Is this the greatest line in One Battle After Another?
It stood out immediately the first time I watched the film. This was a man in trouble, yet at peace. Caught, but free. Quietly glowing with the satisfaction of knowing what he has done in the preceding hours for his community, and for ex-revolutionary strangers, actions of which his captors are ignorant.
He’s buoyed by this asymmetry of information, playful both in his dance and his words, admitting to the minor misdemeanour with that delicious smile. They know nothing of the true magnitude of his endeavours. So there’s no denial of the beers, as you might expect. They are celebrated, just as the beers themselves celebrated the earlier achievements of the day. A small rebellion and minor provocation, delivered softly and playfully. The contrast with the menace of the music is striking.
I remember first being bewitched by Benicio del Toro as Fenster in The Usual Suspects. I would have come across him earlier in a somewhat corny henchman cameo in Licence to Kill, but it was Fenster who caught my eye. I was beguiled by his elegant movement, sharp dress and distinctive accent. Not to mention those incredible gimlet eyes. Here was something masculine and feline – not a lion, but a puma or a leopard or a panther. Sensei brings some of those same qualities to the screen, moving half a beat slower than those around him. Sensei will not be rushed. And this wonderfully rich simple line will not be forgotten. A line which it transpires was not even in the script.