One Battle After Another Review

October 18, 2025 at 6:00pm
By Jason Stettner

It’s just one battle after another if you know what I mean. The narrative begins by following a sort of revolution within the United States. Or well, a group of revolutionaries are attempting to change thing as the government grows in its management of people entering the country among other problems.

There’s Bob (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his love interest Perfidia (Teyana Taylor). Quite a match as she’s very intense about what they’re doing, or more so about the thrills of it than anything else. They’re paired against an incredible force and in general performance from Lockjaw (Sean Penn). There’s also a bit more there as he’s quite into Perfidia and the two engage on the side. Time goes by, things break down and this romantic thrill ride of a period comes to an end.

Through some events that place we see Bob become a sort of stoner wacky father to his daughter Willa (Chase Infiniti). This is where the real narrative kicks off as the focus of the story is based around the daughter. Lockjaw coming from his position while trying to become a Christmas Adventurer and Bob desperately tripping through events trying to find her.

It’s a neat split of perspectives with intersections and some action along the way. Many plots seem to get dropped from side characters and it’s just a wacky sort of ride for Bob going from one spot to the next whilst others seem much more composed.

This is an immensely striking film. The visual aesthetic and style of this film really carries the vibe and makes the action that takes place feel really tense. It is however a very long movie and yet still plot points get forgotten along the way and it’s almost simple in its core delivery. It’s more about the chase with tense car chases and gripping action when that does pop up.

I had sort of expected more though. The performances here are excellent, Penn is a straight up menace here and a true stand out. I also found Infiniti to be absolutely great here selling those gripping moments with intense tension. Again, it is a long movie and the pacing could have been tighter here as while it handles the run time effectively enough I did feel that it sort of dragged often. The music tone felt fine but also strangely repetitive.

The Conclusion

One Battle After Another is a really American relevant film to the times that drags with its extensive run time but is elevated by remarkable performances. I really did find this to be a neat mix of action with intense moments that felt gripping and some comedy. I honestly thought it would be more funny but it seemed like when I watched it some of that fell flat. Sensei (Benicio Del Toro) was a delight here and as I mentioned there were other really strong actors at play here.

Still, I felt this dragged at times and not a whole lot did really happen when you really stop and think about it. The action was fine, the film looked visually great and I can see how this would be enjoyable to many. At the same time I can see how this might be a slow burn for many and you might question some of the side moments that get forgotten along the way.

One Battle After Another Review at Theater with Standard Viewing

Rating Overall: 7.6