Any new Leonardo DiCaprio film is a signature cinematic event, but DiCaprio stepping out for the first time in a Paul Thomas Anderson movie? Call it appointment viewing, as the first trailer for One Battle After Another proves in thrilling fashion. PTA’s latest cinematic head trip takes inspiration from Thomas Pynchon’s classic 1990 novel Vineland and pairs DiCaprio with the iconic director of Boogie Nights, Licorice Pizza and There Will Be Blood. DiCaprio, who was recently tapped as the new face of Rolex, stars as an intense revolutionary on the hunt for his missing daughter.
DiCaprio’s Bob Ferguson, seen using a payphone and delivering a cryptic series of passwords to a voice on the other end, is joined by a stacked cast that includes Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro, Teyana Taylor and Regina Hall. The film was shot with cinephile-approved 35mm VistaVision film, and seems to play off Anderson’s penchant for the surreal. Variety reports that it’s set to be the most expensive movie of Anderson’s career, and described the official trailer thusly:
It begins with Bob, in a beanie and bathrobe, using a payphone to request help from some unknown rebel allies but forgetting which codewords to use. Del Toro plays Bob’s sensei and teaches him how to live without fear — and pushes him out of a speeding car. The trailer ends with DiCaprio screaming out “Viva la revolución and he and del Toro prepare to wage against their enemies
Vulture notes that the prestige film (which cost about $140 million, according to estimates) is “seemingly destined to be iconic, even if it flops.” Judging from the intriguing trailer, a flop seems unlikely, but whether viewers will be able to wrap their minds around a movie inspired by a Pynchon novel remains to be seen. One Battle After Another hits theaters Sept. 26 with Imax screenings. Watch the official trailer below.
