The episode delves into the cinematic exploration of the film "One Battle After Another," a politically charged narrative that intertwines the lives of revolutionaries amidst societal turmoil. We meticulously dissect the film's intricate character dynamics and the thematic resonance of rebellion, power, and identity, particularly through the lens of its protagonists, Ghetto Pat and Perfidia Beverly Hills. The discussion encompasses the film's artistic merit, examining Paul Thomas Anderson’s directorial approach and the profound implications of the characters' relationships, underscored by a palpable tension that pervades every scene. Moreover, we reflect upon the film's commentary on the cyclical nature of revolutionary fervor and familial legacies, prompting us to consider the implications of historical repetition in contemporary society. Join us as we navigate this complex narrative and its implications, offering our insights and analyses on a film that challenges its viewers long after the credits have rolled. The podcast delves into the intricacies of the film "One Battle After Another," a narrative steeped in political intrigue and the complexities of revolutionary fervor. This cinematic exploration, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, unfolds over a period that juxtaposes a historical backdrop with contemporary issues, creating a poignant commentary on the nature of resistance and the cyclical nature of revolutionary struggles. The film follows the tumultuous lives of Ghetto Pat and Perfidia Beverly Hills, two revolutionaries whose fervent dedication to their cause is tested by personal relationships and the inevitable fallout of betrayal. As the narrative progresses, the film scrutinizes the disintegration of revolutionary ideals, presenting a tapestry woven with the threads of ambition, love, and the harsh realities of political dissent. The characters' journeys illuminate the sacrifice inherent in their struggles, culminating in a powerful exploration of what it means to fight for a cause that may ultimately consume them. A significant aspect of the podcast is its examination of the film's stylistic choices, particularly the innovative directorial approach employed by Anderson. By prioritizing movement and non-verbal communication among actors, the film transcends conventional storytelling, opting instead for a more visceral experience that resonates deeply with audiences. The intense performances of Leonardo DiCaprio, Teyana Taylor, and Benicio Del Toro are highlighted, as each actor brings a distinct energy that enriches the film's exploration of complex themes. The podcast also notes the film's aesthetic choices, which draw upon the gritty realism of 1970s cinema, enhancing the narrative's emotional weight and allowing viewers to immerse themselves fully in the chaotic world of the French 75 revolutionaries. Additionally, the podcast reflects on the broader implications of the film's message, drawing parallels to contemporary societal issues and the ongoing struggle against systemic oppression. Through its multifaceted characters and their intertwined destinies, "One Battle After Another" challenges viewers to reconsider the nature of revolution, the legacy of past actions, and the responsibilities that come with fighting for change. The podcast eloquently articulates the film's capacity to provoke thought and discussion, emphasizing that while the struggles depicted may be fictional, the themes resonate with real-world experiences of resistance and resilience.

Companies mentioned in this episode:

1. Paul Thomas Anderson
2. Leonardo DiCaprio
3. Teyana Taylor
4. Benicio Del Toro
5. Sean Penn
6. Johnny Greenwood
7. Radiohead
8. The French Connection
9. Christmas Adventurers Club
10. 1776 Club
11. Sisters of the Brave Beaver
12. Jungle Pussy
13. Regina King

What the Fuck Did I just Watch? Your Home for Psychological Thrillers Oscar darlings, Retro and cult classics movies, that stay with you long after the credits roll.

Welcome to what the Fuck Did I Just Watch? I'm Amanda Blossom and I'll be your guide through the beautiful chaos of cinema.

I'm so excited to have you here, whether you've been here before or this is your first time listening. This is a podcast about movies that refuse to leave your brain. Psychological thrillers, Oscar favorites, retro and cult classics.

Today we're diving into one battle after another, and just because I don't know how to talk about a movie without spoiling it, consider yourself warned. Intense spoilers ahead. We are going to talk about the Oscar buzz surrounding this film. Break down the story and I will give you my take on this.

