Filmmaking at its best.

Rating: 10/10 (17 August 2012)

The opening 15 minutes of this film are a thing to behold; while we have no dialogue or exposition, it is the score by Jonny Greenwood which is most striking, with a dissonant, strained note that sets the tone for the remainder of the film (it is easily one of the best film scores of recent times). Along with Robert Elswit's sumptuous cinematography it conveys a mood of impending doom, as we witness Daniel Day-Lewis, entirely alone, at work in a barren landscape. The sound design as he breaks his leg or the sharp 'chink' of the axe is a perfect example of truly cinematic sound design. And that is precisely what this film is - truly cinematic; it is a film in the purest sense: on a visual level, a aural level and a visceral level. And for that it's mesmerizing.
Yet upon my initial viewing the most impactful aspect was, of course, Day-Lewis' tour-de-force performance as Daniel Plainview; channelling Orson Welles and John Huston, he is just a revelation to watch, giving a towering and unrivalled piece of acting, that is just flat-out astonishing, grasping you by the scruff of the neck, to the point where you just cannot turn away from this flawless portrayal of a hideous monster, who is one of the most horrible, rapacious and power-obsessed characters to hit cinema screens this past decade. His genius just drips off the screen, as it conveys the proper skill of an unequalled actor, of someone who firmly took this role with a fierce determination, illustrated by the fact that even before he utters a word, we have grasped the depth of this character. His detractors will say his acting here is too histrionic or even ostentatious, but Day-Lewis is aware that Plainview is supposed to be showy, being a larger-than-life businessman with a ruthless drive for power, and because of that we are given a wonderfully bravura performance.
The only other considerable role in the film is that of Paul Dano as Eli Sunday. While receiving much criticism for being nowhere near Day-Lewis' level of acting, this is undeserved as he is excellent in the supporting role he's given. And while he doesn't deliver the performance of his career, his turn as Sunday is very watchable and proves to be great foil to Day-Lewis with their brilliant scenes together. The remainder of the cast work as best they can with secondary roles, in what is essentially Day-Lewis' show, when it comes to the acting.
Ever since he made considerable waves with 1997's Boogie Nights, Paul Thomas Anderson was always a name to watch, with many regarding him as one of the most interesting and best filmmakers of his generation, yet when this was released, he became lauded as "THE filmmaker of his generation", and after my second viewing of There Will Be Blood, I came to agree with the statement wholeheartedly. Anderson is a auteur with encyclopedic knowledge of film and the technique. He gets it, basically, unlike say, Tommy Wiseau. He is a real master director, and this film exemplifies that, whether it's the breathtaking set-piece involving a derrick going up in flames, the opening or the THAT end sequence (which contains what is quite possibly the greatest piece of acting I've ever witnessed). Here we have a cinematic poet, defiantly refusing to work as part of a digitalised film business, by shooting on 35mm; which only strengthens the film's relationship with it's closest cousins: the old-school Hollywood epics.
This is a stunning and sprawling work of intelligence, originality, ambition and blistering intensity; one of the few films I would call, without any hesitation, "a masterpiece". Easily the best film of the past decade, it's a mesmerizing, epic cinematic feat about greed, lies, religion, capitalism and insanity delivered by a magnificent director and the best actor working today.