There Will Be Blood (2007)
There Will Be Blood (2007) 7/10
Daniel Day-Lewis deservedly won his Best Actor Oscar. As oilman Daniel Plainview, he exudes a maniacal drive that is hauntingly scary. Although somewhat reminiscent of his role in Gangs of New York, Daniel’s performance is nevertheless a veritable tour de force. Equally deserving of praise is Paul Dano, who inhibits the role of a firey young preacher with aplomb. It is the sort of performance that will make people stand up and take notice, and is a sharp departure from his role in Little Miss Sunshine.
Technically, the film is very strong and performance-wise it is top notch. What i felt lacking was the plot itself which never really set up a conflict or confrontation. Nothing really memorable happens in the film which made the plot feel rather slow-moving. Although Daniel’s character is immensely compelling, the problem is that nothing exciting actually happens. Even the supposed conflict between the main characters: Plainview and Eli remains simmering up until the explosive final confrontation. The other major plot arc, which is the relationship between Plainview and his son, because of Plainview’s inherently cold nature, never becomes interest. Ditto for the Plainview’s brother plot arc. At the end of the day, what you get is a powerful portrait of a driven, ambitious oilman who fails to forge any meaningful relationships. However, because he is so distant and paranoid, the subplots involving the other characters in his life are meandering and not particularly interesting. It is only his conflict with Eli that drives the movie forward. Overall, There Will Be Blood is a film worth watching because of the brilliant performances of Daniel Day Lewis and Paul Dano, even though the plot itself is somewhat predictable.
“Anderson digs into the American mystique and into the vaults of Hollywood greatness to produce a picture that is intensely and thoroughly its own, yet teems with ghosts of movies past.”- Jonathan Richard