Paul Thomas Anderson's I Don't know. Is it a masterpiece? I think it might be. Let's Get Into It. One Battle After Another is the story of a group of revolutionaries called the French 75.

Set about 16 years ago and flashes forward to present day, it is a politically charged time that feels like a documentary more than a movie. The movie is about Ghetto Pat and Perfidia Beverly Hills, a couple of revolutionaries fighting the good fight.

When a secret rendezvous with the enemy brings a child into the mix and a back to the wall Perfidia rats out the French 75, things get complicated. The movie asks us what happens when a group of revolutionaries crumbles in on itself.

The filmmaking is controlled and thoughtful, using repetition and reflection to deepen the experience rather than explain it.

It's a movie about character relationships that trust tone, performance and rhythm to communicate what words don't, leaving a lasting and powerful impression. The development of One Battle After Another has been in play for nearly 20 years for the Best Director nominee Paul Thomas Anderson.

Anderson is known for making Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch, Drunk Love and There Will Be Blood, among others. Using his special directorial touch. Several scenes in the movie were rehearsed with no dialogue at all.

Anderson insisted the actors play the entire emotional arc through movement and eye contact, first, layering in the dialogue later to create a more tense, readable performance. He encouraged improvisation and collaboration with his actors.

Nominated for Best Actor for his character Pat Calhoun, aka Bob Ferguson, Leonardo DiCaprio describes his character as a paranoid, anti establishment hippie revolutionary. My favorite DiCaprio movies are Titanic and the Wolf of Wall street. But he may not be my favorite person. He is one hell of an actor in this film.

Leo is after freedom, but he is afraid. He looks lost compared to the other revolutionaries. He looks down when other people are looking up, showing his lack of confidence.

Best Supporting Actress nominee Teyana Taylor plays Perfidia Beverly Hills who is dominant and unapologetically strong, a radical force whose complexity keeps everyone guessing. She commands every room she enters, blending intensely with sharp intelligence.

Taylor can be seen in coming to America 2 and the remake of White Men Can't Jump. There's a remake. Not to mention Teyana Taylor is fine as hell.

Benicio Del Toro is nominated for Best Supporting Actor Playing a mellow karate instructor for Bob's daughter, Willa del Toro provides a calm, Zen like presence that acts as a necessary counterweight to the chaotic energy of Bob. Del Toro has an impressive list of credits including the Usual Suspects and more recently the Phoenician Scheme.

Phoenician, Phoenician, I Don't Know and what's a great film without a great villain? Sean Penn delivers as Colonel Stephen J. Lockjaw a performance which earned him a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the Oscars.

Sean Penn was so completely absorbed by the script that he read the whole thing dripping naked on the floor after a shower. Together with Paul Thomas Anderson, he shaped Colonel Lockjaw's stiff, stilted walk, creating a bad guy who's equal parts absurd and menacing.

Sean Penn literally walks like he has a stick up his ass and it's like a whole metaphor for the kind of person he is as well.

Manic and Jittery, the London Contemporary orchestra was used to create a metronome of suspense and earned Greenwood a nomination for Best Original Score. Nominated for Best Cinematography.

One Battle After Another was shot on VistaVision, a technique just coming back into play from the late 50s and early 60s.

The film prioritizes raw, authentic lighting and immediate, immersive and sometimes intentionally disorienting action sequences.

The breakneck relentless pace of the film was edited by Andy Jurgensen who is nominated for best film Editing, Also nominated for best Production Design. Florencia Martin relied mostly on actual locations rather than sets to create a sense of realism.

While some sets such as the dojo and Sergio's apartment were designed, it's the actual high school used for the dance and the river of Hills used for the car chase scene that really stands out with its immersive audio. The movie has a nomination for best sound. Cassandra Kindis, I think, is nominated in the new casting category.

Her primary focus was finding the heart of the movie.

