Staff Review - One Battle After Another

All across the United States of America, protests are taking place over the current administration's ICE raids. Being referred to online as “music festivals” to avoid algorithm shadow bans, thousands of people are standing up for what they believe in, determined to make a change and doing what they can to help those afflicted. Enter: Teyana Taylor as Perfidia Beverly Hills scoping out an immigration detention centre as she prepares to free those inside. Rarely does a film match current events so precisely, except this prologue isn’t set in 2025. The start of One Battle After Another takes us back 16 years, suggesting that the USA’s current trials and tribulations are actually a result of years of growing tension culminating in one big crescendo, much like the film's structure itself. Following a rag-tag group of revolutionaries known as the French 75, we’re introduced not only to the aforementioned Perfidia but also to her lover Bob, played by Leonardo DiCaprio. We also meet her nemesis, come play-thing Steven J. Lockjaw, played by Sean Penn in one of his finest performances yet.

Loosely adapting Thomas Pynchon’s ‘Vineland’ for the modern age, Paul Thomas Anderson explores the idea of what happens when revolutionaries scatter by fast forwarding to the present day where a now teenage Willa, daughter of Perfidia, takes centre stage along with her father Bob. It’s hard to believe this is Chase Infiniti’s first feature film. The way she commands the screen as Willa is something to behold as we watch her transform from just another child into the continuation of a long line of revolutionaries. Walking a tightrope of comedic urgency and earnest resolve, Leonardo DiCaprio proves yet again why he is one of the most revered actors of his generation. The past comes to haunt the duo while they’re separated and things spiral out of control, leading us on a whirlwind journey steeped in humour, paranoia and exhilaration resulting in what I can only describe as THE American film of 2025.

One Battle After Another features another one of Paul Thomas Anderson’s grand ensembles with one standout being Sensei Sergio, played by the brilliant Benicio Del Toro. Using his limited screen time to the fullest, we get a glimpse of one of P.T.A’s coolest characters. The respected community leader, with his laid back approach, provides the calm to Bob’s storm, even while in the most dire of situations, which helps to keep the audience grounded. Another notable mention goes to Regina Hall. Known mostly for her comedic work in the Scary Movie films, Hall displays another side of her talent as Deandra, demonstrating her ability to convey multitudes of emotions within a single, heartbreaking reaction shot.

Considering that Paul Thomas Anderson is already one of the most highly acclaimed directors of the past 30 years, you could be mistaken for thinking he’d simply rest on his laurels, but he has outdone himself yet again. Reprising signature motifs of strong-willed women and men that live on the outskirts of society, One Battle After Another is right up there with his best, venturing into new territory with more action than any of his other films but without compromising on the interpersonal drama that he’s known for. Accompanied by an incredible score from Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood, filled with jazz like piano riffs and heart wrenching orchestral work scattered between P.T.A’s pop song needle drops, the film’s music propels it forward with the same unrelenting momentum as Andy Jurgensen’s editing work.

Written by Dom Smith, Team Member at Light Walsall
29 October 2025