One Battle After Another was filmed in VistaVision and played in that format at a few theaters. If you were lucky enough to see it in VistaVision, it offered unique clarity while maintaining the texture of film. This brought viewers closer to the story of Bob (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his daughter (Chase Infiniti) on the run from Col. Lockjaw (Seann Penn) after they were discovered in hiding.
The 4K UHD does not reproduce the 1.33 VistaVision aspect ratio, but is a full frame 16×9 picture comparable to IMAX films released in the format, as One Battle also played in IMAX versions.
From the border streets that open the film, the characters sneak through deep night on the edges of harsh detention camp lights. Their triumphant ride home, on payphones in the dark, sitting around a campfire, Bob’s escape tunnel, when Sergio turns out the lights in the dojo and Bob’s back alley fall all provide deep shadows in high dynamic range.
In the full screen, it still looks like these characters are towering over you even if the biggest home set cannot compare to an IMAX screen. Then closeups actually close the distance, not just zooming in. You are both in the car with drivers and passengers, and above them on foot. The hilly road at the end unfolds before you as if you’re the driver looking through the windshield.
Surprisingly, there is not much surround sound given all the action in the film. It’s more rumbles of explosions and crashes.