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There Will Be Blood
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A- |
I watched the trailer for this film some time ago and was immediately
intrigued. When I found out that Paul Thomas Anderson was the
director, my hopes soared. With Magnolia being one of my favorite
movies, I generated high expectations for it. While it didn’t
quite match the splendor of Magnolia, it was still a fantastic
film.
The opening scene sets up the story beautifully, clearly portraying
Daniel Plainview (played by Daniel Day-Lewis) as a zealous oil-man.
While alone in the middle of the desert with a rudimentary oil
rig, there is an accident involving dynamite that results in
a vertical descent to the bottom of a dark cavern. Suffering
from a broken leg, he manages to climb out and crawl back to
civilization. Right away we are shown what he is capable of.
Note that this entire scene was devoid of any dialogue, which
continues on into the next scene.
The reason I gave this a high rating is due to the brilliant
acting and superb cinematography. The dramatic imagery and eerie
music of the oil-rig explosion that rendered his son deaf was
mesmerizing. The baptism of Daniel was comical yet heart-wrenching,
and has my vote for best scene. My only real criticism would
be the lack of a satisfying climax. The ending, while definitely
fitting, came a little too late and seemed to pass fairly quickly.
Regardless, this film is a definite must-see. When viewing,
pay attention to the subtleties. One example would be the importance
of Daniel’s son, where his mere presence seems to have
a direct influence on his sanity. Also note the symbolic nature
of Eli Sunday, whom represents Daniel Plainview’s inner
conscience and morality, and who he eventually “confronts”
in the end. But most importantly, have patience. This isn’t
a fast-paced blockbuster. Appreciate the effort that is put
forth in all aspects and you’ll really see how great it
is.
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A |
This movie brought with it much anticipation along with a
slight annoyance. Scott and I had been waiting patiently for
months as we watched the net announce the movie opening originally
back in September at Fantastic Fest, then premiere in New York
on December 10th. A limited release fooled us on the day after
Christmas so we waited again until January 11th when the movie
was supposed to have a full nation-wide release. Not in Fresno.
We would have to drive a minimum of 3 hours to see the movie
in a big(ger) city. By chance we noticed last week that the
movie had snuck into 2 theaters, 4 times a day, unannounced.
We jumped on it by making an unheard of Sunday movie trip to
Edwards for the 2:30 showing.
IMDB notes that there is no dialogue for the first 11 minutes
of the movie. During that time you are made aware of how gritty
and dangerous drilling for oil was during the boom of the late
19th century. This movie had a slow pace that normally would
have put me to sleep, but Daniel Day-Lewis’ character,
Daniel Plainview, presented such great psychological intrigue
that I felt like I was watching more of a documentary at times.
I found myself anticipating how he was going to interact with
each character from scene to scene. Every actor played their
part to the point of me forgetting they were actually acting
and I enjoyed every moment of interaction between Lewis and
Paul Dano who played a dual role of Paul and Eli Sunday, the
town preacher. An interesting relationship between Lewis and
his son is tightly woven into every aspect of Plainview’s
development over the 30 year period. I will end up buying this
on DVD and reading the novel “Oil!” by Upton Sinclair,
on which it was based.
Side Note: Paul Thomas Anderson also directed Magnolia, Boogie
Nights and Punch Drunk Love.
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