The beauty of Paul Thomas Anderson’s cinema is no matter what thematic similarities there are within some of his films, he always determined to make each one its own unique beasts. Even compared to Quentin Tarantino – who is a great filmmaker in his own right even if you can spot from his signature roots from both a visual and audio standpoint – Anderson can go from ensemble pieces like the 70s swinging Boogie Nights to the psychological dramas like There Will Be Blood. Anderson has always been interested in exploring the many assets of America itself from its complicated history to arguably its crazier present, the latter is very apparent in One Battle After Another.
Having previously adapted Thomas Pynchon’s Inherent Vice in 2014, Anderson’s latest serves as a loose adaptation of the author’s 1990 novel Vineland, which explored the free spirit of rebellion during the 1960s, as well as the traits that would lead to the Nixon Administration and the War on Drugs. That youthful rebellious spirit is reshaped in the film’s modern setting as the far-left evolutionary group the French 75, in which “Ghetto” Pat Calhoun (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Perfidia Beverly Hills (Teyana Taylor) are members.
One Battle After Another‘s initial movement is to showcase the actions of this resistance group from breaking out detained immigrants from detention centers, to carrying out attacks on politicians’ offices and banks. Through these missions where a romance blooms between Pat and Perfidia, they become targets of the military officer Steven Lockjaw (Sean Penn). As the years go by with Pat now left to raise her teenage daughter Charlene (Chase Infiniti) on his own, the past comes back to haunt the family as Pat tries to get back into the revolutionary game to rescue her, and thus the rest of the film becomes this relentless chase.
With such a simple premise that sounds like a typical action movie, as well as an epic running time of 162 minutes, it is surprising that One Battle After Another moves at such a pace while weaving a tone that is funny, melancholic and more nuanced than you think. While it would be easy to present the resistance as the goodies and the military as the baddies, it is a simple black-and-white scenario, despite a whole subplot involving a secret society of far-right white supremacists. Despite their ongoing pursuit of fighting the establishment, there doesn’t seem a positive outcome for the French 75 as the title suggests, they are going to one battle after another, until they are either caught or faze out of existence.
Considering that Anderson’s previous film Licorice Pizza was all about the warmth of embracing that youthful free spirit, One Battle After Another shows how being young and energetic isn’t going to last forever, which is what causes friction to Pat and Perfidia’s relationship, and eventually his relationship with his daughter. Given his long reputation as a pretty boy who can act, DiCaprio’s recent calling has been playing characters that are unhinged and/or insecure, as seen in The Wolf of Wall Street and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Continuing Anderson’s list of flawed and desperate characters that are a joy to be around, DiCaprio’s turn as the washed-up Pat Calhoun leads to some of the film’s hilarious moments.
Among the strong supporting cast from Sean Penn’s menacing if pitiful villain to Benicio del Toro’s quirky turn as Sensei Sergio St. Carlos, it is the various female performers that deliver the most impactful moments with Teyana Taylor and newcomer Chase Infiniti giving all-time great performances.
During an interview when he was promoting Boogie Nights in 1997, Anderson talked about his frustration with the action genre and considering that he first conceived the initial idea for this film decades ago, One Battle After Another is his way of putting his own stamp on that genre. Shot on 35mm film using VistaVision cameras by cinematographer Michael Bauman, Anderson makes great use of the epic scale of the deserted landscapes, while never negating the power of the close-ups during the film’s dramatic moments. Among the chasing and shootouts that occur throughout, the final car chase is an all-time classic that is unpredictable in its rhythm, while being elevated by another great score from Jonny Greenwood.
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