In contemporary cinema, 2007 was one of the best years of American films in quite a while. One of the new proclaimed “classics” that I hadn’t yet seen was There Will Be Blood. But other than that, I had seen some quite remarkable films from 2007, like I’m Not There (Todd Haynes, 2007), No Country for Old Men (Joel Coen; Ethan Coen, 2007), and some maybe not fantastic movies but still really good, such as Sweeney Todd (Tim Burton, 2007) and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Andrew Dominik, 2007). So I was very much looking forward to watching There Will Be Blood, considering what a good year it had been for Hollywood cinema.
I’m not that familiar with Paul Thomas Anderson, I’ve seen Magnolia, which was quite good, but other than that I haven’t seen anything else by him. However, Magnolia is very different from There Will Be Blood, and in every aspect, in my opinion, There Will Be Blood is superior to Magnolia. In fact, I believe in 20 or so years this will be remembered as one of the defining classics of the early 21st century, together with No Country for Old Men of course. I was in a period where I despised anything from Hollywood, seeing it as “garbage” and “sell-out”. And while that does indeed apply for a lot of the cinema there, or in fact anywhere, There Will Be Blood proves that great films still are created in Hollywood, challenging any of the great Classics from the Golden Era and the 70’s Hollywood. There Will Be Blood is a character study and drama. Daniel Day-Lewis creates a fascinating character on screen, and entrepreneur who relishes in defeating and besting his opponents. There is a certain calmness to the character though, but the sub-text all comes through from the face and voice of Lewis. His performance in this film is so important, because the film is basically centred on his character, and in this respect is somewhat similar to Raging Bull (Martin Scorsese, 1980). These character dramas so easily fall and stumble, and much power is left to the actor, and Day-Lewis indeed does this justice, and deserved the Oscar he won. In fact, 2007 was a great year for Oscars, actually going to films and people who deserved them (2006 was disappointing, sure, it was nice of Scorsese winning an overdue Oscar, but best film and script as well? Please). I’m not sure whether I like No Country for Old Men or There Will Be Blood, but for certain, both would have deserved the Oscar.
The film has some superb cinematography; the beautiful wide shots of the wilderness capture the harsh terrain that the oil prospectors have to work with, and also stand as a great background element for the action on the screen. Some images will stick to your head forever, in particular the scene where the oil well burns. This is accompanied by the wonderful and original score, composed by Radiohead band member Johnny Greenwood. Anderson brings it all together with his directing, which throughout the film is spot on, creating all focus around Day-Lewis’ character. As the character develops, his environment and the people are all affected and develop too. While some say this is the story of a prospector building up his fortune, I find this interpretation slightly uninteresting. The most important part of the film and its core is the development and mental state of the character. It is in many ways quite a complicated film in this respect, and much interpretation can be brought to the character. This is one of the things that makes me believe this film will stay alive for many years to come, because there will always be something interesting to discuss and wonder about the character and the themes evoked by the film. It is quite universal, and will always feel relevant. I will want to watch this again soon, because I find it very fascinating, and I am sure the film will with each new viewing have something new to bring to me.
For me there is little doubt, There Will Be Blood is in every respect a modern masterpiece, and it is a pleasure to be around when it came out. Like so many other films from the old days, this one will be remembered, while the box-office films will be forgotten in the dust. There Will Be Blood will stand as a testament that Hollywood still can make world class quality films that are fascinating and have depth. A very positive trend last year, probably the strongest year of American cinema in the new century.
No comments:
Post a Comment