Title – One Battle After Another (2025)

Director – Paul Thomas Anderson (Licorice Pizza)

Cast – Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro, Regina Hall, Chase Infiniti, Teyana Taylor

Plot – Once a member of a renowned revolutionary group that was forced into hiding, Bob Ferguson (DiCaprio) and his teenager daughter Willa (Infiniti) have their quiet lives in hiding rudely interrupted when the groups most feared adversary Col. Steven J. Lockjaw (Penn) remerges.

“I didn’t ask for this. That’s just how the cards were rolled out for me”

Review by Eddie on 29/09/2025

Love it or loathe it, it’s undeniable that Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, a loose adaptation of Thomas Pynchon’s novel Vineland, is a $170 million dollar epic that is one of the most audacious pieces of Hollywood filmmaking of the modern era.

Starting out with one of the most brash, confronting, intense and unashamedly divisive opening 20 – 30 minute stanzas you’re likely to see from a major Hollywood release, Another is a wild swing of film utilising Anderson’s filmmaking craft that he began refining with short films in the late 80’s and has continued to evolve over the past 30 plus years.

It’s a film that is going to divide public opinion, even if at the time of writing it’s clear to see a majority of both casual and critical audiences are finding much to like about a film that appears set to be one of the major players in all the end of year award ceremonies, for anyone that gets caught up in the swell Another creates, this intense and gripping visceral experience is a feast for the senses that is sure to go down as one of the quintessential pieces of modern American cinema.

One of the most expertly paced and structured 160 minute films you’re likely to come across, Another thrusts us headfirst into the exploits of a far-left revolutionary group known as the French 75, led by their fearless leader Perfidia (a fiery Teyana Taylor), who fly too close to the sun and are forced into hiding, leading to Leonardo DiCaprio’s explosives expert Bob Ferguson to single handedly raise his and Perfidia’s daughter Willa (a career making Chase Infiniti), something that becomes a lot more complicated when the determined Col. Steven J. Lockjaw remerges on the scene, played by a fearsome Oscar bound Sean Penn.

There’s an incredible amount of narrative movements, themes, undertones and genres all at played in Another and as the film moves from a white-knuckle fly on the wall like experience examination of a rebel group at work right into a Big Lebowski infused cat and mouse comedically tinged thriller/actioner that also shines a light on the current state of the country in which it is set, Anderson is at all times fully in control of his medium, enacting out a masterclass of directional prowess that deserves to be taken in on the biggest screen possible.

Highlighted by a stunningly staged mid-section that is engulfed by Jonny Greenwood’s all-encompassing and nerve shredding score as DiCaprio’s dressing gown sporting Bob scampers his way through a range of adversities to secure the freedom of he and his daughters lives of which leads to a genuinely unforgettable hour or so in your cinema seat, Anderson has crafted something special here that may not have the stereotypically likable or respectable characters we are used to seeing be our protagonists but provides a powerful and involving experience nonetheless.

Throughout proceedings, as is usually the case with Anderson’s feature works, Another harbors a range of notable and impressive performances that are all likely to garner attention for various reasons come the end of year awards season.

With the main spotlight arguably stolen by a jacked-up Sean Penn, crafting an instantly iconic cinema villain right up there with Anderson’s own creation Daniel Plainview, Nurse Ratched or Anton Chigurh, Another is loaded with an on-fire ensemble that all relish the chance to traverse and play in Anderson’s off-kilter wonderland.

Bringing some major Rick Dalton (and The Dude) vibes to proceedings, DiCaprio is once more a force as an activist turned slacker who is forced back into action, an extended scene between Bob and an unfortunate phone operator is comedic smackdown but everyone here is on top notch form with the likes of Benicio Del Toro, staking a claim to become cinema’s most unforgettable sensi, Regina Hall and even one time Homeland Security employee James Raterman as Colonel Danvers, Another is a masterclass of ensemble acting from top to bottom.

Culminating in a rollercoaster like fashion on the open roads, Anderson’s Panavision shot spectacle is a true sight to behold, an ambitious and unrelenting undertaking that takes no prisoners.

An oddity in a climate where so much is cookie-cutter, predictable and as to be expected, Another isn’t for everyone and that’s perfectly okay but there’s every chance we have just laid witness to a new classic, reminding us all of the power of original and daring filmmaking on a grand-scale.

Final Say –

A likely financial flop that is set to be a key awards figure in the coming months and an instant candidate for classic status in the near future, One Battle After Another is something entirely unique made by a filmmaker who continues to push himself and his medium forward in new and exciting ways.

5 tight t-shirts out of 5