THE TELEGRAPH
We’re used to Anderson, the director of There Will Be Blood and Phantom Thread, coming back with a surprise up his sleeve.
But even so, it’s hard to overstate just how electrifyingly improbable his latest picture is: a sprawling Dr Strangelove-style satire which pits Antifa types.
There’s something deeply 1970s Hollywood, too, about the level of confidence Anderson has in his audience.
For more than two-and-a-half hours, he trusts us to cling on all the way up to the climactic pursuit, set on a bumpy stretch of desert road, with shots to make your stomach levitate.
It’s a roller-coaster ending to a film that has you disembarking shaky and elated, and ready to stagger right back into the queue.
BBC
This ‘virtuosic’, politically charged triumph is ‘horrifying yet ridiculously funny’. It’s rare to see such an ambitious film work so smoothly.
Paul Thomas Anderson is the brilliant mind and Leonardo DiCaprio the emotional heart of this timely, audacious comic-action-drama.
In a decade or two when the great New Hollywood directors of the 1970s are gone, Anderson might be the greatest living American director.
One of Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood or Phantom Thread would be enough for most careers, but excellence is almost routine for PTA. His remarkable quality control remains intact with this formidable piece of work.
TIME OUT
Leonardo DiCaprio is a blast as a bumbling revolutionary in Paul Thomas Anderson’s action-packed, politically-charged romp
In a decade or two when the great New Hollywood directors of the 1970s are gone, Anderson might be the greatest living American director.
One of Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood or Phantom Thread would be enough for most careers, but excellence is almost routine for PTA. His remarkable quality control remains intact with this formidable piece of work.
RADIO TIMES
There comes a point in most Paul Thomas Anderson films where the viewer realises they’ve been drawn completely under the filmmaker’s spell.
The writer/director – whose spotless filmography includes such gems as Magnolia, There Will Be Blood and Phantom Thread, to name just three – has an almost unparalleled skill for weaving rich and complex narratives in arresting and intoxicating ways.
And his latest film One Battle After Another can now be added to his growing list of masterpieces.
It’s a film that acknowledges the vital importance of community and the revitalising power of genuine, heartfelt human connection, especially in a world that sometimes seems designed to undermine those things.
It is – without a shadow of a doubt – the film of the year so far.
THE STANDARD
First things first: curb your expectations. The rumours that Paul Thomas Anderson has made one of the best films of the 21st century are, y’know, ever so slightly exaggerated.
However, the man who has already made one of the best films of the 21st century (There Will be Blood) has directed the coolest, most consummately masterful movie you’re likely to see all year. And its got Oscars glory just oozing out of every frame.
It’s a rollicking riot that Anderson marshals into what might be the most enjoyable cinema experience this year.
And as for directorial virtuosity, a slow-burn car chase across the endlessly undulating humps of a desert road (accompanied by Jonny Greenwood’s exquisite staccato snare-drum score) is simply genius.
THE CINEMATIC REEL
The result is an emotional powerhouse that leaves you exhilarated yet reflective. Balancing unflinching commentary with heartfelt storytelling, Anderson crafts a narrative that feels urgent and timeless.
This emerges as more than just another great film; it is the movie of the moment, the movie of the year, and possibly the defining film of a generation. Ultimately, a monumental cinematic achievement.
VARIETY
Anderson, working with the cinematographer Michael Bauman, has devised a visual style that’s mesmerizing in its flow, with lavishly detailed images that are oiled with a dark ’70s grunge. Each shot carries you along, creating an exhilarating momentum that draws us in emotionally as well
One Battle After Another has the kind of twists and turns that feed the audience, giving us the childlike sensation that we have no idea what’s coming next, and that that’s the happiest way there is to watch a movie.
THE DAILY BEAST
One Battle After Another is a gonzo antifa rallying cry that contends, ultimately, that there’s nothing worth fighting for more than one’s kin—and that doing so will, in turn, instill them with the passion to carry on the war against tyranny.
Consequently, it’s feverishly attuned to the simmering fury of 2025 America.
For all its revolutionary fervor, though, it falls short of the urgent poignancy and humor that might have made it a film to adore rather than just greatly admire—a state of affairs that, in the end, renders it a battle that’s only partially won.
