REVIEW: THERE WILL BE BLOOD

My Rating:

No wonder. It's been a few years since There Will Be Blood came out in theaters, receiving all sorts of reviews, both extremely positive, and surprisingly negative. The film, Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson was very loosely based on Upton Sinclair's 1927 book 'Oil!'. Sinclair was described as “a man with every gift except humor and silence”, which is only a half truth in the film adaptation. For the sake of the review, I'm going to consider the book and film versions as two completely separate works, as they are presented in different mediums anyways. I decided to drink the kool-aid and join in with the rest of the critics in checking out Paul Thomas Anderson's latest work.


There Will Be Blood opens in 1898, where Daniel Plainview (Day-Lewis) is silver-mining solo somewhere in the southwestern United States. The first word isn't uttered until 5 minutes into the film, with the next words nearly another 10 minutes after that. Plainview, a man who likes things to go his way, learns the hazards of work and because of them, adopts a son, H.W. (Freasier). Plainview and his 10-year-old son start building an oil empire in the desert town of Little Boston, California, where they meet the all-too-aptly-named pastor Eli Sunday (Dano) and have ensuing conficts.

Every character in There Will Be Blood was chiseled to perfection. Daniel Plainview is the definition of a swindler. The modern oil agenda is clearly visible throughout his character. For example, Plainview tells Little Boston that he intends on improving their town by building a school, donating money to Sunday's church, and irrigating the area so that he can eat his American born right, bread.. Plainview is a master of disguising his real intentions of just making money the way he wants to, through the lucrative California oil boom. Anderson's jabs at the oil industry are clear, this film shows the beginnings of oil immorality. Dano's young and pubescent voice helps his character along, showing how inexperienced and unwise he is.

The constant awkward droning violin score sets a completely ominous tone throughout the movie. I can't really remember a point where there wasn't some nasty screeching in the background of a scene, although it wouldn't surprise me if the violins were hardly playing at all during the film. I was totally immersed in the setting, waiting for the next genius line of dialogue to spill out of Plainview's mouth. With an over two and a half hour running time, this film demands your attention for the entire span, so you'd better set nearly your entire evening away to watch it.

The long spans lacking dialogue (or everything for that matter) are not the weakness of the movie. I think they strengthen Plainview's brooding, quiet character and help show the oddness of his relationship with is bastard son H.W. No major weakness does exist, the fantastic cinematography, weird score, engrossing dialogue and convincing acting all make up for what would otherwise be a dull portion of the movie. Paul Thomas Anderson, I drink your kool-aid! And is it good.

Released: January 2008

Length: 2 hr 38 min

Directed by: Paul Thomas Anderson

Written by: Upton Sinclair (Novel), Paul Thomas Anderson (Screenplay)

Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Paul Dano, Dillon Freasier