The right person to play Willa Willa is Bob Lockjaw and Perfidia's 16 year old daughter Chase Infinity was discovered via a K pop video of her dancing that was sent to Kin via a manager friend. Now onto the movie breakdown. We meet Perfidia Beverly Hills. Dressed in black, powerful and ready for action, she struts with confidence.

She walks over an overpass of a busy freeway that is looking over the immigrant detention camp in Ote Mesa. Like a guardian angel who plans to liberate them.

Along the U. S. Mexico border ghetto, Pat Calhoun can be seen frantically running towards a group of revolutionaries named the French 75 with a cart of explosives. As the revolutionaries gather and plan their attack, Perfidia tells a nervous Pat she wants him to create a show.

The French 75 breaks into the detention camp with guns loaded, gathering up immigrants and disarming the guards working there it is. Here Perfidia meets Captain Stephen J. Lockjaw where she incites a weird sexual tension with him by forcing Lockjaw to get an erection at gunpoint.

After he calls her a sweet thang, she also steals his hat. When watching this film, I asked myself why? Why is Perfidia and Lockjaw, who are on opposite ends of the extreme spectrum, so drawn to each other?

Is it because they are so extreme they almost meet in the middle? Taana Taylor has said, I feel like they both were bad and that's what attracted them to each other.

As the trucks are being loaded with people from the camp ghetto, Pat lights off fireworks, creating the show. Perfidia asked for. This scene is absolutely beautiful and lights up the night. A French 75 celebration of victory over a corrupt government.

Lockjaw promises to see Perfidia very soon while Pat shows his dedication to the revolutionaries, yelling that the guards are now prisoners of the French 75. Now Pat and Perfidia are in love.

Their relationship is so passionate and electrifying, you almost know right off the bat that things aren't going to end well here. Love like that doesn't survive movies like this. Revolutionaries are blowing up empty buildings, taking action against the regime.

Feeling like a documentary, it all hits awfully close to home.

Meanwhile, Lockjaw is watching Perfidia take down policemen as he pleasures himself clear he would rather stalk and possess her than catch her in a plan to set bombs that will detonate after hours in office buildings. Perfidia is cornered in the bathroom, caught red handed by Lockjaw.

Instead of arresting her, Lockjaw demands his hat and gun back and makes Perfidia promise to meet him at a hotel. There is a power dynamic at play here that robs Perfidia of consent, whether she wants to or not.

She is in no position to deny Lockjaw his desire for her and keep doing what she's doing. We see it all over her face as she exits the building. Later with Pat, the prospect makes her sick. But what is she gonna do?

At the hotel, Lockjaw is putty in Perfidia's hands and he lets her do anything she wants. I'm not one to kink shame, but I'll just say it. Perfidia puts a gun up Lockjaw's ass and and he is here for.

Just doesn't seem very safe, that's all I'm saying. I hope the gun wasn't loaded. Flash forward. Nine months pregnant with a machine gun, Perfidia is knocked up from her tryst with Lockjaw.

Teyana Taylor said the belly was heavy and the guns were real. Pat, of course, doesn't know this, assuming the baby is his. Partying around a campfire with her bestie, jungle pussy.

Perfidia seems to have very little interest in her pregnancy or upcoming motherh. It's like she doesn't even know she's pregnant, says Pat to Deandra. Deandra is played by Regina King and probably the saint of this movie.

More on that later. A dinner with Perfidia's mother indicates her mother's disapproval of Perfidia's relationship with Pat.

She tells Pat that Perfidia comes from a long line of revolutionaries and he just looks so lost. Perfidia appears to disassociate when her child is born.

Battling a serious bout of postpartum depression, complaining about motherhood and focusing more on the revolution than her family, Perfidia goes on a doomed bank run for supplies, leaving Pat at home to care for the baby. Their final conversation on screen with each other is chilling as Perfidia tells Pat, I'm not your udder buddy. I'm not your mother.

