I do not know if I misheard it, but Leonardo DiCaprio seems to mention the Philippines in One Battle After Another, his latest film co-produced, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, inspired by the 1990 novel Vineland by Thomas Pynchon.

It can be recalled that “Leo,” a known environmentalist, trended in the Philippines last year for asking President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to intervene for the Masungi Geopark Project.

Leo’s real-life activism can be gleaned clearly in One Battle After Another, where he plays a rebel and a militant. One Battle After Another, coincidentally, showcases the same sleaziness and rawness as the 2013 biopic The Wolf of Wall Street starring Leo, thus the R-16 rating; but strewn with the art film attack Anderson has been celebrated for, such as in his previous works like the 2017 Phantom Thread and 2007’s There Will be Blood, both starring Daniel Day-Lewis.

But more than seeing for yourself if Leo indeed mentions the Philippines in One Battle After Another, there are many other reasons not to miss the film now showing in cinemas.

For one, the American political action thriller film is very relevant in recent times as it mirrors real-life events, such as racism, immigration protests against US President Donald Trump and the civil unrest in the Philippines against corruption surrounding anomalous flood control projects.

Another reason is to see Leo, not as a heartthrob the Philippines and the world have fallen in love with in Titanic and The Man in the Iron Mask, but an actor who has matured so much and grown full circle in his character arc in the movie — as a loving father. Imagine, Leo, who was being “fathered” by Johnny Depp in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, is now a dad — in the movies, at least, showing how he would be for those who grew up fantasizing having a child with him!

Third reason is to see Leo’s dynamics with his nemesis – Sean Penn. Their friction and differences are so well-defined and poles apart that the tension between them is so intense — even if they even barely meet in the film.

Penn represents what has long been rumored among uniformed men — steroids overload on the outside, but hypocritically hiding his true self behind the uniform. More than just being in a battle of arms, he and Leo are in a “bizarre love triangle” with Teyana Taylor.

A fourth reason is oozing female empowerment. Taylor sizzles onscreen both in sensuality and fierceness. Chase Infiniti is also femme fatale incarnate in her street smarts, bravery and gun skills.

From the documentary-style tight shots, to the drumbeats and orchestra music juxtaposed against gore, and to the optical illusion that elevates the climactic car chase into an art form, One Battle After Another is not like any one film after another.