One Battle After Another Review: Paul Thomas Anderson and Leonardo DiCaprio Celebrate a New Revolution

      Viva la revolución! Shouted by the former radical turned average Joe, Bob Ferguson (Leonardo DiCaprio), this phrase represents one of the most memorable lines in One Battle After Another and arguably serves as its thesis. However, in this engaging and dynamic new film by Paul Thomas Anderson, it's important to delve into the subtleties, nuances, and implications of that declaration. With the Spanish phrase retained and its connections to the Cuban Revolution, it reflects the film’s connection to the Hispanic culture of the western United States. But which revolución are we really discussing, and is Bob, who is struggling, genuinely sincere or charmingly deluded?

      A key indicator is that One Battle After Another unfolds not merely in a heightened cinematic realm, but in an alternate reality. Although it draws from the author's 1990 novel Vineland, it doesn't fully embody a Pynchonian atmosphere, unlike Anderson’s more accurate adaptation of Inherent Vice. The opening sequence sets the stage and provides early dramatic context: the French 75, a well-trained leftist militant group, plans to audaciously free undocumented migrants from a detention center; included among them are DiCaprio, under his former alias “Ghetto Pat,” the charismatic Perfidia (Teyana Taylor), and her leader Deandra (Regina Hall). Col Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn) lies in wait, with Anderson cleverly contrasting his military actions with the conspicuous bulge in his pants.

      Political urgency, contemporary cultural debates, and unabashedly aroused espionage agents: this is what Anderson tackles in One Battle After Another, and based on my initial viewing, he has crafted a largely exhilarating populist action film with some of his most impressive cinematic techniques and cohesive storytelling, though it lacks the dark beauty and depth of his finest works. The characters we are encouraged to support are appropriately inspiring and motivating; the antagonists are despicable white supremacist thugs dressed in both executive attire and camouflage; and the moral lines are sometimes as clear as in Star Wars, which Anderson seems to adapt carefully (even incorporating martial arts references). Nevertheless, the film succeeds and resonates well as an exciting (and hopefully appealing) commercial venture by effectively establishing these narrative essentials and getting the storytelling gears turning, driving down the twisted desert highways.

      After their nearly romantic meeting during the first mission of the French 75, Perfidia and Lockjaw enter a surprising romantic relationship, with Perfidia both politically repulsed and sexually intrigued, perhaps with an ulterior motive to infiltrate his operation as a double agent. As Pat remains her main partner, Perfidia’s subsequent pregnancy clouds the identity of the father, and her arrest by authorities—though she miraculously escapes—forces the French 75 to quickly adopt new identities.

      Thus, Pat takes on the somewhat pathetic name Bob, a single father and guardian of Perfidia’s daughter Willa, portrayed by newcomer Chase Infiniti within the film’s main timeline, which appears to be set in the present. Lockjaw re-emerges after gaining intel on the French 75’s location, driven primarily by his desire to capture Willa, which may also lead him to find Perfidia.

      Initially aggressive in the film’s opening chapter with their Weather Underground-like tactics and aspirations for a utopian societal transformation, the group now primarily aims to survive, or if not, to face their fate with dignity—even if that means martyrdom, which may immortalize them as future icons. In contrast to their dismal current situation, the decline of the modern United States into fascism (depicted in the film mainly through raids reminiscent of Operation Safeguard) renders their past idealistic struggles seemingly irrelevant, illustrated poignantly as their ally Sensei Sergio (Benicio del Toro) leads the disoriented Bob to safety, his past as a guerrilla fighter swallowed by the haze of his memories. This steadicam-driven scene—one of the film's most thrilling moments—takes place against the backdrop of the migrants he shelters, also fleeing from ICE. With such vivid imagery linked to the alarming reality of Trump’s second term, Anderson's connection to the challenges faced by the French 75 runs the risk of appearing arbitrary, adding yet another layer of illogic.

      As the film approaches its conclusion, a key aspect emerges: a contemplation on the bonds of parenthood, whether through biological or chosen families. Willa symbolizes the latest generation, marked by clearer political ideals and revised perspectives on sex and gender, all set to the sound of Shek Wes’s “Mo Bamba” rather than Bob’s cherished Steely Dan. The once vibrant French 75, representing New Left ideals that encompassed his life's purpose, becomes spiritually “dead”—likely even before it was physically extinguished—once Lockjaw identifies them again. This is poignant, and One Battle After Another truly elevates itself beyond its vehicular action sequences once it focuses on this essential truth.

      One Battle After Another