One Battle After Another

by Flagg Taylor ’27 on October 2, 2025

A&E - Film & TV

Another Paul Thomas Anderson Masterpiece

Paul Thomas Anderson’s newest film, One Battle After Another, was touted by critics to be one of the defining films of this generation and given top-tier reviews across the media. The trailers released were vague, likely an intentional move by Anderson. Going into the theatre, I knew I would hold this film to an unfairly high standard due to the aura and mystery surrounding its release. Anderson’s film did not disappoint one bit. One Battle After Another is extremely relevant to our current political and cultural climate, exploring themes of revolution, fatherhood, and freedom through the story of a paranoid ex-revolutionary father and his daughter as they escape the evil figures from their past.

The film has a star-studded cast, and all of them mesh together in comedic but beautiful and impactful ways. In the first act of the movie, we are introduced to the revolutionary couple of Perfidia Beverly Hills (played by Teyana Taylor) and “Ghetto” Pat Calhoun (played by Leonardo DiCaprio). The couple and the rest of the revolutionary group, the French 75, commit various acts of revolution, like freeing immigrants from a detention center or bombing a politician’s office. During these daring battles, Beverly Hills makes an enemy with the film’s main antagonist, Colonel Steven J. Lockjaw (played by Sean Penn), who then develops a strange perversion for Beverly Hills. A series of unfortunate events leads to the disbandment of Beverly Hill’s and Calhoun’s cell of revolutionaries, and Beverly Hill’s arrest and subsequent disappearance. As the first act closes, we are transported 15 years into the future, to the present day.

In the second act of the film, the audience is introduced to DiCaprio’s new persona, Bob Ferguson, and his daughter, who has grown into a 16-year-old girl, Willa Ferguson (played by Chase Infiniti). Bob is an extremely paranoid, stoner father who constantly worries about the government coming back for him ever since he had to go on the run with his daughter after Beverley Hill’s arrest. However, Colonel Lockjaw decides to hunt down the father-daughter duo for reasons I will not spoil. The plot takes off from here, and the movie truly feels like one battle after another as Bob and Lockjaw both struggle chasing Willa across Texas. Anderson’s different shot variety and the fast pacing of the film give the tone of a long, suspenseful chase, one battle after another for the characters, each with their respective goals. The resolution sequence (a long car chase) at the end of the movie was truly special. I have not experienced such a tense environment in the movie theatre for a long time.

On top of Anderson’s genius filmmaking, Johnny Greenwood composed one of the best scores I’ve personally ever heard. His score was just as important to the tense and suspenseful feelings felt throughout the play as Anderson’s filmmaking. Greenwood also selected some great songs for the soundtrack, some of my personal favorites being “Dirty Work” by Steely Dan, “Ready or Not Here I Come (Can’t Hide from Love )” by The Jackson 5, and “Soldier Boy” by The Shirelles.

Finally, the star-studded cast of One Battle After Another delivered a multitude of award-worthy performances. Chase Infiniti made her film debut for Anderson’s work and delivered an inspiring and impactful performance representing Gen Z in a film, making a direct response to current times in the U.S.. DiCaprio was extremely funny and quirky while also having moments of deep passion, perfectly playing his role of a smoked-out, paranoia-stricken ex-revolutionary. Benicio del Toro plays Sensei Sergio, Willa’s karate sensei, who leads an underground railroad for Hispanic immigrants fearing government agents. Toro steps into this role beautifully, portraying a different type of revolutionary as a symbol of strength in the community. Teyana Taylor and Regina Hall play empowering and emotional roles as strong-willed and brave revolutionary women. Last but not least, Sean Penn plays a downright vile, detestable character in Colonel Lockjaw in a jaw-dropping performance. From the facial tics, his walk and posture, the hatred in his voice, Penn brings to life a “soldier boy” that will go down as one of the iconic villains of this generation.

