Strangely gripping if bladder-fillingly long, it has some of the best characters in recent memory.

Rating: 8/10 (2 February 2018)

There's not so much a story in 'There Will Be Blood (2007)' as a series of events that shape a character and his descent into soulless pseudo-insanity, with a strong undertone that seems to comment on the tyrannical nature of typically larger-than-life tycoons and the destruction of their selves in the search for that intangible metric of so-called success. This strangely gripping if bladder-fillingly long saga has a beautiful flair for visual storytelling compounded by a fantastic though heavy-lifting score, that's as ominous as the piece's prophetic title, and a one-of-a-kind powerhouse performance that sneaks up on you to end with one of the scariest character-driven scenes of recent years. There are stretches which stretch the pace, of course, and its apparent lack of narrative may be frustrating if you're not willing to reflect retroactively on its themes, ideas and, most importantly, character arcs. While the journey each individual takes may seem subtle on the surface, it is really within the expertly-written characters that the picture finds its purpose, an exploration of the people who don't always say what they are thinking but are thankfully clearly thinking something, and its a real treat to dissect every single moment that a simple side-ways glance or overt outburst of furious anger gives us a glimpse behind the eyes of some of the best characters in recent memory. 8/10