One Battle After Another

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There tends to be a fair share of names that are attached to movies that are bound to get my attention enough to be a sort of "Golden Ticket" to something that's, at the very least, objectively "good." One of those names is Leonardo DiCaprio, who, while perhaps seen as more of a teenage heartthrob back in the day, has since grown into a chameleon of an actor and can play anything from suave and intelligent to what he delivers here, as he portrays a far-left extremist who also happens to be a reclusive paranoid stoner.

Adding a little more draw to the film is director Paul Thomas Anderson, who has his own slightly more realistic, if a bit wacky, storytelling style, conjuring up some real classics like 'Boogie Nights,' 'Inherent Vice' and 'There Will Be Blood' to name a few. Here, he gives us a few more of his famously complex characters and gives the otherwise rather serious story a dark, comedic spin. The viewer isn't gonna be slapping their knees or anything. Still, the film isn't without a few much-needed moments to lighten things up, generally revolving around DiCaprio's performance.

In this film, we hit the ground running as "Ghetto" Pat Calhoun (DiCaprio) meets up with the French 75, a far-left revolutionary group which includes Pat's lover, Perfidia Beverly Hills (Teyana Taylor). I'm still trying to work out how much of that is her real name, and how much is a nickname. Regardless, the group embarks on a mission to rescue immigrants from the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, CA. During the mission, Perfidia finds commanding officer Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn) and, noticing how creepily he looks at her, sexually humiliates him, which he seems to have a bit of a fetish for.

Once Perfidia detains Lockjaw, she and Pat escape after a job well done, and continue their acts of revolutionary terrorism, all while keeping an amorous sex life. On one such mission, Lockjaw catches Perfidia planting a bomb, agreeing only to release her for sexual favours. Perfidia soon ends up with a baby that Pat takes on as their daughter. Still, Perfidia's not finished fighting her war, and abandons them both, only to end up in witness protection while Pat and the baby, Charlene, take on aliases Bob and Willa Ferguson as they go off the grid to hide from authorities.

Sixteen years pass, Lockjaw manages to move up the rankings to Colonel, and he gets invited to join the extreme far right secret society, The Christmas Adventurers Club, which is full of white supremicists who insist that their members steer clear of interracial relationships, which prompts Lockjaw to seek out Willa, who could be his daughter, in an effort to cover up his past. A distress signal is soon sent out to other members of the French 75, including Bob, who quickly realizes that authorities are after his daughter, whom he means to intercept with the help of his "Sensei" (Benicio Del Toro) before something extreme occurs.

Everyone is good in this; it's a testament to Anderson's directorial skills. For as much as DiCaprio carries the film, though, I'd be hard-pressed not to point out Penn's performance as the villain here just the same. Penn plays a pathetic, sleazy creep so incredibly well that I'd say he makes my list of most memorable movie villains for the year. I must also mention the surprise performance of Regina Hall, who plays Deandra, there to help Willa hide from those after her. I know her best as the over-the-top Brenda in the 'Scary Movie' series, and here, she really manages to show her acting chops.

At the end of the day, this is a political thriller with doses of comedy that tackles real-world issues, and it has been seen as "bold" for addressing some of the subject matter. I can basically agree with everything positive that the film has going for it, and on top of that, I tend not to enjoy political thrillers. This movie did things in a way that made it easier for me to empathize with the characters than I usually do, and it helps that the film goes to certain extremes to keep my attention. Speaking as a fan, I wouldn't say it's a favourite DiCaprio title, but it's certainly worth a sit-through if you have nearly 3 hours to kill.

4/5

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