One Battle After Another (2025) — DiCaprio’s Revolt Ride

TL;DR

If you’ve ever wanted to high-five a revolution, watch it go wrong, and still feel like you were the genius all along — this is your heist.

If you like watching the system crashing, the rebels laughing as the ruins settle, and you’re comfortable aligning with the underdog who may blow up the toy store just because the toy store was built wrong—then go. This film gives you that rush. It’s stylish, heavy, fun, violent, emotional. A deliciously criminal mix.

Before the revolution starts, gear up like a cinematic rebel: 🎬 Buy One Battle After Another 🎬 Watch the chaos unfold in Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) — DiCaprio’s other moral meltdown. 🎮 Or start your own uprising in PAYDAY 3 — masks on, laws off.

Criminal Fantasy Fulfilment

Oh yes, we’re allowed to cheer. Because the villains—excuse me, anti-heroes—in One Battle After Another don’t just flirt with bad behaviour: they run the party. The system? It’s the villain. The machine? It’s battered, corrupt, totally due for a kick in the trousers. We like the way it stinks of injustice, because the film gives us the gloves to fight back. We’re planting flags. We’re lighting fires. We’re absolutely intoxicated by the idea of rooting for the scrappy, the damaged, the “almost-on-our-side-but-definitely‐not‐nice” characters.

And yes — the father-daughter dynamic adding emotional ballast means we care when things go sideways. We might even feel guilty. But we don’t stop cheering.

Plot & Pacing

Right, so what do we have? A former revolutionary (Leonardo DiCaprio) off-the-grid with his daughter, a resurfaced enemy, a missing daughter, and we’re off like a rocket strapped to explosives. Big budget, big format (VistaVision, folks).

Pacing: it’s less ‘tight Swiss watch’ and more ‘you throw a grenade into a clock and hope it rings at the right hour’. Starts strong. Middle takes its time chewing scenery and themes. End? A blast. Some critics grumbled it spread itself too thin — many plots, many characters, many revolts.

For our evil-loving hearts: a cartwheel into moral grey rather than a neat wrap. Perfect.

Characters & Performances

DiCaprio? He’s not the slick mastermind. He’s faded, pissed-off, rebellious dad who smokes more metaphors than actual cigarettes. Makes him human, makes him bleary, makes him fun.

Sean Penn as the antagonist is not a moustache-twirling cartoon villain. No—he’s the one in uniform who thinks the ledger-book of morality is on his side. And that makes him all the more delicious to hate.

And the young woman (Chase Infiniti) holds her own. She doesn’t need saving. She’s part of the insurgency. We like that.

Minor quibble: a couple of side-characters slide into “yes, we have to fill 162 minutes” territory. But mostly? Strong cast, big performances, good evil impulses.

Dialogue & Writing

Here’s the thing: the dialogue bangs when it needs to. Wisecracks, existential sighs, small-town revolutionary sass. There are lines you’ll remember. But it isn’t flawless. Sometimes it lumberingly delivers exposition: “The system has failed us,” “We are the machine,” etc. Heard it before.

Still, the script gives the villains swagger and the underdogs thunder. That’s enough for us. The criminals get their words. They get their scenes. They get their moment.

World & Atmosphere

Imagine dusty highways, hills that seem to whisper “you’re being hunted”, and widescreen shots so large your popcorn needs a seatbelt. That’s this movie. Big. Loud. Beautiful. The world isn’t pretty—it’s brutal, chaotic, unchecked. Exactly the environment for the villains to run wild.

It’s a playground for the people who do the heavy lifting. And we’re damn glad we’re watching.

Need more villain energy between scenes? 📀 Stream The Gentlemen (2020) — criminal class, perfect tailoring, no morals. 🕶️ Or go digital with Grand Theft Auto V — your sandbox for stylish wrongdoing.

Direction & Style

Paul Thomas Anderson does a weirdly fun thing here: he mixes his auteur DNA with explosions and car chases. Yes: car chases. In hills. With tension. With metaphor. With us leaning forward in our seats.

Sometimes the direction says: “Wait—hold on a second” and we get quiet and we reflect. Other times: “BOOM” and we’re paying attention. That blend? I like. For those of us who root for the anti-hero, the rebel, the system-smashers—it’s gold.

Soundtrack & Mood

Music by Jonny Greenwood. That name alone says: expect weird, expect tension, expect something that makes your skin crawl in good ways. The score is minimalist—hammering keys, sudden bursts—perfect for a world where you’re always one wrong turn from getting shot or making a revolution.

Mood: It doesn’t let you relax. Even the quiet scenes are simmering. The big ones? Exploding. You’ll leave the theatre slightly vibrating. Good.

Morality & Madness

Here’s where we flourish: this film doesn’t meekly pat you on the back for choosing “the good side”.

The theme: the system is the villain, and guess who’s paying? We are. The anti-heroes fight back—but we’re not sure they’re angels. That’s what we like. That’s what makes us complicit.

It asks: what are the costs? Who loses? Who wins? And you realise: sometimes you win by default, sometimes you lose by design. The film doesn’t moralise—they do. We watch. We judge. We empathise. We still root. And it’s delicious.

Rewatchability/Bingeworthiness

Two thumbs up for a one-time glorious sit-down. The film’s length (162 minutes) means: get your snacks ready.

Will you revisit it? Yes. The big set-pieces, the father-daughter arcs, the villain’s swagger—those will come back. But it’s not a TV-series binge. It’s a bold one-and-then-let-it-marinate.

FAQ

Is it worth watching in 2025? If you want your movie rebellion served with popcorn and a rocket strapped to it—yes.

Will the “good guys” make you feel righteous? Nope. The “good guys” are the system. And you’re rooting for the ones who break it.

Is the father-daughter subplot just filler? Not at all. It gives heart to the havoc. It reminds you villains can care.

Does it make you rethink your ethics? Probably — if you let it. If you don’t, you’ll just leave thinking: That was fun.

Is it a blueprint for criminals? Absolutely not. But it might make you re-watch the car chase and think: “Maybe I could do that.” Don’t. Just popcorn.

Still feel too normal after the credits? Fix that. 📚 Grab The Wolf of Wall Street (Blu-ray) — capitalism’s funniest crime spree. 💻 Then hit Hitman World of Assassination — elegance, precision, and total moral decay.