. Racial supremacy. Secret societies. Viva la revolución! Sounds like the kind of buzzwords you’d expect from a third-world news cycle. But in Trump’s America, they might as well be part of everyday life.
Mass deportations, racial injustice, and people power are all boiling over in the so-called land of the free – and it’s in this turbulent world that prolific American filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson sets his latest epic, “One Battle After Another”.
Loosely inspired by postmodern American novelist Thomas Pynchon’s 1990 novel “Vineland”, “One Battle After Another”, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Regina Hall, and Chase Infiniti, doesn’t waste time easing you in.
There’s no long exposition explaining why these freedom fighters and vigilantes do what they do. In fact, you don’t even know which part of America you’re in or what year it is.
Instead, the film throws you straight into a dangerous mission – and right away, you feel this eerie sense of familiarity. That’s Anderson’s genius.
Anderson (not related to another visionary filmmaker Wes Anderson) is known for tackling themes such as family dysfunction, ambition, power struggles, and the dark side of the American dream.
Films such as “Boogie Nights”, “There Will Be Blood”, and “The Master” capture his sweeping, emotionally intense, and raw directorial style, all of which are present in “One Battle After Another”.
Admittedly, the film isn’t a straight retelling of the novel but a high-octane reimagining, distilling the novel’s paranoid sprawl into a relentless pursuit that’s as emotional as it is explosive.
Think of “One Battle After Another” as a darkly funny, dystopian take on the American reality that people today are all too familiar with.
The film follows Bob Ferguson (Leonardo DiCaprio), a former revolutionary of the radical French 75 vigilante group, now living off-grid with his daughter Willa (Chase Infiniti).
When an old adversary (Sean Penn) resurfaces 16 years later and Willa disappears, Bob is forced back into a world of old enemies, betrayals, and unfinished battles.
What begins as a rescue mission evolves into a reckoning with history, family, and the price of rebellion.
At its core, the film is really about a father–daughter relationship – and what happens to it when you throw in assassins, military foes, civil unrest, and a few paranoia-fuelled car chases.
Anderson weaves it all together into a story that’s unpredictable, unapologetic, dizzying, dangerous, and funny – yet still full of heart. From the very start, you can’t help but be invested in these flawed characters he’s brought to life.
Music plays a big role, too. Anderson uses a discordant, almost never-ending piano score in key moments. It ramps up the urgency, puts you on edge, and even makes you feel a little paranoid yourself – turning the film into an immersive experience.
Ever since Netflix’s “Don’t Look Up”, DiCaprio has shown he can nail comedy. He’s mastered the art of playing seriously flawed characters who are still unintentionally funny.
That’s exactly what he brings to Bob, a man who’s drunk, high, angry, and disgruntled, yet somehow hilarious in almost every scene of this film.
The same goes for Sean Penn as Steven Lockjaw, the film’s antagonist. Penn plays the role with such deadly seriousness that it becomes funny – especially in the way his character is rude, blunt, and unapologetically over-the-top, while still feeling unpredictable and dangerous.
“One Battle After Another” is messy, bold, and unafraid to push buttons – just like the America it reflects. It’s a film that leaves you rattled, amused, and maybe even a little paranoid – and that’s exactly the point.
As of press time, ‘One Battle After Another’ is screening in cinemas nationwide.