You want your power over me the same reason you want your power over the world. You and your crumblin male ego will never do this revolution like me. To which he replies, do the revolution, baby.

Later on at the grocery store, Pat is confronted by Lockjaw, who comments on his having a baby and Lockjaw asks if he likes black girls, going on to say, I love em. Love em. At the bank heist, led by real life rapper of the same name, Jungle Pussy, Perfidia shoots a security guard and fails to get away.

Lockjaw then confronts perfidia. Faced with 30 to 40 years in prison, he offers her a deal to rat out her fellow revolutionaries, which she agrees to.

Sadly, she feigns love for Lockjaw in exchange for a deal to enter the witness protection program.

Meanwhile, revolutionaries are guiding Pat and his daughter on an underground witness protection program of their own, renaming him and his daughter Charlene to Bob and Willa Ferguson and instructing a nervous Leo on where to go and how to use the trust device that only goes off when trusted allies are near. Perfidia is set up in her new home with her new identity, and it's easy to see a fenced in. Perfidia is not long for this type of life.

We see the French 75 being gunned down based on the intel Perfidia provided Lockjaw, who is awarded a medal of honor for his part in bringing down the revolutionaries. Arriving with flowers to Perfidia's new home, he bashes in the door. When she doesn't answer, this reveals she's already fled from his grasp.

She did not love him or she would have stayed right. This whole thing was survival for Perfidia.

Sixteen years later, in El Paso, we meet Chase Infinity in the role of a lifetime playing Willa, who is practicing karate in Sergio San Carlos's dojo.

Meanwhile, Pat is getting stoned before, during and after the parent teacher conference, where he muses that he hopes they're teaching his daughter the right kind of history. Amen, Bob Ferguson. Pat, now Bob has let himself go. He stays out late partying to the judgment of Willa.

He smokes weed non stop and hygiene appears to be just a suggestion. The man's hair is so greasy. Back to Colonel Lockjaw.

He is aligning himself with a racist white supremacist organization called the Christmas Adventurers Club. Lockjaw is desperate to be a member, desperate to fit in and belong, even if it's with a bunch of assholes.

The club and their self prescribed superiority makes me want to gag. We see Lockjaw squirm when asked if he's ever had an interracial relationship.

He lies about his relationship with Perfidia and the possibility of being a father to a mixed race child. The score in this movie is no joke.

The dramatic slow burn music creates a lovely tension as Lockjaw walks away from the meeting and we roll into the next. Revolutionaries still exist 16 years later. It is after all, one battle after another.

Lockjaw's goons capture a French 75 resistance radio host, Howard Somerville, who is shaken down for information on the location and new identities of Bob and Willa. This is Lockjaw trying to cover up his past so he can be a full blooded racist.

Deploying all his resources, Lockjaw is on the move to capture his daughter. Back at their house, Willa asks Bob, what the fuck is wrong with you?

Due to his late night partying and drunk driving, Bob is resistant to Willa's friends who are picking her up for a dance. It is established that she doesn't have a phone. Every 16 year old has a phone.

Bob insists Willa take her trust device to the dance to the annoyance of Willa who thinks she knows everything.

At the dance, Willa's device actually goes off in the bathroom and a stranger to her, deandra from the French 75 confronts her with the code words used to establish trust with an ally of the revolution. Answering the code words, Willa then lies about having a phone before leaving with Deandra, A plot point which comes into play later.

A cat and mouse game begins as Deandra and Willa narrowly escape the police. Police circling her high school and interrogating her peers at home. Smoking roaches, Bob gets the call that he is in danger.

It's been 16 years and Bob is too high to remember his training and he has forgotten his passwords as well as the rendezvous point to reunite with his daughter only slightly. Escaping Lockjaw's forces, Bob escapes through the tunnel made 16 years ago for just such an occasion. Manic energy.

