Curious.

Rating: 7/10 (12 February 2008)

This is an interesting film. Interesting in a very broad sense. For a start, it's been praised beyond its worth. Why? It's very slow and very meaningful and it seems that slow and meaningful is the Emperor's New Clothes when it comes to modern movie audiences. To glance at your watch is sacrilege; to question any aspect of its import is lowbrow.
I did like There Will Be Blood. I just didn't love it. It has moments of real quality - every one of which is about Daniel Day Lewis, whose own performance in this movie really can't be overstated. He is a towering presence here, even handling the rather clumsy ending with real commitment and passion. Although I ultimately wasn't bowled over by the destination, I was 100 per cent there with DDL throughout the journey.
The film charts a man's spiral from integrity to madness but the most interesting arc is Daniel's relationship with his son. Dillon Freasier as HW is a great foil for DDL's Daniel, and his rejection by his 'father' is horrible and real. Although, strangely, I found no part of this film genuinely moving. There's a detachment throughout which is only alleviated in a single brief flashback to the relationship the boy once enjoyed with his father.
Otherwise, Daniel's character is peeled like an onion, but I didn't feel any single revelation was truly momentous. Instead we get a series of insights which I was surprised was deemed to be sufficient to build into Daniel's ultimate disintegration. His reunion with his young son is so fierce and then we leap forward to the boy's marriage and everything's fallen apart. We're left to fill in the gaps for ourselves, which is less than satisfying when the demise of that relationship is pivotal to the film.
There Will Be Blood is a bit long and I found myself shifting in my seat and welcoming the end credits.
As so often, don't believe the hype and you'll enjoy the film. Believe it and you might be a bit baffled.