From the opening moments of freeing captured immigrants from a migrant camp, Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another lets you know where it is going! This movie is going to disrupt your way of thinking and is not afraid to push buttons.
As stated previously, the movie starts off with Perfidia (Teyana Taylor) doing reconnaissance on the camp and working with her team on what their next steps will be. The group, along with Bob (Leonardo DiCaprio), have everything down to a tee and go into the camp to free the detainees. During the event, Perfidia finds Col. Stephen Lockjaw (Sean Penn) and humiliates him before locking him up with the other soldiers at the camp.
This begins a game of cat-and-mouse between the two that leads to something major. I do not want to give away too much of the movie, but there are some shocking scenes that take place after this event due to what happens between Perfidia and Col. Lockjaw.
Where OBAA shines is in the relationship between Bob and his daughter, Willa (Chase Infiniti). Willa does not know the truth about her mother and only knows that her dad wants the best for her. Bob spends his days smoking weed and trying to stay below the radar. Willa, is a star student and excels in her martial arts classes taught by Sensei Sergio St. Carlos (Benicio Del Toro).
Sensei is one of the best characters I have seen in a movie in years. With all of the madness going on around him, he is calm and collected during everything. I feel that there should be some supporting actor talk for Del Toro with his incredible performance in this movie. Teyana Taylor is also a force to be reckoned with in her role as Perfidia. From the moment she appears on the screen to her scenes with Sean Penn, she turns in a powerful performance.
One Battle After Another digs into some pretty current territory with scenes of secret societies (Hail Santa!), riots in the streets, and undercover soldiers hiding amongst the rioters to incite violence. The pacing of the movie also builds some anxiety during certain moments because you do not know what is going to happen next. The last third of the movie is an intense ride that puts you in the crosshairs of Col. Lockjaw and his attempt to capture Bob and Willa.
Final Thoughts: One Battle After Another is a pulse-pounding ride with incredible performances from DiCaprio, Taylor, and Infiniti. The themes of rebellion, family, and loss lingers over the movie and helps propel the story. At a running time of 2 hours and 41 minutes, the movie moves at a quick pace. This is a movie that will create conversations and will be a contender come award season.
Violence: There are some moments of violence throughout the movie. Images of riots, shootings, and drug use might not be suitable for younger kids.
Kid-Friendly: The movie is rated R for good reason. The subject of the movie, being about revolution, might be good for kids to hear, but this may be too adult for younger kids. I would suggest kids 15 and up can watch this.
Washed-up revolutionary Bob (DiCaprio) exists in a state of stoned paranoia, surviving off-grid with his spirited, self-reliant daughter, Willa (Infiniti). When his evil nemesis (Penn) resurfaces after 16 years and she goes missing, the former radical scrambles to find her, father and daughter both battling the consequences of his past.
Anderson directs from his own screenplay. The producers are Oscar and BAFTA nominees Adam Somner and Sara Murphy and Anderson, with Will Weiske executive producing.