It is hard to give a deep synopsis of the intricate themes and skillful filmmaking of One Battle After Another without spoiling too much of the film’s plot and ending. I highly recommend making the trip to the theatre and experiencing it for yourself. It was one of the fastest and most tense three hours in recent memory. I’ll have to rewatch it once or twice more before making any crazy statements towards the film’s all-time standing, but with extremely high expectations for this movie, Anderson and his cast and staff somehow managed to meet these high standards and then some. One Battle After Another was a captivating experience and delivered impactful and relevant messages in a funny, action-packed film that could not have been released at a better time than now.

(500) Days of Summer: A Classic Movie Review

by Sophia Caneira ’29 on September 25, 2025

A&E - Film & TV

Disclaimer: Spoilers Ahead

(500) Days of Summer (2009) is one of my favorite films I’ve seen. Even from the first moments, where the director’s disclaimer about Jenny Beckman, presumably a woman who broke his heart, is superimposed over a black screen, I was hooked. The movie follows the lives of Tom Hansen and Summer Finn over the course of their 500 days together, and how they fall in and out of love. For me, Tom is a relatable character. He is someone you might consider a hopeless romantic. He believes in the concept of true love and finding “the one,” while Summer does not. This comes between them and causes tension in their cautious relationship at multiple points. Personally, I think this flips the usual stereotype of the girl being obsessed and head-over-heels in love with the guy, who is usually depicted as more hesitant in the partnership when it comes to making a commitment and putting labels on the relationship. This is one of the many ways that this romantic comedy is unique from most others.

Most rom-coms are fairly predictable; they follow the same formula that involves a meet-cute, exploration of the relationship, impending problems, and eventually a solution that results in the happy ending audiences crave. (500) Days of Summer is not like this. First of all, the movie jumps back and forth in time, between the high points in Tom and Summer’s relationship and the low points after their breakup. This method is almost reminiscent of the human experience of recalling memories. The way the movie is cut also allows for several powerful parallel scenes that create emotional contrast. For example, the different scenes that take place in IKEA. Despite the time jumps, the story isn’t given away, and the twist about Summer’s engagement is preserved until toward the end. Most of the time in rom-coms, the two main characters experience a challenge that threatens to end their relationship, but they are able to overcome that challenge once they see that they are better off together than they are apart. In (500) Days of Summer, Tom struggles with moving on from Summer because he believes she was the one, but they don’t end up back together. The only other movie I’ve seen where that twist occurs is in the movie La La Land (2016). This kind of unexpected twist rids the film of the predictability we expect from the typical rom-com. The movie explores how relationships are extremely personal and can invade every aspect of a person’s life, which isn’t usually touched on in the common flick.

From a filmmaking standpoint, (500) Days is also a cinematic masterpiece. The movie employs a number of unique tactics to immerse you in the story. For one, the film jumps from past to present from start to finish. As the audience, we move through the 500 days focusing on Tom’s perspective, making him the main character and allowing us to empathize with his experience. The use of black and white clips, text superimposed on the screen, interviews with the characters, the “expectations vs. reality” scene of Tom arriving at Summer’s party, and even animation at some points, create an unconventional yet beautiful depiction of what a relationship can feel like. The film also includes a memorable soundtrack, which includes songs from a range of genres, from “Us” by Regina Spektor, to the classic “You Make My Dreams” by Hall & Oates, to songs by The Smiths. The Temper Trap’s “Sweet Disposition” became iconic through its use as a theme at several points in the film.

I think many people, regardless of whether or not they have been in a romantic relationship before, can relate to this film in some way. The characters (especially Tom) are so accessible, and the unique way the movie was filmed and edited is compelling. While perhaps a somewhat simple love story of boy meets girl (although the narrator denies this), the plot and dialogue, such as Tom’s monologue before he quits his job, are quite thought-provoking. The film is so real—between the story and the acting—which I think is partially why it resonated with me so much. This underrated film was a very emotional watch for me, and I would certainly take the time to watch it again. At least for me, it’s the kind of film you’d be able to glean new details from each time.