Dir: Paul Thomas Anderson
Cast: Leonardo Di Caprio, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Regina Hall, Teyana Taylor, Chase Infiniti
Hilarious and thematically rich, Paul Thomas Anderson’s sweeping political caper allows the celebrated director to orchestrate a dazzling spectacle of controlled chaos in his boldest and most captivating film yet
Over the past two decades, only a handful of directors have managed to keep me on the edge of my seat with each new project announcement. Paul Thomas Anderson is one of those rare filmmakers whose next move I await with genuine excitement. My passion for cinema truly ignited in the mid-2000s, thanks to two unforgettable films from 2007. The first was the Coen brothers‘ Best Picture-winning neo-Western, “No Country for Old Men.” The second was Anderson’s electrifying and haunting period drama following Daniel Day-Lewis’ megalomaniac oil prospector, “There Will Be Blood”.
Having been introduced to Anderson’s work, I was quickly swept away by his masterful craftsmanship and epic storytelling. It did not take long before I had taken it upon myself to watch his entire filmography, a journey I have kept up with for nearly two decades. Since his significant breakout with his second feature, “Boogie Nights” in 1997, Anderson has amassed an impressive eleven Academy Award nominations for his writing, directing, and producing, yet that coveted first Oscar still eludes his celebrated collection.
Anderson stands alone as the only filmmaker to have claimed the top directing honours at the Cannes, Berlin, and Venice film festivals, a feat unmatched in cinematic history. Yet, despite his consistent brilliance, the Oscar has remained just out of reach. That may finally change, as his latest film, “One Battle After Another”, has dazzled both audiences and critics since it was released in cinemas worldwide last week, quickly emerging as the early favourite for the 98th Academy Awards in 2026.
With a reported budget of $150 million, “One Battle After Another” marks Anderson’s most ambitious and costly undertaking yet, a bold gamble for Warner Bros. given his films’ modest box office history. When the film was notably missing from the fall festival line-up, whispers of doubt began to circulate about the studio’s risky bet. Yet, after its world premiere last month, the film, its cast, and Anderson himself have been met with a wave of critical acclaim.
Following a string of period pieces, Anderson’s latest film takes place in a contemporary United States, despite being loosely adapted from Thomas Pynchon’s 1990 novel “Vineland”. This marks Anderson’s second foray into Pynchon’s labyrinthine, post-modern worlds, following “Inherent Vice” (2014), which many critics have long considered too complex and intricate for the screen.
Bringing the 1980’s setting of the novel to the present day, the film introduces us to the French 75, a radical group far-left group led by the fearless Perfidia Beverly Hills (Teyana Taylor). Under her command, they stage daring rescues of detained immigrants from California detention centres. Alongside her passionate, demolition expert partner Pat Calhoun (Leonardo DiCaprio), Perfidia orchestrates bold strikes against politician’s offices, banks, and institutions propping up the fascist regime. When the sexually obsessed military officer Steven Lockjaw (Sean Penn), still smarting from a past humiliation by Perfidia, begins a ruthless campaign against the group, Perfidia is forced into witness protection, torn between survival and loyalty to her comrades.
Sixteen years on, Pat—now living as the jittery, drug-addled Bob Ferguson—hides out in the sanctuary city of Baktan Cross, fiercely guarding his and Perfidia’s daughter, Willa (Chase Infiniti), who has blossomed into a fiercely independent spirit. Meanwhile, Colonel Lockjaw, now looking to be a key player in a shadowy cabal of white supremacists ruling from a secret bunker, becomes obsessed with erasing his past. Convinced Willa is his own daughter, he launches a relentless hunt to silence her and bury any trace of any forbidden interracial relationships. With danger closing in, Bob, Willa, and the last of the French 75 are forced back into a desperate flight for survival.
After years of anticipation since its June 2023 announcement, I am thrilled to say “One Battle After Another” not only stands tall among Paul Thomas Anderson’s finest but might just be the cinematic crown jewel of 2025 so far. What truly surprised me here was Anderson’s chameleon-like versatility. Despite its hefty 160-minute runtime, the film surges forward with unyielding energy, a bold departure from his more methodical, slow-burning style. From the riotous opening acts of the French 75 to a pulse-pounding car chase across the sun-baked Californian hills, this audacious epic is not only Anderson’s most thematically layered work, but also his most exhilarating.
