#7

#7 There Will Be Blood

PTA… The Paulinator… Anderson the Great… whatever term of endearment you wish to bestow upon Paul Thomas Anderson, his greatness must be acknowledged. Ever since Magnolia I have been down with the man; and give him a little Daniel D to the Lewis… oooooo weee you’ve got a movie! This is a beautifully crafted character study of the monster that is Daniel Plainview. In many ways he is a Citizen Kane type of power hungry monster with just enough humanity to be believable.  His bouts of insanity are as funny and terrifying as Jack Nicholson in The Shinning.  But unlike Citizen Kane, there are two villains: Eli the local priest and Daniel. Their confrontations are pure cinematic joy for me. The movie progresses in waves of tension that slowly builds and releases until someone’s head gets bashed in with a bowling pin. To me, nothing is more satisfying in movies than well-built tension – you know what’s coming, but it still surprises you anyway.

Favorite moment: Eli baptizing Daniel Plainview in the church. I could try to describe how awesome the acting is, you just have to see it to understand its greatness.”I’ve abandoned my boy!” 

- By Scott