I heard a lot about this movie being a masterpiece, and one of the best movies of the 21st century, if not all time. So I decided to rent it and watch it with my family, and it did not disappoint.
The cinematography and score are absolutely fantastic. Right as the film opens up with a wide shot of an empty plain, with that score, and a few miners mining for minerals from a small spot in the middle of the field, the film really sets the mood. There are plenty of memorable shots in the film, that really must be seen to be appreciated. And the score is quite unusual, especially for an orchestral. They sure picked the right person with Jonny Greenwood (note: I have never listened to Radiohead, go ahead, kill me), as he was able to make very eerie music from the instruments from the time, yet still make it fit in and work with the screenplay. Again, you must listen to it to appeciate it.
The performances are very memorable. There is Daniel Day-Lewis's award-winning performance as the lead character, Daniel Plainview, of course, but Paul Dano's performance as the other main character, Eli Sunday, is also memorable. Day-Lewis's method acting works excellently here, as he becomes an oilman, who becomes more greedy, desiring more power, sociopathic, and a con man over his successful business career. Dano's performance as a religious extremist also is excellent, perfectly portraying his character's cowardly, hypocritical, and greedy demeanor.
Paul Thomas Anderson's direction and screenplay are another large factor in this film's quality. Despite the movie being almost 3 hours long (160 minutes to be exact), the film never feels like a drag, with every minute-to-minute scene feeling significant and entertaining. The screenplay greatly succeeds in showing Plainview's desire for more power, greediness, sociopathic, and con man tendencies, even without Day-Lewis's performance, and Sunday's disturbing tendencies as a religious extremist are conveyed excellently with the screenplay as well (also without Dano's performance). Anderson's direction also manages to make every scene engaging, with every aspect of each scene being done very well.
I could explain the plot, but I won't, because not only do I not want to spoil it, but it is better to watch the movie to see the plot than have it explained by me.
Overall, this film is truly one of the best films ever made, with its cinematography, score, performances by Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Dano, writing, and Paul Thomas Anderson's direction making it a masterpiece. I've gotta check out more of Anderson's works. I would absolutely recommend this film to any movie fan, as it is worth checking out.
There Will Be Cheers
I heard a lot about this movie being a masterpiece, and one of the best movies of the 21st century, if not all time. So I decided to rent it and watch it with my family, and it did not disappoint.
The cinematography and score are absolutely fantastic. Right as the film opens up with a wide shot of an empty plain, with that score, and a few miners mining for minerals from a small spot in the middle of the field, the film really sets the mood. There are plenty of memorable shots in the film, that really must be seen to be appreciated. And the score is quite unusual, especially for an orchestral. They sure picked the right person with Jonny Greenwood (note: I have never listened to Radiohead, go ahead, kill me), as he was able to make very eerie music from the instruments from the time, yet still make it fit in and work with the screenplay. Again, you must listen to it to appeciate it.
The performances are very memorable. There is Daniel Day-Lewis's award-winning performance as the lead character, Daniel Plainview, of course, but Paul Dano's performance as the other main character, Eli Sunday, is also memorable. Day-Lewis's method acting works excellently here, as he becomes an oilman, who becomes more greedy, desiring more power, sociopathic, and a con man over his successful business career. Dano's performance as a religious extremist also is excellent, perfectly portraying his character's cowardly, hypocritical, and greedy demeanor.
Paul Thomas Anderson's direction and screenplay are another large factor in this film's quality. Despite the movie being almost 3 hours long (160 minutes to be exact), the film never feels like a drag, with every minute-to-minute scene feeling significant and entertaining. The screenplay greatly succeeds in showing Plainview's desire for more power, greediness, sociopathic, and con man tendencies, even without Day-Lewis's performance, and Sunday's disturbing tendencies as a religious extremist are conveyed excellently with the screenplay as well (also without Dano's performance). Anderson's direction also manages to make every scene engaging, with every aspect of each scene being done very well.
I could explain the plot, but I won't, because not only do I not want to spoil it, but it is better to watch the movie to see the plot than have it explained by me.
Overall, this film is truly one of the best films ever made, with its cinematography, score, performances by Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Dano, writing, and Paul Thomas Anderson's direction making it a masterpiece. I've gotta check out more of Anderson's works. I would absolutely recommend this film to any movie fan, as it is worth checking out.
There Will Be Cheers.