Claim: There Will Be Blood is a film.

There Will Be Blood is a 2007 American epic historical drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Dano . The film was inspired by Upton Sinclair 's novel Oil ! . It tells the story of a silver miner-turned-oilman -LRB- Day-Lewis -RRB- on a ruthless quest for wealth during Southern California 's oil boom of the late 19th and early 20th centuries . Kevin J. O'Connor , Ciarán Hinds , and Dillon Freasier are also featured in the film .   There Will Be Blood received significant critical praise , with the performance of Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview receiving widespread acclaim . Other qualities of the film , such as its cinematography , direction , and screenplay , were also lauded and received numerous awards and nominations . It premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival , where it won the Silver Bear Award for Best Director and a Special Artistic Contribution Award for Jonny Greenwood 's score . It also appeared on many critics ' `` top ten '' lists for the year , notably the American Film Institute , the National Society of Film Critics , the National Board of Review , and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association . Day-Lewis won Oscar , BAFTA , Golden Globe , Screen Actors Guild , NYFCC and IFTA Best Actor awards for his performance , cementing his position as one of the most acclaimed actors of his generation . The film was nominated for eight Academy Awards , including Best Picture , winning Best Actor for Day-Lewis and Best Cinematography for Robert Elswit .   There Will Be Blood is now widely regarded as one of the greatest films of the 2000s , and was among the highest-ranking 21st century films in the British Film Institute 's 2012 Sight & Sound polls .