Bob is freaking out, knocking things over, desperately trying to charge his phone, frantic as he tries to evade the cops and fight with the French 75 on a payphone over the passwords needed to obtain the rendezvous point.

It's an attack on the entire town as police tear apart one business after another in search of Bob, who seeks shelter in the dojo of Sergio San Carlos. Cool, calm and collected against Bob's manic energy, Carlos calmly leads Bob to safety.

It is revealed that Carlos has been housing and protecting undocumented workers, which he calls a Latino Harriet Tubman Situation Back at the high school, Willa's friends eventually sell her out, admitting she has a phone and giving up her contact information.

This leads Lockjaw right on the trail of Willa and Deandra, and as tension builds, we learn that Willa thinks Lockjaw killed her mom, rather than the painful truth that her mom, Perfidia, was a rat that sold out her revolutionary brothers and sisters.

Scenes of the Resistance protesting a heavily armed police force feels more like watching the news than a movie, and Carlos leads Bob through the maze of his apartment building scattered with refugee. Carlos maintains his clothes cool under pressure and takes the time to introduce Bob to everyone in his apartment.

After arguing over the password with the french75, Bob finally gets through to a trusted source on the phone, an old friend who gives him the rendezvous point as Carlos is leading the refugees to safety.

This movie does not slow down A montage of cops hot on the trail of revolutionaries closing in on civilians, and Deandra discovers Willa's phone on their way to the rendezvous point, which she makes her abandon. It is too late. Lockjaw knows what direction they are heading.

Meanwhile, Bob is caught and tased in the commotion as Deandra delivers Willa to a special kind of convent with nuns who indicate Willa is a security risk and only looks like her mother on the inside. Meanwhile, the Christmas Adventurers Club has a meeting to discuss new information. Rumors that Lockjaw has a mixed race daughter.

This club is such a gross and heinous group of people. They discuss the chain of events causing suspicion on Lockjaw.

They agree that even if Lockjaw disposes of the evidence, he will have made a fool out of all of them. Make it clean, says the leader of the group regarding how to handle this kerfuffle with Lockjaw.

Back at the convent with the Sisters of the Brave Beaver, Willa is shooting a machine gun in a scene that mirrors her pregnant mother. Earlier in the film, she asks Deandra if her mother was a rat, which Deandra confirms.

During his intake at the jail A secret ally gets Bob to pretend he's diabetic, so he goes to the hospital instead of jail.

Brilliant, as this organized chain of revolutionaries help him escape being arrested and deliver him to Carlos, who is waiting outside of the the hospital at the Brave Beaver Convent, Willa is captured and delivered to Lockjaw. In a tense scene where Lockjaw's paternity to Willa is sadly confirmed, the acting chops are all over Chase Infinity's face.

When Willa is waiting for the paternity test results, her world is collapsing and she recently learned not only is her mother a rat, but her father is not her father. It doesn't matter what the test says. I have a father and it's not you, she says defiantly to Lockjaw.

On the way to the Brave Beaver, Bob and Carlos are intercepted by police. Carlos pushes Bob out of his moving car to save him, a scene which was actually Del Toro's idea.

Bob hotwires a car and proceeds on his frenetic journey to the Sisters of the Brave Beaver to recover his child, who is currently being abducted by Lockjaw.

Lockjaw is a coward who tries to contract out the murder of his child, dragging her through the desert to his hired assassin, a bounty hunter named Avanti. Lockja screams about being a Christmas adventurer with a higher calling. Ugh, gross.

A little bit of column A, a little bit of column B as evil is punished, costing Avanti his life in the process. After discovering Lockjaw shot in an upside down vehicle, Bob continues his search for his daughter.

Willa, still in zip ties, steals Avanti's car and begins the famous car chase through the river of Hills as she's being followed by the Christmas Adventurers Club who wants to kill her to keep their racist image clean. Both are being followed by Bob desperately trying to catch up with Willa.

