Review: There Will Be Blood

This review was originally published in a private discussion group as part of a film studies unit done during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The era that There Will Be Blood is set during is such a romanticized period of time in this country. The turn of the century was when you could move out west, buy land, and really “make yourself.” I’m sure that there were people who pursued that nobly, but I bet for a large swath their attitude was less about independence and freedom, and more about profit. One of the first things we see Daniel do is fall, break his leg, and drag himself on his back to town to make his claim on the gold he found. A fortune at any cost is still a fortune for him, and that attitude runs deep in our culture: Consequences don’t outweigh the immediate gain.

Between swindling a farmer into selling his land, threatening to cut a man’s throat, sending his child away to some kind of boarding house, and flat out murdering people, Daniel does some horrible things. But, I think it would be too easy to label him as a full on villain. One of the things I was struck by this time was how I believe he truly cared for H.W., up until the accident it seemed like their relationship was solid, albeit a little business like (not that there were many kids in 1911 who didn’t have to grow up fast). He saves H.W. from the drilling accident, tells Mary in front of her father that there will be “no more hitting” after he picks up on H.W. liking her, and you can see that he absolutely hates himself as H.W. leaves on the train. Later on in Eli’s sermon, you can see that the having to say “I abandoned my boy” is painful, and when he finally bellows it out, I think that was the only real moment of the entire charade.

I think Daniel’s humanity is slowly left behind with each gain he makes towards having the pipeline. And that’s maybe the point: Like a virus, greed consumes and sours a person until they’re left alone in a mansion, blowing holes in their belongings with a shotgun. Eli has the same issue, though: He doesn’t want profits, but he does want a shitload of influence. Expanding the church, trying to force Daniel to recognize him during the opening ceremony for the drilling, and becoming a missionary, Eli wants power over peoples’ souls and is pretending he’s in it to show God’s light to people. Daniel, at least, is honest with himself in his drive for power (“I have a competitiveness in me”).

And that’s where it ends, his proclamation that “I’m finished!” is an announcement that he’s beat every possible competitor. He beat Standard Oil to the punch with the pipeline, he drained Bandy’s land from underneath him, he drove his son away from being a competitor, and now he’s killed the one other person who tried to take a bite out of his power- Eli. But you get the sense at the end that the only thing he truly enjoyed was crushing other people, and if that isn’t capitalism in a nutshell: There is only competition and profit, nothing more. Daniel could do anything with his wealth, he could set his son up for life, devote himself to another cause, do literally anything for anyone. But no, we end with him miserably basking in his own excess.

Henry is an interesting element too, because as skeptical as Daniel is at first, he does come to trust Henry enough to speak about his own emotions, which are obviously no rays of sunshine. Henry is even keen on listening, despite being an imposter he seems eager to do right. I think for Daniel, when he finds out, he’s more enraged that somebody gained his trust on a lie than anything else. Maybe that’s what seals the deal, because he stoops to a new low afterwards by participating in Eli’s sermon even though it means nothing to him beyond gaining approval for construction rights.

Watching this again for the first time in quite a few years, I was surprised at how fast it moved. I love a good character drama, slow as they may be, but in this case it felt like there’s just one thing after another in the plot, and maybe that’s why it left such an initial impression.

I feel obligated to mention that Daniel’s climactic rant, culminating with “I drink your milkshake!” is probably one of the best “fuck you” moments in film history. And obviously Daniel Day-Lewis is one of the greatest character actors of our time, but I think the rest of the cast deserves a lot of credit as well. Paul Dano nails that over-eager young pastor archetype, Kevin O’Connor is really likeable as Henry and I wish he was in more things in general, and the kid who played HW wasn’t even an actor- he was a kid from a local school and was picked because he didn’t have to fake knowing how to be in a rustic/rural environment.

I also want to note the score, it’s always jumped out at me. I don’t think there’s a single melody in the entire film, it’s all atonal and/or percussion. It’s a really unique way of driving home a constant sense of malaise and compliments the harsh landscapes very well. Plus it was done by Radiohead’s lead guitarist, which is a fun fact.