ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER

Review by John Larkin

I went into the new Paul Thomas Anderson film, ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER with expectations kept low, since the trailers had not stirred much in me. It is not a film that works in a trailer; its many parts only cohere when experienced as a whole. What Anderson delivers is a strange compendium of tones and genres: part epic spectacle, part dark satire, part absurd comedy, and part bruised family drama. On paper the combination should collapse, yet on screen it coheres with an energy that is unsettling and hypnotic.

The story begins with the French 75, a shadowy underground collective led by Leonardo DiCaprio and Teyana Taylor. They are lovers as well as anarchists, but when Taylor’s character is caught she disappears into witness protection, only to vanish entirely. Sixteen years later, their daughter, played by newcomer Chase Infiniti, becomes the target of Colonel Lockjaw, portrayed by Sean Penn, who is desperate to keep a personal secret buried. The film spirals from there into betrayals, shifting allegiances, and moments where tenderness collides with violence. The structure is fractured but purposeful, making the viewer feel as though they are constantly being thrown off balance.

Infiniti gives a breakout performance that feels electric, the kind of turn that announces a new star. Penn is grotesque and magnetic, creating a portrait of a fanatic whose bigotry is matched only by his obsessive need to control those he fears. It is a performance so fully inhabited it lingers in the mind long after and screams oscar nod. DiCaprio strips away glamour, playing a man both unraveling and oddly charming, someone we pity and laugh at in equal measure. Benicio Del Toro adds humor and sorrow as a karate instructor whose dojo doubles as a front for the resistance. Across the board, the cast commits to Anderson’s strange world, giving every scene a jolt of vitality.

Beneath the spectacle, the film becomes a study of dualities. Some characters cling to superiority and power, driven by fear and insecurity. Others are fueled by love and passion, willing to risk everything to protect or connect. The rebels are not necessarily noble, but they represent the part of humanity we want to endure. Colonel Lockjaw is driven by hatred and embodies the hollow hunger for dominance, while the French 75 channel an unruly but vital energy of resistance.

Visually the film feels enormous. Anderson leans into VistaVision for wide shots of the California–Mexico border, sprawling car chases, and horizons that seem endless. Yet much of the film is built on close-ups, faces studied with brutal intimacy. In 70mm IMAX the scale can feel overwhelming, even from the back row, as the format magnifies every flicker of expression. While some sequences blossom on that canvas, the intensity of the close-up shots may play more comfortably on a standard big screen.

Johnny Greenwood’s score is another highlight, restless and distinctive, matched with sharp jukebox selections that give scenes an off-kilter pulse. Together the soundscape is immersive and deeply satisfying.

Spielberg has compared the film to DR. STRANGELOVE, and the parallel feels apt. ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER shares that same unsettling blend of absurd humor and menace, where laughter catches in your throat. One sequence in particular, built around the Christmas season, unsettled me more than any of the violence. It twists something sacred into a perverse joke. For most viewers it will register as biting satire, but for me, with my strong reverence and nostalgia for Christmas season, it struck a more personal chord and left a lingering sting.

ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER is a film worth revisiting. Its layers, details, and shifting tones almost demand multiple viewings. It is grand and absurd, brutal and funny, unnerving and moving. It's one of PTA's boldest achievements and one of this year’s best.