While not the craziest, crashiest car chase in history, it is one of the most suspenseful as each car glides in and out of frame over the rolling hills. What a brilliant location to shoot this scene. It is gorgeous.

Willa outsmarts the enemy by leaving her car parked just out of view, causing them to crash as they speed over the hill.

And she waits undercover behind a rock where she kills the member of the Christmas Adventurers Club when he doesn't know the password, Willa can save her damn self. When Bob arrives at the scene, Willa insists he repeat the password.

Associated with her training, Willa has learned she doesn't know everything and her newfound caution is apt as her entire world has just crumbled. Surprisingly, Lockjaw survives being shot in the face. His bloody tight ass coming over the hill is a sight to behold. It's almost comical.

This movie is an absurdist comedy as much as it's an action drama and political piece.

Cut to Lockjaw being interviewed by the Christmas Adventurers Club where he admits to his relationship with Perfidia, claiming she sexually assaulted him. He calls her a semen demon, which the club seemingly accepts and admits him to their club, only to gas him to death in an office moments later.

While it is satisfying to see Lockjaw gassed and incinerated, the knowledge that the Christmas Adventurers Club and groups in real life just like it exist is disgusting. Taking out Lockjaw does nothing to negate the power of the racist group and ultimately evil continues to thrive.

It is one battle after another in this movie and in life. Back home and safe, Bob gives Willa a two year old letter from her mother explaining that he wanted to protect her.

In the letter, Perfidia expresses regret for her actions and a yearning to know her daughter. Perfidia writes, maybe you will be the one who puts the world right. I think of you every single day.

Free from Lockjaw teaching her father how to use a cell phone, Willa is called to Oakland for a protest, fulfilling her destiny as a revolutionary. Willa is the next generation, taking on one battle after another. Paul Thomas Anderson had no idea how this movie was going to end.

As he was shooting was such a collaborative effort from realizing of course Willow would have a cell phone to determining that a daughter of revolutionaries would not need to be rescued. She can rescue her damn self.

This big movie about fascism and politics really at its core is about human relationships, how the conflict of the setting manifests itself in the film's relationships. It's also in some ways a comedy. Leo is just funny to watch with his frantic manic energy.

Benicio del Toro said it was fun to be front and cent hunter to just watching Leo be funny. At its core, this movie is about cycles of power, resistance, family and history repeating itself.

Whether we like it or not, the film keeps circling back on mirrored moments, doubled characters and repeated imagery like the cat posters in almost every scene to remind us that the fight never really ends, it just changes hands. From parents to children, radicals to reformers, the movie quietly asks what gets passed down, ideology, trauma, or the responsibility to keep going.

It's not subtle about its politics, but it is thoughtful about how movements fracture, evolve and survive over time. I've heard this movie compared to Les Miserables and honestly, it isn't a stretch.

Both are about a man on the run raising a daughter that isn't his, running from one man in law enforcement with a grudge against a backdrop of revolution. I've also heard this movie being compared to a documentary about life in America today, and honestly, that isn't much of a stretch either.

And then there are the Easter eggs, Paul Thomas Anderson rewarding anyone paying close attention to his close up shots, the callbacks to earlier scenes, the visual rhymes between Perfidia and Willa, the reused locations, the passwords, the hat, the music cues, even the way characters move through space. All of it builds a film that feels layered rather than explained.

It's the kind of movie that reveals more long after you sit with it, love it or wrestle with it, one battle after another proves that some films aren't meant to be finished, they're meant to linger. And that's a wrap for today's film. Thank you so much for joining me. I really love having you here.

If you like this episode, please share it like and leave a comment and consider listening to my other episodes. See you next time on what the Fuck Did I Just Watch? I'm Amanda Blossom and remember, some movies stick with you. So let's stick together.

That's a wrap for today's film. If you like the episode, follow rate and subscribe. Thank you for listening to what the Did I just Watch.