The Blog War Continues-There Be Blood (Clever Double Meaning)

That's right it's a blog war!

After you are blown away by me, you can read my BFF's not as awesome response here.

It’s hard for me to come to any concrete conclusions about this film because part of me is still thinking "wtf?" from the last fifteen minutes. Just about every actor in this movie blew my mind. I didn’t think that films were capable of the type of cinematography that TWBB showcases. I was made to feel like I was covered in oil and had grown a mustache. However, I still can’t consciously say it was the best film of the year or it changed my life. If anything, it bothered me on a lot of levels. I could go on about the father-son relationship, the switch of narration from Sinclair’s book or how long Daniel Day Lewis’ torso is, but I won’t.

Daniel Plainfield is one of the most vividly disturbing/compelling characters I have seen on the screen in some time. I wouldn’t go as far to say I have a soft spot for him but every now and again there is this dichotomy of an evil vengeful man and a sad guilt-stricken man. There is a part of Daniel that seeks redemption but when he does get it, it comes in the form of unwillingly accepting Jesus into his heart in exchange for land. Because he is a greedy, angry man, Daniel’s guilt for abandoning his child will never fully diminish.

After two and half-hours, Paul Thomas Anderson seems to give up on the film, plot and characters. Daniel is no longer fighting within himself over who he is. Suddenly he is a complete and total bastard. He tells his grown-up son (who I didn’t believe for a minute) that he is actually an orphan and then bashes Eli Sunday’s head in after reminding the pathetic preacher that he drinks his milkshake. "I drink your milkshake?" Excuse me? Remind me not to give my academy vote to Anderson for best screenwriting. Did they even have milkshakes back then? They didn’t even have cow’s milk just goat milk.

Daniel’s relationship with Eli Sunday is the most compelling of the film and yet it could have been so much more amazing. With Johnny Greenwood’s epic-creep-you-the-fuck-out soundtrack, I expected something absolutely prolifically satanical to happen. Ok, maybe no crucifix up the vagina but with Eli’s crazy preachin’ I did have higher expectations. But just when things are getting good, he jumps on a train. Sure his head might get bashed in at the end but I like to pretend those scenes never happened, as they were completely POINTLESS.

I would like to go back to the scene where Daniel Plainfield and his half-brother are laying on the beach, reveling in their accomplishments. They both lie their heads in the warm sand and close their eyes. Daniel sighs and you almost get a hint of a smile from his lips. Then there is a loud "plop!" Daniel looks up and the camera takes his eye view. From the sky comes a large dark green reptile and bounces off his forehead. Heavy droppings of green frogs followed by loud "ribbets" fall on Daniel and his brother. The two men stand up and look at each other in awe. As a frog slides off Daniel’s head and onto his shoulder, he looks at his brother and says, "I drink your milkshake." THE END.