Rating: 10/10
Spoilers ahead for “One Battle After Another.”
What does it mean to want change? To go against the system and to strive for something better? Many people throughout history have tried this, but few have succeeded.
Political revolutionary movements will always be a document of fascination. Multiple news outlets, journalists and documentarians have spent their lives capturing these types of movements, creating a blueprint for those to come.
But what happens when your ideas for revolution and change are separated from who your current self is? If you want something to be done, you should be able to do it, right? Not according to “One Battle After Another,” a new cinematic masterpiece that’ll be remembered for years to come.
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, who is known for masterworks such as “There Will Be Blood” and “The Master,” this film is wholeheartedly up to par and even grander, boasting a budget of $130 million — a new high for him. Thanks to the story, it needed to be this big for good reason.
Bob — played by a marvelous Leonardo DiCaprio — is a former revolutionary who has become overcome with anxiety that something will happen to him and his child — played by newcomer Chase Infinity. When his former arch-nemesis Lockjaw — a generational Sean Penn — comes back to haunt and torment Bob, he must do whatever it takes to protect him, his family and the life that he has built to avoid every force that might come to look for him.
There are three moments in the film where Jonny Greenwood’s blisteringly beautiful score overlays the main characters during decisive moments in their life. In accordance with the cast billing order, people would think that Bob would be included among the moments as he is the main character in this story.
However, it isn’t him — in fact, it’s anyone but him. These moments belong to Willa, Bob’s daughter, Lockjaw and Willa’s mother, Perfidia Beverly Hills — played by the enchanting Teyana Taylor. There’s a line that connects these three characters that is separate from Bob because he is so far away from the motivation that each of those characters has.
Beverly Hills is the epitome of rebellion. Manufacturing every move to try and disrupt a corrupt government comprises her entire life, and she’s willing to do everything to get it — even if that means ratting out her crew for her own benefit.
Lockjaw is trying to assimilate into what he wants his life to become, but he has to bury the darkest of secrets in order for that to happen. His journey to do that is filled with anger, and he is willing to do anything to get what he wants.
Willa is coming of age in her story, but still follows the same beliefs that her mother had to a t. As soon as she knows the danger that she is in, making moves that not only will benefit herself but also everyone around her is the only focus of her life.
Bob is none of that. He’s a “drug and alcohol lover.” He runs around most of the movie trying to figure out “what the time is.” While the beliefs of the three central revolutionaries were once a part of him, they aren’t anymore, even though he thinks they are.
But, that doesn’t mean the idea has to die. It lives on through Willa. Her parents have passed on their beliefs to her, and she can carry them like a torch.
Anderson pins a question on his audience: What are you willing to do to be the change that is required of you? While the French 75 is a fictional political resistance group from the film, their actions live on through multiple people in real life. Audiences have felt attached to this story because it’s a reflection of what is happening now.
President Donald Trump has said he’s going to impose a 100% tariff on any films made outside the United States. If he’s worried about any kind of speech in films that will counter what he wants in movies, then he’d better stop looking over international waters and start looking at the films made by his own nation.
This film is blatantly a call to whoever may receive it. If one watches “One Battle After Another” and thinks “This is a part of the woke agenda,” then they have lost the plot. This country was built on movements fighting oppression like those depicted in the film, and it’s a shame that we even need a film like this in the first place to remind us of the power of change.
The revolution will not be televised — it’ll be shown on IMAX screens and made in VistaVision, inviting people into the sanctuary that people call a movie theater to worship the power of cinema.
As cars chase each other down the Californian hills, it feels spiritual. It’s a visual embodiment of what we’ve been wanting to see for so long, a face for the possibility that we dream about. This isn’t just a story about a washed-up dad trying to make right by his child; it’s so much more than that.
Revolution isn’t absolute. There are many different forms of it, whether you’re peacefully protesting on the streets, raiding ICE facilities to free prisoners or making a movie about various types of it. It’s the way you think, the motives that bring forth action, even though it might seem selfish and what we want to be remembered for.
While a revolutionary might fade away, the idea never will. This movie will never fade away. Decades from now, people will look back and realize the significance of why this movie was made to inspire the masses. It will be a political, cultural and artistic artifact that encapsulates our time.
Oppression will always be present, but it’s what we do to counter it that matters. If it looks anything like the themes and messaging this film presents, we’re going to be in good hands.
Joshua Abraham is a kinesiology senior and opinion columnist for The Battalion.
