There Will Be Blood

I think the problem I had with this film is that it regarded itself as a Great Film. It takes its cue from most great American films in dealing with an ambitious, alienated man's rise to power and his ultimately hollow victory (offering handy parallels to the director's own task). It seems like these stories, out of their own import, eventually speak about the nature of America (its dark nature, its flip side, the cost of the Dream, etc.), and this one especially takes on that significance, as it is set at the closing of the West.

Daniel Day-Lewis' character is shaped by the West -- a rugged, antisocial man. His modern contemporary might be the ruthless CEO or stocktrader. I was left a little frustrated by his performance. He's undeniably compelling to watch, but I wrestled with whether or not he truly dug into the character or was perfectly mannered. However, considering how defensive the character was, perhaps it is fitting that I never felt that I got into his head.

One element that felt incongruous was the use of avant-garde classical music, mixed with original music by Radiohead's guitarist. Some people felt it worked, but to me there were times where it felt a little too tacked-on, more a conceptual move than artistically integrated.

One other sticking point was a time jump in the third act. To me, it felt a little like cheating. It's easy to compare to Citizen Kane: I feel like Welles captured the totality of his character's life in less time, but Anderson resorted to a time lapse in order to tie up his story.

There were definitely exciting moments/sequences (the oil burst) and interesting decisions (framing the action/dialogue in such a way that the audience picks up character developments that other characters in the scene miss), and definitely represents a step forward in Anderson's filmmaking. His apprenticeship with Altman obviously did him good. I just hope that his next film has a less palpable sense that he is competing with The Greats for a place in the pantheon.