There Will Be Blood

Masterful craftsmanship without artistic compromise. A perfect study of an ambitious, egocentric soul, in whose bearer – the oilman Plainview – the film world has one of the juiciest characters in its history. The gripping first half, when the plot revolves more around the building of an oil empire, is almost visually hypnotic (the scene of the oil rig fire accompanied by rhythmic percussive music has a kind of horror-apocalyptic feel). The second half is more intimate, with the narrative focusing more on the oilman's troubled relationship with his son and the sycophantic religious fanatic Ali (Plainview's "confession" at the baptism gave me chills). It seems as if no one played Plainview, that this slightly stooped man with a distinctive moustache was brought in by Anderson in a time machine from a hundred years ago and filmed with a hidden camera, letting him live out his story… No, really. Daniel Day Lewis… There are no words to describe my fascination with his performance; the facial expressions, the complete change of voice (which doesn't seem mannerist at all), the slightly hunched posture, the imposing appearance. That's no longer acting, that's reincarnation, which perhaps only Day-Lewis is capable of using his famous 'Stanislavsky method'. Daniel and Paul, you have my applause. When Day-Lewis accepted his second Oscar this year with his aristocratic appearance and massive earrings, he looked like a being from another world. And so does this film. (09/03/2008)

Here we go again. A good film in every respect, but I have one major problem with it: Its main character is an anti-hero. On the one hand, of course, I bow down to Daniel Day-Lewis, who made the initially somewhat sympathetic Plainview convincingly and utterly disgusting to me with his brilliant performance, but on the other hand, I take no pleasure in watching a man who deliberately hurts, abuses and despises his fellow human beings. I know that such people exist (and that there are lots and lots of them), I just don't have to watch them in realistic dramas. So from about an hour ago, I wished Plainview the worst possible ending... And that's probably why I didn't enjoy There Will Be Blood as much. Otherwise, of course, I praise the unusually but sympathetically slow direction, the strange but impressive music, and the beautiful cinematography. (07/01/2012)

Technically, it’s flawless, with masterful camerawork, visuals that are properly dirty and grainy, without a single slow motion shot, completely raw and believable (the injuries, the fires, the deaths). The scenes featuring platforms and heavy machinery are among the best. They have captured the power of both natural elements (earth, gas, oil) and all necessary tools for their extraction (drills, platforms, etc.) in an unbelievably realistic way, and in the accidents involving heavy machinery, which almost always result in fatal injuries, you literally feel the weight of each metal object in your seat, as well as the tremendous pressure of a tensioned rope or gas pocket. I have never seen/felt/experienced anything like this before. Daniel Day-Lewis is excellent, but towards the end it was a bit too much. Not that he acted poorly, but the screenwriter pushed things a bit too far. Nevertheless, I rate very highly at least the first, non-intimate and relatively action-packed first half, which succinctly and more factually depicts the rise of an oil magnate, his persona, and his work. The second, more intimate part is not as entertaining, but it is still one of the gems of the past few years, certainly from a technical standpoint. (06/08/2008)

A delicacy. Daniel Day-Lewis steals the whole picture. He is the type of heavenly actor who would be capable of ripping down and retracing in all of David Plainview’s character contours. A struggle for money and faith, where money always wins. A demolition of the American dream, a dream that doesn’t just sit and wait for you, but you have to wade through mud, oil and blood to get to achieve it. Paul Thomas Anderson knows this. A masterpiece. (25/02/2013)

A great film in every way, which confuses me the most with its clash between visual grandeur and moody unwatchability. Several scenes seem to have come straight out of the greatest classics of golden age Hollywood, with the landscape stretching from horizon to horizon – and yet such an environment is perhaps too generous for the pervasive malevolence of the story. Both extremes cancel each other out and thus I can never connect with the (perhaps intended) oppressive gloominess, nor do I ever experience sincere joy as a viewer. For some, Plainview is an immortal figure because of his journey on a cynical path, but for the same reason, I never really understand him completely. I don't root for him, I don't wish him well, I just shake my head wondering why he willingly makes mistakes and creates such a disproportionately large enemy in Eli due to his own self-centeredness. However, I too was left breathless by Daniel Day-Lewis, who captivates, crushes, and in the last half hour, blatantly destroys everything that remained inside me until then. 70% for a unique film of its kind. I regret that I missed it at the time of its release because I would have liked to have discussed with someone the reasons this piece is supposed to be considered one of the best ever produced, with Paul Thomas Anderson alongside giants like Sergio Leone or Francis Ford Coppola. Even Once Upon a Time in America or The Godfather are films that do not overly embellish the olden days and occasionally hit you in the face with their period power. However, they never want to leave the viewer emotionally unaffected. (27/09/2021)