There Will be Blood
There Will be Blood is an epic film that traces approximately thirty years in the life of a megalomaniacal oil tycoon from the turn of the century. Daniel Plainview is a hard, brutal man who lives with a directness of purpose most of us can only imagine. But the cost for his singlemindedness is high.
Paul Thomas Anderson has crafted a slice of epic Americana with There Will be Blood. The film’s scope feels grand, with sprawling shots of desert oil fields, and immense panoramas, and a span of decades. And yet the overall subject matter of the film isn’t about the oil industry itself, but about one individual—Daniel Plainview. There are other characters that play roles in his life: his son H. W., preacher Eli, and Daniel’s brother, but they are just that, characters in his life.
It will be hard for this film to escape comparisons to Citizen Kane; another film that tracked the life and tragedy of a towering individual figure. But where the character of Kane retained some elements of pathos, Plainview abandons nearly all human likeability and descends into an alcohol feuled megalomania of extraordinary proportions.
The film itself is very compelling viewing, and there are a number of good performances. Daniel Day-Lewis’ performance is, of course, the one garnering the most attention, and deservedly so. There is a part of me that does wonder if his performance isn’t a bit over embellished, but this character is so huge that it becomes hard to divorce the character from the performance, and perhaps that’s all that needs saying. Paul Dano, as preacher Eli, also gives a very credible and memorable performance.
At the end of it all, I think the one big question that remains for me is, what does it all mean? The movie seems to be about so many things at once: wealth, religion, oil, desire, family, ego. But I don’t think I really know what it was all about, other than a man destroying himself and along the way nearly everyone he comes in contact with.
I recommend it, but be prepared to discuss with friends and fellow moviegoers afterwards. That said, isn’t that sometimes the best kind of movie?
