There Will Be Magic

Paul Thomas Anderson is one of the most original and innovative storytellers in the history of filmmaking. "Boogie Nights", "Magnolia", and "Punch-Drunk Love" rank among my favorite movies, and with good reason. Anderson's voice is distinctive and fresh in the current sea of inane, bland cinema: his unique style as a director and courageous vision as a writer make him one of the few masters of modern film.

It should come as no surprise, then, that his latest effort, 2007's "There Will Be Blood", is a masterpiece of contemporary American storytelling. Based on Upton Sinclair's 1927 novel "Oil!", it is the story of Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis), a self-made entrepreneur on a quest for fortune as an oilman, and the people he encounters in his narrow, merciless path -- notably his son (DIllon Freasier), his one pride and joy, and a young minister (Paul Dano) who entices him to the deal of a lifetime. It is an old story told with great innovation and dedication, helmed by Anderson and a creative team of artists that are pretty much damn-near perfect.

Firstly, the Oscar-winning cinematography by Robert Elswit. This man's beautiful work is soaked with a divine sensitivity to the nuances of the script. One moment he can present us with these massive, expansive shots of arid golden desert, or sumptuous emerald sea, or frightening, breathtaking fire enveloping an oil rig. And the next moment, he can fix his camera on Day-Lewis's face, bringing to light all the buried malice concealed in his brow, or the lines of greed forming around his mouth. Erica Jong once wrote, "I am a vessel for a voice that echoes." In the case of "There Will Be Blood", Elswit's photography is the vessel through which the voice of the entire film resonates. His work here is pure poetry.

Secondly, the music, by Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood. At times spare and starkly simple, at other times lush and grand, and peppered with Brahms and Estonian composer Arvo Part, Greenwood's musical fantasia is breathtaking. He clearly shares Anderson's unique vision and not only serves that vision well, but elevates it to another level totally. I can't recall ever being so moved by the music in a film. Greenwood has his fingers on the pulse of the movie's core and has constructed accompaniment to present it in the most highly original and poignant of ways.

Then, of course, there are the performances.

Day-Lewis, in his second Oscar-winning role, continues to cement his title as our greatest living actor. I love watching this man work. He could read the Dunkin' Donuts menu and make it riveting. His Daniel Plainview is a carefully constructed and impeccably executed force of nature. Day-Lewis has an uncanny sense of timing, and he knows the perfect places to slowly, often eerily, pull back the layers of the character. Our perception of Plainview in the opening of the film is a complete 360 from our perception of him in the end of the film, and the masterful revealing of his transformation and true nature is both natural and disturbing. With his gruff, basso timbre, or a slight squint of one eye, or trembling tapered fingers drunkenly raising a cigarette to his lips, Day-Lewis finds the perfect balance to winningly portray Plainview's monstrosity...as well as his humanity.

Paul Dano (so good in the unsettling "L.I.E." and the entertaining "Little Miss Sunshine") is a revelation. The soft hilly planes of his cherubic face and the slightly effeminate lilt to his voice lend themselves flawlessly to his interpretation of the fanatical young minister Eli Sunday. The unassuming Dano is a surprisingly dynamic presence on the screen, and he fills his Eli with just the right doses of religious extremism, moral piety, and plain old-fashioned rage. There is a scene in the movie where Eli "heals" a member of his congregation of her crippling arthritis. Watching Eli's monologue, I was simultaneously mystified, inspired, and absolutely scared witless. Dano's characterization is just as thoughtful and timing-sensitive as Day-Lewis's. I never thought it possible that another actor, of any age or caliber, could steal a scene from Daniel Day-Lewis, but Dano manages to do it more than once in "There Will Be Blood". This is especially commendable when noting that Dano was originally cast in a much smaller role in the film. Anderson decided to recast the original choice for Eli and chose Dano instead. This means that the young actor had four days to prepare his role. Day-Lewis, by comparison, had a year. That is no small accomplishment.

The supporting cast is equally good, but worth a special mention is Dillion Freasier as Plainview's son, H.W. This kid is not an actor, which made him an excellent choice for this pivotal role. Freasier uses his innate innocence and vulnerability to give a hardened movie a very human backbone. H.W. comes to represent all that Plainview has lost. Namely, his goodness.

"There Will Be Blood" has some truly awe-inspiring scenes, most of them between Day-Lewis and Dano. There is such a heightening power struggle between the characters -- a struggle that keeps changing hands between the two -- throughout the film that by the last half hour or so, the invisible power is a tangible thing hanging in the air over the characters. It almost becomes a third character that reaches out through the screen and slaps you hard across the face. The Daniel-Eli "Milkshake Scene" has already become a classic. And rightfully so. The last part of the film, the movie's coda, turns a brutal story into something much more difficult and terrifying (and surprising): a darkly comic finale.

But it works. It all works. So well, and on so many levels. On a very basic plane, it's just damn good storytelling at its finest. On a symbolic level (uh-oh, I can feel Metaphor Hag entering the room), "There Will Be Blood" can be representative of so many current (and most of them timeless) themes. Capitalism versus religion -- and the often uneasy marriage between the two. Corporate greed and colonialism. Faith and disbelief. Fathers and sons. War for oil in the name of "liberation". Any of these things sound familiar?

Paul Thomas Anderson and his gang have created an instant classic.

Now -- Daniel Day-Lewis, can I drink your milkshake?