ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER (DIR: PAUL THOMAS ANDERSON) (SCR: ANDERSON, BASED ON THE NOVEL VINELAND BY THOMAS PYNCHON)
Although SINNERS got more nominations (a whopping 15, the highest in Oscar history), ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, at an also very high 13 nominations, was seen as the favorite for the Best Picture award right after the nominations were announced. Part of this was because OBAA's writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson had never won an Oscar before, despite him being nominated 11 times over the years. (Personally I think his classic Boogie Nights should have won Best Picture back in 1998). So it made sense that the Academy wanted to give Anderson some well deserved Oscar glory (he also won for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay). And thankfully, Ryan Coogler, the writer/director of Sinners, did not go home empty handed, as he won for Best Original Screenplay. SINNERS also won for it's soundtrack and cinematography (that cinematography Oscar was won by Autumn Durald Arkapaw, the first woman ever to win, who's inspiring speech was the best moment of the show)
There was an x factor at work in the victory for OBAA; Anderson's film depicted an America in which a military force, led by a secretive group of white supremacists, use violence to round up and deport undocumented immigrants in the US, making the film almost painfully topical. Of course, it had to have been green lit well before the second Donald Trump term came around, but it's timing couldn't be better. So not only did this film give the Academy a chance to reward a long time nominee who'd never won before, it also gave them a chance to stick a finger in the eye of the Trump administration, something that progressive Hollywood couldn't really pass up. (And as a fellow progressive, I get the temptation).
Putting aside all of the Academy's motivations, I really think that OBAA is a great movie; its wildly entertaining, funny, exciting and well acted by the whole cast. I have deeply enjoyed most of Anderson's work over the years and I was glad to see him finally win.
The genesis of the film began back in the early 2000's when Anderson first considered adapting the 1990 novel Vineland by Thomas Pynchon. Eventually he settled on making a movie that combined an action car chase movie with the story of a female political revolutionary. The film began production in 2023, with big star Leonardo DiCaprio cast in the lead. Much time was taken in picking the right person for the crucial role of his daughter Willa, with former kickboxing trainer Chase Infiniti winning the part. The film was shot in California, with Anderson telling cinematographer Michael Bauman that he wanted it to have the same look as 70's action films like The French Connection. The reported budget of the film was between 130 and 175 million dollars (over 20 million went to DiCaprio). The box office in the US was only around 72 million, meaning that the film probably lost money even after overseas grosses are added. Still, Winning Best Picture may eventually help the film eke out a profit.
It tells the story of Pat Calhoun (DiCaprio) a member of a left wing resistance group known as The French 75. He is in love with fellow revolutionary Perfidia Beverly Hills (Teyana Taylor). After she avoids capture and sexually humiliates military leader Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn), he becomes obsessed with her and eventually tracks her down and coerces her into having sex with him. She becomes pregnant with Willa (Chase Infiniti), and after giving birth she leaves Willa with Pat while she continues her revolutionary activities. Pat goes into hiding with Willa, but Lockjaw is still looking for them.
Much has been written analyzing the politics of this film: while it's clear that the government crackdown on undocumented immigrants is shown in a negative light, does Anderson endorse the revolutionary tactics of the French 75? It's tough to say, with a protagonist who abandons the cause of his chosen group to protect his daughter seen as the most sympathetic character in the film, while his more militant former lover pushes things too far. I don't think the politics of the film are radical, even as it depicts a country that seems on the brink of civil war, Yes, Anderson paints a bleak, exaggerated view of modern America, as we see cities under literal siege led by a secretive government cabal of white supremacists (the wonderfully named Christmas Adventurers Club). To me Anderson seems to be endorsing some resistance, but not full on revolution, implying that extremes on both sides are a problem. This seems to be embodied in the wonderful characterization of the Sergio St Carlos character (Benicio del Toro) a likable zen like karate sensei who aids the undocumented community without violence.
Politics aside, this is just a good story well told, with plenty of action and comedy. Like many other Anderson films, its a long movie with an epic canvas that he fills with characters who feel complicated and real even if they're only onscreen for a brief time. The chase scene conclusion of the film is wonderfully shot and tense, while there are big laughs when Pat, after years of being out of The French 75, forgets the code words he has to say over the phone to get back in.
And the performances are uniformly great; DiCaprio has reached the point of his career where he can play a reluctant action hero and the concerned dad of a teenage daughter and get both right. It's fun to see his pot smoking, laid back character have to swing into action to save his daughter. And he and Infiniti have a very strong father daughter bond that's really the heart of the movie. Meanwhile, Sean Penn won his third Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for playing the relentless Lockjaw, and while we never really like his character, he does bring some humanity to the role. He makes the contradiction of a man who joins a white supremacist group while lusting after an African American woman work because we feel his deep seated sense of self loathing, making him a complex villain. And even though I wish she had some more scenes, Taylor as Perfidia is also very good, showing the flip side of Lockjaw, the unrelenting, militant resister.
SO DID THE ACADEMY GET IT RIGHT?
I think it's pretty clear that I love this movie and that I'm glad that the talented Anderson finally won. While there many other good movies that came out last year, and I would have been alright with SINNERS winning, to me ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER was the obvious choice.
