There Will Be There

Rating: 8/10 (4 March 2009)

I knew it was about the oil business, I knew the lead actor won awards, and I vaguely remembered it was directed by Oscar BAFTA nominated Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, Magnolia), I just needed to see it. The film follows the rise to power for charismatic and ruthless oil prospector Daniel Plainview (Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe winning Daniel Day-Lewis), driven to succeed by intense hatred of others and a psychological need to see competitors fail. Daniel is told by Paul Sunday (BAFTA nominated Paul Dano) that he lives on land where oil-rich land in Little Boston, California, so he goes to investigate, and quickly buys property by manipulating people, and sets up a well. He uses adopted son H.W. Plainview (Dillon Freasier) to project the image he is a family man, promising to build schools and make the community flourish. There is the point when H.W. is deafened by a oil eruption, and Daniel just gets him to see a teacher and translator, quickly solving the problem, and also showing his lack of care for anyone but himself. Greed becomes more apparent, and Daniel builds tension towards preacher Eli Sunday (also Dano), and years later, an older H.W. (Russell Harvard) has been alienated, and the film ends with Daniel's big outburst, murdering Eli. Also starring Kevin J. O'Connor as Henry, Ciarán Hinds as Fletcher, Sydney McCallister as Young Mary Sunday, David Warshofsky as H.M. Tilford, Colton Woodward as William Bandy and Colleen Foy as Adult Mary Sunday. I will be honest, for a film being two and a half hours long, I preferred the first hour to the rest, after it goes a little less interesting (well, apart from the ending), this is why I have taken away a star from the rating. Never-the-less, a brilliant story with a compelling Oscar worthy performance from Day-Lewis, with great direction by Anderson, and some good moments to catch your eye, definitely one to see. It won the Oscar for Best Cinematography, and it was nominated for Best Art Direction, Best Editing, BestSound Editing, Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published and Best Motion Picture of the Year, it was nominated BAFTA Film Award Best Cinematography, Best Music for Jonny Greenwood, Best Production Design, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Sound and Best Film, and it was nominated the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture - Drama. Daniel Day-Lewis was number 85 on The 100 Greatest Movie Stars, he was number 20 on The 50 Greatest British Actors, he was number 9 on Britain's Finest Actors, and he was number 15 on The World's Greatest Actor. Very good!