After One Battle After Another won the BAFTA Best Picture award on Sunday night, director Paul Thomas Anderson had a simple message for contemporary film critics.
Anderson, who also wrote and directed the action thriller, said, “Anyone who says movies aren’t good anymore should get angry right away,” to cheers and laughter. “I’d like to say thank you, but I know there’s a bar somewhere. I think we’ll all go there. It’s been a long night, but we have a lot to celebrate.”
Anderson concluded his speech with a quote from pianist, singer, and activist Nina Simone. “We stole our own movie,” he admitted.
“She said, ‘I know what freedom is, and it’s not fear,'” Anderson said. “Then don’t be afraid to keep crafting. That’s a good idea. See you at the bar!”
Asked backstage if the world needed another revolution, Anderson replied: “Well, of course we do. We always do. All we need to have a revolution is to do it properly, preferably without violence…Unfortunately, the title has a meaning. These days it seems like it’s just one fight after another.”
Loosely inspired by Thomas Pynchon’s novel “Vineland,” “One Battle After Another” follows a group of former revolutionaries who reunite to rescue the daughter of a comrade after their nemesis resurfaces. The ensemble cast includes award-winning stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro, and Regina Hall, as well as Teyana Taylor and breakout star Chase Infinity. On Sunday, “One Battle After Another” won the most BAFTAs, including best director and adapted screenplay for Anderson and best supporting actor for Penn.
One Battle After Another is the first major award nomination for Anderson, one of the most critically acclaimed directors in modern cinema, and his first to win the BAFTA’s top prize. There Will Be Blood and Licorice Pizza were both nominated for Best Picture, but narrowly missed out. Of the past eight nominations, only one has been won, in 2022 for Best Original Screenplay for “Liquorice Pizza.”
One Battle After Another, which received 13 Oscar nominations, entered the BAFTAs with 14 nominations, two short of the record set by Gandhi.
