There Will Be Blood, He Said

I suppose this film is a success because it represents a portrait on such a broad canvas. We have the American Dream turning into a nightmare, passion to succeed morphing into an obsession and paternal love degrading into hatred.

Daniel Plainview, played brilliantly by Daniel Day-Lewis, is a man who is driven to succeed. We witness the dawn of the American Industrial age in the late 1800's. The film opens with an amazing piece of film that is totally without dialogue where Plainview discovers his first oil deposit. These scenes show his gritty and dogged determination. Suffering physical and mental pain, he endures and succeeds in convincing people to allow him to drill on their land. His personality is such that he is able to convince these folks that he can deliver a better life for all. In the end however, it is Plainview who has the money. He's the snake oil salesmen without the snake.

When an accident kills one of his workers, he takes charge of the workers child, passing the kid off as his own son. It helps him to portray himself as a concerned father and family man, the wife allegedly having died in childbirth. We watch as Plainview cons his way into the hearts of the community and gathers the oil money into his hands. He becomes obsessed with the control and no detail escapes him. His battle with the other oil companies is as important as his battle with the local preacher. The appearance of is half brother resurrects his buried feeling for his family and his youth. His obsession for money and control ferries him down a river of emotion ending in the rapids and finally the great waterfall of self destruction.

The acting in this film, lead by Daniel Day-Lewis, is superb. The photographic quality is brooding, which fits the mood. The dissonance in the score is unsettling and at sometimes distracting. Overall, the script is plodding and at times a detriment to telling the story. The total lack of any humor or comedy may be the biggest problem. Emotionally this story starts in a hole and never really gets out of it. On the strength of Day-Lewis's performance this film has received a lot of attention, but I do not think it will rank high in my list of favorites.
This film and "No Country for Old Men" are often mentioned for Award consideration. They do have some similarities. If you enjoy a film that depicts the worst side of human behavour with no redeeming qualities this and "No Country for Old Men" do well in that category