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A Joke on God? | One Battle After Another (2025) Review

Dane Bundy
Jan 7
2 min read

"Is this a joke on God?"

That’s what a soldier says when he discovers a convent run by weed-growing nuns! And it's not the first odd subversion of Christian theology in One Battle After Another (2025).

The film follows Bob (Leonardo DiCaprio), a former revolutionary, whose daughter, Willa (Chase Infiniti), is kidnapped by white supremacists under the guise of the military.

A Cry for Salvation

Ironically, the movie is about salvation. And in the last scene is the final charge of the movie from Willa to the audience. But it's not about Christ saving the world—but trying to save it through violence and revolution.

It's a politically-charged, frightening cry, which we already see signs of working itself out present day. One may argue that the filmmaker is not endorsing this type of violence, but simply lending a mirror to our culture. I'm not convinced. Stories have consequences, and this one is making an unnerving appeal.

Quality wise, I was underwhelmed by the story, and except for Bob, I didn’t like any of the characters. Many were uncomfortably vile and perverse, especially Col. Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn) and Perfidia (played by Teyanna Taylor).

Two Highlights

There are a couple positive points in the film. DiCaprio is dynamic and funny in his role. And at times, I found him sympathetic, especially as he refuses to abandon his daughter. He may be a terrible father, but he clearly loves her and is committed to her safety. The cinematography is impressive at times, especially the final driving sequences filmed in CA. (I think I've driven those roads on my trips back to CA.)

I'm always looking to see how filmmakers use religious imagery, and there's an important scene in a Catholic chapel, but it was empty and cold. That's how the film left me. Everyone’s trying to put the world back right, but in all the wrong ways.

Human beings long for salvation and long for justice. They know the world is broken, but they don't know the way to reorder it. Here's where we step in and share the only solution, God's Way: the gospel in Christ.