One Battle After Another (2025)

Leonardo DiCaprio’s big revolutionary hero spends a good chunk of this movie in a bathrobe, yelling at a stranger on the phone because he forgot a password. That’s the kind of hero One Battle After Another has, and it works. The flaw is the opening stretch, which crams years of backstory in so fast it plays like a trailer for another film, and Teyana Taylor’s Perfidia is so magnetic you miss her once the story moves on. After that, it’s a blast. Sean Penn plays Lockjaw with a walk so stiff it looks like his spine is on backorder. Benicio del Toro runs a full escape operation with the calm of a guy picking a parking spot. Chase Infiniti holds her own with all of them. The car chase over rolling hills is motion sickness in the best way. A 9.0 because it’s funny, angry and tense all at once, and 161 minutes never feels like homework. $40.94 says you get locked out of an account this week and argue with the help line like Bob in his bathrobe.

What works: Sean Penn’s rigid, unsettling Lockjaw, Benicio del Toro’s unflappable Sergio, and a car chase over the hills that’s pure nerves.

What doesn’t: The rushed opening crams years of backstory into a blur, and Perfidia drops out of the story just as she gets interesting.

Who it’s for: People who want a thriller that’s also a comedy and a dad movie, and who don’t mind sitting for 161 minutes.