“Exhilarating, brash, chaotic. A revolutionary cinematic achievement.” These are just a few words critics are using to describe Paul Thomas Anderson’s newest film One Battle After Another, which has just landed in theaters. The cast of the Certified Fresh drama (it’s currently at 98%) recently sat down with Fandango correspondent Erik Davis to talk about their favorite PTA films and what sets this one apart from the rest.
Check out the full interview above before you head to theaters to see what critics are calling one of the best movies of the year and (uncomfortably) one of the defining films of our time. “Holding up the mirror is scary, but ultimately necessary.”
Erik Davis for Fandango: Leo, I’d love to come to you, first. You’ve worked with some greats: Spielberg, Scorsese, Nolan. I put Paul Thomas Anderson alongside all of those guys […] and I know you’ve wanted to work with him for a long time. What was the film of his that you watched where afterwards you were like, “yeah, I’ve got to do something with this guy?”
Leonardo DiCaprio: I think it was Boogie Nights. We talked about that film early on, but he really established himself as one of these sort of visionary directors of his generation and he’s also a writer-director. When you get into his worlds, which are so incredibly unique, they always have a unique take on the subject matter. That’s almost the thrill of what’s exciting about his work. There are very few filmmakers that have such unexpected decisions. And this film is one, I think, he’s been developing for almost 10 years now — all the way back to the last administrations, this had been brewing in his mind. And it’s definitely politically-charged and it’s a reference to sort of counter-culture revolutionaries of the ‘60s but what would happen if that was happening today. It’s one of the most robust grandscale films that he’s ever done and I think it’s gonna have a a universal appeal. It’s different. It’s unexpected.
One Battle After Another is now in theaters. Reserve your tickets on Fandango today.
