One Battle After Another
Saturday, Ted and I went to the theater to see the new Paul Thomas Anderson film, One Battle After Another. It starts off rough, especially if you had just been reading about the immigration raid in Chicago where children had their hands zip tied together and elderly people were thrown into U-Hauls. The film begins in 2009, with a left wing revolutionary group (the French 75) overwhelming a migrant detention center and freeing the immigrants that were being held there.
Among the French 75 are “Ghetto” Pat Calhoun (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Perfidia Beverly Hills (Teyana Taylor). Perfidia ends up alone with the commanding officer, Steven Lockjaw (Sean Penn) and she sexually humiliates and excites him. He becomes obsessed with her. Pat and Perfidia become a couple, and the French 75 continues their attacks, on banks, on the power grid, on politicians offices, that kind of thing. Perfidia becomes pregnant and has a baby girl, Charlene, and eventually abandons Pat and the baby.
Fast forward 16 years, and Pat and Charlene are living as Bob and Willa (Chase Infiniti). Bob is hooked on pot and beer. He is overprotective, and has raised Willa to be cautious and know how to get out of tricky situations, though he seems to have forgotten some of his own lessons as time has passed with no threat. This is where the main action of the film occurs.
One Battle After Another is really well done, with some truly horrible people, long action sequences, plenty of humor and drama. It’s long (3 hours if you include the trailers beforehand) and maybe could have been cut a bit, but I didn’t mind it being long, I was never bored or confused. Performances were top notch all along, including by Benicia del Toro and Regina Hall. Highly recommended.
10 Comments
StephLove
If I watch this, it will have to be with one or both of the kids. Beth can’t watch anything violent or with kids in peril.
J
She likely would be a no go on this one then!
Karen Meg
Looks like an interesting movie, great actors!
J
Yes, it was really good, and all of the performances were great.
Margaret
Right now I’m more into fluff movies. I want to see “Eleanor the Great.” I’m too stressed about what’s going on in the country and my brain needs a vacation!
J
Oh, I hadn’t heard of that one! I love June Squibb!
ernie
I haven’t been to the theater in so long. Aside from taking Kay to see a kid’s movie on her bday over the summer, but I’m not counting that. This looks like a good movie. I also want to see the movie with the body builder guy – name is escaping me. It’s late. that’s my excuse, but my brain is also aging. I’ll think of his name as soon as I finish this comment. yeah, delaying that isn’t working. Ugh. I tried.
J
LOL, is it The Rock (Dwayne Johnson)? For some reason I think he’s in a movie right now…
PocoBrat
This is on the family watch list! (I’ll add your rec.)
J
It’s really good!