One Battle After Another. Writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson has made a spellbinding, taut, engrossing and timely crime thriller. The plot begins with some exposition as it introduces the audience to Bob and his fellow revolutionaries including Willa's mother, Perfidia (Teyana Taylor), whom Lockjaw rapes, before she eventually goes into witness protections. So, the audience is already one step ahead of Willa because they know that her mother isn't dead. How will they meet? What will happen when they meet? That won't be spoiled here. Fortunately, Anderson knows how to incorporate the right amount of suspense, drama and comic without forgetting to treat the characters as complex human beings. Case in point: Bob suffers from drug and alcohol addiction, anger issues, paranoia and depression. He's an absolute mess and far from likable, but not nearly as detestable as Lockjaw. Bravo to Anderson for finding the right balance between Truth and Spectacle. Yes, this is a blockbuster with a brain and a beating heart beneath the surface.
DiCaprio and Sean Penn give performances that will hopefully be recognized during Oscar time. Everything from the cinematography to the editing, use of music are superb while providing the film with some style that makes it more cinematic, so you don't feel the weight of the lengthy running time because it's consistently entertaining without a dull moment. Behold a new American classic. At 2 hours and 50 minutes, One Battle After Another opens nationwide on September 26th, 2025 via Warner Bros. Pictures. It would be a great double feature with Sovereign.
Number of times I checked my watch: 1
Matthais (Albrecht Schuch) lives with his girlfriend, Sophia (Julia Franz Richter), and works for a company where people hire him to act any role that they want him to play in Peacock. Gradually, he loses his own identity and it affects his relationship with Sophia so negatively that she leaves him. Writer/director Bernhard Wenger has made a provocative, funny and profoundly moving satire. The screenplay deftly blends drama, romance, comedy, thriller and satire without being afraid to go a little over-the-top at times. The plot becomes increasingly complex, especially as Sophia complains to Matthais that he isn't the same person anymore. She's unhappy and he doesn't understand why. One of his clients, Vera (Maria Hofstätter), an elderly woman, hires him because she can't stand for herself around her domineering husband. He suggests playing the role of her husband to let her practice assertiveness, That doesn't quite go as planned when she leaves her husband and he finds out that she hired Matthais. Soon enough, he stalks and terrorizes Matthais in retaliation. A lot more happens that won't be spoiled because Peacock is the rare kind of film that's refreshingly unpredictable and surprising. It's similar in tone to the films of Ruben Östlund , and it's a smart, biting and outrageously funny study of human nature just like Östlund's films as well. So, if you're a fan of Force Majeure, The Square and Triangle of Sadness, you'll also love Peacock. At 1 hour and 42 minutes, it's now playing at The Metrograph via Oscilloscope Laboratories.
Number of times I checked my watch: 1
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