The acclaimed director showcases some of his strongest filmmaking and storytelling techniques as he seamlessly transports Pynchon’s novel into the modern day. Despite the Reagan-era setting of the source material, Anderson flexes his directorial prowess, breathing new life into Pynchon’s novel by catapulting it into the present day. Though the original tale is rooted in the 1980s, its warnings about fascist America feel eerily current, and Anderson masterfully mines the absurdity of the far-right’s grip on power for both jaw-dropping and darkly comic moments. The farcically named Christmas Adventure Club, a cabal of privileged old men, pulls the strings behind the scenes, shaping the nation’s fate. In response, the unruly French 75 rise up, their cause righteous after witnessing the inhumane caging of immigrants, yet their methods blur the line between heroism and recklessness. Ultimately, the ghosts of their rebellion return to haunt them, demanding a reckoning for the choices made in the heat of revolution.
Though “One Battle After Another” wears its politics on its sleeve, the story stays grounded by the tender, often hilarious father-daughter bond at its core. Amid the chaos of a United States ready to ignite, the emotional stakes soar as DiCaprio’s hopelessly inept ex-revolutionary stumbles through one failed rescue attempt after another, his years of addiction forever tripping him up. This beating heart is what lifts Anderson’s sweeping epic above the similarly themed “Eddington” from earlier this year. While both films dissect America’s modern-day fractures—racism, extremism, and a widening political chasm—Ari Aster‘s pandemic epic falters with unlikable characters and a lack of narrative focus. Anderson, by rooting his story in genuine emotion and fully realized, driven characters, crafts a film that is both politically sharp and deeply engaging.
“One Battle After Another” dazzles not just with its depth but with a breakneck pace that sweeps you into its whirlwind. Anderson’s electric direction, paired with Jonny Greenwood‘s pulse-quickening score, keeps you teetering on the edge of your seat, barely allowing a moment to catch your breath. Greenwood, Radiohead’s guitar virtuoso and Anderson’s long-time musical collaborator, once again delivers a soundtrack that thrums with urgency and might just cement its place among the century’s most iconic scores.
Cinematographer Michael Bauman cranks up the film’s intensity by embracing VistaVision, reviving the lush widescreen 35mm format for a new era. After witnessing Lol Crawley‘s Oscar-winning mastery of VistaVision in “The Brutalist”, it’s a thrill to see this once-forgotten technique reborn in a film that is both visually breath-taking and deeply intimate. Bauman and Anderson harness the format’s power to capture raw emotion and stage jaw-dropping set pieces, none more exhilarating than the climactic car chase destined for cinematic legend. The long lenses and crystal-clear visuals make every twist and turn of “The Texas Dip” in Borrego Springs feel like a white-knuckle rollercoaster ride.
The film’s ensemble shines, with DiCaprio delivering a hilarious performance as the bumbling, weed-smoking father. Most of the film’s laughs spring from his well-meaning but hopelessly inept attempts to protect his daughter. Sean Penn also delivers comedic brilliance as the villainous Colonel Lockjaw, whose extremist politics are rendered almost absurd by his pitiful demeanour, a sharp contrast to his imposing military rank.
The supporting cast makes the most of every moment, with Benicio del Toro‘s sensei-turned-immigrant runner bringing a steady calm as Bob flounders in his search. Chase Infiniti is a breakout as the fiercely independent Willa, outshining DiCaprio’s Bob in capability and, despite spending much of the film apart, forging a genuine emotional bond with her on-screen father.
But it is Teyana Taylor as the mesmerizing Perfidia who truly steals the show. After her unforgettable turn in the criminally overlooked “A Thousand and One”, Taylor cements her status as a powerhouse, commanding every frame of the film’s opening act. Even after her character exits the stage, her presence lingers, casting a long shadow over the story and staying with me long after the credits rolled.
The Verdict:
Paul Thomas Anderson delivers a cinematic triumph that dazzles on every level, destined to be hailed as the defining film of 2025 for years ahead. Every element, from the mesmerizing storytelling and striking visuals to the razor-sharp pacing, unforgettable performances, sly humour, and Greenwood’s electrifying score, comes together seamlessly. The result is a flawless experience that entertains deeply while resonating with urgent relevance in our era of political upheaval.
One Battle After Another is now showing in UK Cinemas
Dan Loves Film 
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