Film Stock Bursts into Flames, Forcing Sudden Shutdown of One Battle After Another Screenings

Paul Thomas Anderson made a movie that has film nerds buzzing, and now the film itself is literally buzzing the projectors. A handful of 35mm screenings of One Battle After Another have run into an old-school problem: the print heating up and melting in the gate. Yes, really.

The Vista Theatre incident

One report from earlier this week says a print actually burned about an hour into a showing at Los Angeles' Vista Theatre. That is Quentin Tarantino's place, which he has owned since 2021. When the news made the rounds, Pulp Fiction co-writer and Video Archives Podcast co-host Roger Avary chimed in with a dry one-word joke: "Inglorious" - a wink at Inglourious Basterds and its fiery theater finale built on the legend of ultra-flammable nitrate film. For the record, no dictators were harmed at the Vista.

How bad did it get?

By most accounts, not very. One attendee says only a single frame was toast. Another person who was there says the projectionist fixed the melt-in-the-gate issue and had the movie back on screen in under 10 minutes. That tracks with how these things usually go: if a frame sticks and the lamp cooks it, you snip the damaged bit, rethread, and get rolling again.

Not a one-off hiccup

That said, someone else reported a separate screening that had to stop about 15 minutes in for the same reason. So, multiple reports, same kind of problem, different shows.

Film is gorgeous... and fussy

This is a very film-nerd story, but it is also a reminder that actual film prints are fragile. They look incredible, but they do not love heat, pauses, or anything that messes with the flow through the projector. The upside: these are rare hiccups, they get fixed fast, and they are not a reason to avoid the movie. If anything, this is the sort of event that makes seeing it on film feel special.

Why PTA wants you in a theater

Leonardo DiCaprio has been out there telling folks the stakes for this one are theatrical, both creatively and financially. He laid it out to Variety:

"I mean, Paul shot this movie in Vista Vision - cameras that have rarely been used since the early '60s. He wants people to have that immersive experience and make an action film that's unexpected, tactile, realistic and something that is probably a lot different than what we've been saturated with. In that respect, box office is very important."

Translation: this was built for the big screen, ideally on film, and the box office matters. Speaking personally, it is one of the best things I have seen this year, and it absolutely plays better with a projector behind you and an audience around you.

Seen a print melt, warp, or snap mid-movie? Drop your war stories below. And if your One Battle After Another showing has a hiccup, hang tight. Chances are you will be back in the fight in a few minutes.