Thomas Pynchon, forever chasing America’s hidden frequencies, was never truly meant for the spotlight. Often associated with postmodern authors such as Don DeLillo, David Foster Wallace and Kurt Vonnegut, Pynchon and his novels flirt with dazzling, scattered truths, soaked in conspiracy and cartoon logic. His story structure sometimes mimics a scavenger hunt where half the clues are in a different dimension. While his aesthetic is quite appealing to some readers, Pynchon’s work is not a safe pick for a casual book club whose last selection was featured prominently in Target’s book section.

It’s striking then, that the new big-budget Oscar frontrunner from Warner Bros., “One Battle After Another,” is drawn from Thomas Pynchon’s Vineland.

Written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, “One Battle After Another” is Anderson’s second adaptation of Pynchon, following the somewhat alienating detective stoner comedy “Inherent Vice.” It’s not difficult to see how Anderson, who wrote and directed the sprawling “Magnolia,” would admire a writer such as Pynchon. Both artists have an endearing fascination with the California that rarely makes it onto postcards; the nooks and crannies of the San Fernando Valley, the crime-ridden beaches tourists avoid, the hippie communes that struggled for identity when the ’70s gave way to Reagan’s America.

I’ve always felt that the true connection between Thomas Pynchon and Paul Thomas Anderson was their sentimentality that peeks from underneath the surface of their stories. Their characters aren’t nihilistic—they’re broken dreamers, desperately wanting to be greater than their genre of human, even if they can only reach for it in the most heartbreakingly awkward of ways. Whether it’s Doc Sportello pining for the unobtainable Shasta in “Inherent Vice” or Dirk Diggler chasing recognition in “Boogie Nights,” they long for something they will never have. No longer the wonder boy auteur, Anderson is now a gray-haired family man still drawn to try-hard characters with their hearts on their sleeves in an unstable world. 

When “One Battle After Another” was announced, it was made clear that even though it was to be loosely based on Vineland, this film would be the most commercial of Anderson’s career. That raised some eyebrows, as Anderson didn’t seem eager to be burdened with a huge budget. Beyond that, Vineland’s lead character is Zoyd Wheeler, a burnout dad who annually dives through a plate-glass window to prove his mental instability for disability checks—not exactly a natural fit for a blockbuster hero. The book, set in 1984, also constantly references 1960s counterculture.

As with “There Will Be Blood,” Anderson used the book as a jumping-off point, preserving the essence of the characters and world while updating all of the action to the present day. 

In the novel, Zoyd’s political past left him with a skeptical teenage daughter, Prairie; an M.I.A. political filmmaker ex-wife, Frenesi Gates; and an enemy, Brock Vond, a federal prosecutor obsessed with Frenesi. While the beating heart of Vineland is Zoyd’s relationship to Prairie, Pynchon frequently veers into strange subplots, including the ninja-like group called the “Sisterhood of the Kunoichi Attentives” and the idea of Thanatoids; the latter is Pynchon’s cheeky riff on how television has become an opiate of the public, predating “doom-scrolling” by several decades. The tonal whiplash is constant and often baffling, but the absurdity is intentional. 

In Anderson’s adaptation, Zoyd becomes Bob Ferguson (Leonardo DiCaprio), a faded off-the-grid stoner and former revolutionary from the militant group the French 75. When his willful 16-year-old daughter, Willa (Chase Infiniti), is targeted by Colonel Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn), a zealous military man who longs to be accepted into an exclusive secret society called the Christmas Adventurers, Bob must confront his past to save her. 

In the fictional town of Baktan Cross, a town-wide governmental standoff forces Bob to embark on a rescue mission with the guidance of the local karate teacher and Modelo enthusiast, Sensei Sergio (Benicio Del Toro). Though the synopsis echoes Pynchon’s labyrinthine plotting, Anderson streamlines the digressions and tonal shifts, maintaining Vineland’s pathos while crafting a second-half thrill-ride that feels like a reverse interpretation of “The Searchers” with a dash of “The Road Warrior.” Johnny Greenwood’s haunting score gives “One Battle After Another” a tint of a 1970s epic that crash-lands into our chaotic present. 

Probably one of the more unbelievable aspects of this film is that it was released at a time where the story is absolutely believable. 

Loaded with spectacular action sequences, including a climactic highway chase that promises to become an all-timer, the film’s pacing keeps every plot turn feeling inevitable. Chase Infiniti’s performance as a daughter burdened by her parents’ mistakes feels like watching someone step into stardom in real time. Sean Penn’s presence as Lockjaw reminds the audience that he can use his body as an extremely effective instrument like very few actors can. 

By the time the credits rolled, I was quite taken by the notion that a parent can pass all of their history onto their kids and that those children may be better suited to handle that responsibility. 

Paul Thomas Anderson has already cemented his mark on Hollywood, but “One Battle After Another” may well serve as his crown jewel. That the film heads into awards season with visions of Oscar gold and whispers of “film of the decade” says as much about Pynchon as Anderson—proof that the novelist’s once-fringe obsessions have found their way to the center of American culture.

Joey Aucoin is a San Fernando Valley-based writer and a graduate of Loyola Marymount University.