There Will Be Blood (2007)

Director:

Paul Thomas Anderson

Writers (WGA):

Paul Thomas Anderson (screenplay)
Upton Sinclair (novel)

Release Date:

11 January 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

When Ambition Meets Faith

Plot:

A story about family, greed, religion, and oil, centered around a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the business.

Plot Keywords:

Oil | Land | Prospector | California | Power

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 57 wins & 52 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Thur. Feb. 11	1:00 PM	SHOW
Fri. Feb. 12	12:00 AM	SHOW
Tue. Feb. 16	12:15 PM	SHOW

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Daniel Day-Lewis	...	Daniel Plainview
Martin Stringer	...	Silver Assay Worker
Matthew Braden Stringer	...	Silver Assay Worker
Jacob Stringer	...	Silver Assay Worker
Joseph Mussey	...	Silver Assay Worker
Barry Del Sherman	...	H.B. Ailman
Harrison Taylor	...	Baby H.W. Plainview
Stockton Taylor	...	Baby H.W. Plainview
Paul F. Tompkins	...	Prescott
Dillon Freasier	...	Young H.W. Plainview
Kevin Breznahan	...	Signal Hill Man
Jim Meskimen	...	Signal Hill Married Man
Erica Sullivan	...	Signal Hill Woman
Randall Carver	...	Mr. Bankside
Coco Leigh	...	Mrs. Bankside

Also Known As:

Oil! (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some violence.

Runtime:

158 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | American Sign Language

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Ireland:15A | Finland:K-13 | Singapore:PG | Canada:13+ (Québec) | Canada:14A (Manitoba) | Germany:12 (f) | Netherlands:16 | South Africa:16LV | USA:R (certificate #43414) | Brazil:14 | Australia:M | UK:12A (original rating) | UK:15 (re-rating on appeal) | Norway:15 | Czech Republic:15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | New Zealand:R13 | Sweden:15 | Denmark:15 | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Ontario) | South Korea:15 | Hong Kong:IIA | Malaysia:U | Argentina:13 | Taiwan:R-12 | Greece:K-13 | France:U (with warning) | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | Austria:16

Filming Locations:

El Mirage Dry Lake, California, USA

Company:

Ghoulardi Film Company

Trivia:

Paul Thomas Anderson stated that he watched The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) every night before filming this movie.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: A bright modern warning light is visible under the dash of one of the cars when a door is opened early in the movie. Several vehicles also display number-plates incorrect for the period.

Quotes:

H.M. Tilford: Why are you acting insane and threatening to cut my throat?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: (#4.6)" (2009/I)

Soundtrack:

There Is Power in the Blood

A film that will leave film-goers pondering for a long time

PT Anderson delivers perhaps his best work with "There Will Be Blood". Unlike "Magnolia", the film's daunting runtime is not very daunting whilst watching it. All acting in the film was solid, even the work of the child actors. Daniel Day-Lewis in particular delivered a truly phenomenal performance, capturing the power of greed, fear, insanity, and comedy simultaneously, at many points throughout the film. At no point does the time period distract from the power of the film. Sometimes period pieces cannot be appreciated because they delve too deep into historical details -- turning the experience into more of a documentary than a narrative set in the past. This is not the case for "There Will Be Blood", as human interactions are the focus of the film. Johnny Greenwood's chilling score is very strong, benefiting from the elegant minimalism that he show's in the band Radiohead. The cinematography is also spectacular. Robert Elswit beautifully captures the essence of the environment and the tension amongst the characters. All in all, this is truly a perfectly crafted film.