The Fallen State of Man According to Upton Sinclair

It is rare that I leave a movie with such a profound understanding of the depravity of man. Paul Thomas Anderson's epic There Will Be Blood seized my attention with the first dissonant notes of its score and entranced me for the next 158 minutes with the tragic story of Daniel Plainview, portrayed brilliantly by Daniel Day-Lewis. Particularly engrossing was the relationship between Daniel and his adopted son, H.W. played by Dillon Freasier. H.W. goes deaf due to an accident and Anderson's harsh aesthetic elements and powerful use of sound bring the viewer into the world of a child, the son of a relentlessly distrustful, driven, calloused, self-made man. Also of note is the performance by Paul Dano portraying Eli Sunday, a fiery young preacher whose charisma and fanaticism leave the viewer unsettled in a build up to a dramatic and shocking ending. Well done, Mr. Anderson. Upton Sinclair would be proud.٭٭٭٭٭
5 Stars