Movie Review: One Battle After Another

Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another is an example of a master filmmaker in complete control of his technique and the story he wants to tell. Adapted from Thomas Pynchon’s novel Vineland, One Battle After Another is a timely and passionate film that looks at the state of the world while also being action-packed and thrilling, with a deeply felt emotional core and a perfect ensemble.

One Battle After Another hits the ground running and does not slow down. This film’s opening scene introduces us to the French 75, a group of revolutionaries whose latest mission finds them at the Mexico-U.S. border, where they free caged immigrants waiting to be processed by taking military officers hostage, including their leader, Lieutenant Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn). The French 75 is led by Perfidia Beverly Hills (Teyana Taylor), a ferocious leader hell bent on bringing down the system. This opening is an exciting and intricately plotted scene, laying the foundation for who our characters are and setting up events that would take place later in the film, while having the energy of a climax of an action movie.

Following a successful mission, Perfidia starts a relationship with Bob Ferguson (Leonardo DiCaprio). Throughout their other missions, which include blowing up banks and electrical grids, their love grows stronger, and they eventually have a child, whom they name Willa. As Bob’s focus is now on Willa, Perfidia becomes unsatisfied with their relationship and her life. She reteams with the French 75 for a bank heist, which goes awry, and she gets caught by none other than Lt. Lockjaw. This forces Bob and baby Willa to flee the state and start a new life with new identities.

Sixteen years later, Willa (Chase Infiniti) is a teenager, and Bob continues to help with the revolution the best he can while also keeping his daughter safe. He spends most of his days smoking and watching TV, and his evenings at the local bar. He’s essentially turned into Jeffrey Lebowski, robe and all. Lockjaw, still obsessed with trying to capture everyone from the French 75, sets his sights on Bob and Willa. With the help of French 75 ally Deandra (Regina Hall), Willa begins her escape to safety as Lockjaw and his crew raid a school dance Willa is attending. Bob gets word that Lockjaw is after him and Willa and begins his own escape while trying to reunite with his daughter. He enlists the help of Willa’s sensei, Sergio St. Carlos (Benicio del Toro), to aid him in reaching Willa while also attempting to recall a secret revolutionary code that will lead him to the rendezvous point where Willa is headed.

There is a kinetic energy that runs rampant throughout One Battle After Another’s 161-minute runtime. Never once did I feel the runtime, and never once did the film drag for even a second. It is easily the most entertaining film of Anderson’s career. It felt like Anderson sprinted an entire marathon, never missing stride and keeping the tempo up the whole time. Johnny Greenwood’s crafty score helps keep the film’s pace going, fluctuating from epic to quiet, pulsating to swooning. We also get to see a new side of Anderson as a director, as he expertly crafts exciting action sequences I didn’t know he was capable of. They look and sound spectacular and give you everything you want out of great action scenes.

Anderson has always been a director of actors, having directed nine performances for Oscar nominations, while also giving us some iconic performances in truly stacked casts. One Battle After Another is no different, as it features outstanding performances from every actor, no matter how big their character is. What Anderson does so brilliantly is give his actors time to shine and develop. While the film is moving at a rapid pace and the whole world feels like it is in chaos, Anderson has complete control of his characters and makes them real and complex people. It’s one of those movies where a different performance will pop with every rewatch. DiCaprio is as hilarious as he is sweet as Bob. You never forget that Willa is his whole world and that he will do anything for her. It also might be the funniest he has ever been in a film. Taylor is impressive and owns the first part of the film. Hall is quietly brilliant, Infiniti is a revelation, Del Toro is a riot, and I loved a lot of the smaller performances too, particularly James Raterman as the no-nonsense soldier Danvers. Sean Penn gives one of the most unhinged and brilliant performances I have seen this year as Lockjaw. His skin is a few more hours in the sun away from being leather. He walks like the rod up his ass has a rod up its ass. His shirts are too tight, and his haircut is questionable. He is a walking contradiction, as he wants to join an underground society of old white men focused on the “racial cleansing” of America, but is obsessed with Black women, particularly Perfidia. He is filled with toxicity, intensity, and insanity. You hate this character with every ounce of your being, yet you cannot take your eyes off him when he’s on screen. It is Penn’s best performance since his Oscar win for 2008’s Milk.

Much will be made of Anderson’s script, which is one of the best of his career. Pynchon’s novel took place in the 80s, but Anderson sets One Battle After Another in the present day and gives us a snapshot of the current state of America. He crafts a tale about rebellion, making history, erasing history, and the idea that the fight against authority and tyranny is never over. There’s a lot you take away from the film, and I imagine with each rewatch, more will come to the surface. But the core story about a father and daughter is what drives One Battle After Another. This belongs in the girl-dad cinematic Hall of Fame as it shows not only what a father will do to ensure his daughter’s safety, but also shows there can still be humanity in times of war and chaos. DiCaprio and Infiniti’s chemistry is perfect, and the film’s closing moments land an emotional punch I haven’t felt in a PTA movie since Magnolia.

One Battle After Another is everything you could want in a movie. It’s exciting, intense, perfectly acted, and expertly directed. It has timeless themes and a strong heart at its core. It has great actors working at the peak of their powers, and some of the best action sequences you will see in cinema today. One Battle After Another is undoubtedly one of the best movies of 2025.

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