rated R 

Known for sprawling, ensemble-cast films like “Magnolia” and “Boogie Nights,” Paul Thomas Anderson’s “There Will Be Blood” feels like it was beamed in from another universe. It lacks the spiritual uplift of “Magnolia” and 2002’s “Punch-Drunk Love” and is without the dark humor and quirky characters that populated “Boogie Nights.” No, “Blood” is unrelentingly dark. The humor is as black as the oil that flows throughout the film and the lead character is an unlikable scoundrel who just happens to be the American dream turned frighteningly real.

Daniel Day-Lewis stars as Daniel Plainview, a former silver prospector turned oilman. With his adopted son, H.W. (Dillon Freasier) in tow, Plainview moves through the Southwest, searching for new drilling sites to add to his burgeoning empire. One evening, a man named Paul Sunday (Paul Dano) tips Plainview off to some oil located on his family’s ranch in Little Boston, California. Plainview and H.W. scout out the ranch and do, indeed, find oil, but Plainview’s efforts to subtly snatch the ranch away from the family are thwarted by Eli Sunday (also portrayed by Dano), who doubles the price of the land and demands Plainview help fund his newly founded church, the Church of the Third Revelation.

From there, Plainview and Sunday are at odds, an amoral capitalist against a religious zealot. Plainview faces other obstacles, as well. An accident at the outset of the drilling operation causes H.W. to lose his hearing. Later, a mysterious man (Kevin J. O’Connor) who claims to be Plainview’s half-brother shows up and asks for a job. Each challenge, each compromise, forces Plainview deeper and deeper into darkness, and he drags whomever he can with him.

However, “Blood” will leave those searching for a traditional “good versus evil” narrative scratching their heads. While there are many scenes during which it seems like Plainview may stroke his mustache and descend into comical super-villainry, he never does. Yes, Day-Lewis gives a performance as unsubtle as a raging oil fire, but he never turns Plainview into a caricature. It’s tempting to label Plainview evil and leave it at that, but doing so misses the subtleties that Day-Lewis brings to the character. Moments of sudden violence and bouts of what seem like insanity are balanced with tender scenes between Plainview and H.W. Even when Plainview is at his most despicable, Day-Lewis makes the character sympathetic and understandable—a remarkable feat for a character that should be wholly unlikable.

The character of Eli Sunday is just as contradictory as Plainview. Though not as nuanced as Day-Lewis, Dano nonetheless gives a remarkable performance, outwardly meek with an inner fervor that shines through in most scenes. Eli treads the fine line between charismatic charlatan and zealous believer, and his animosity toward Plainview seems, at times, as though it were motivated more by his recognition of a kindred spirit than any sort of divine righteousness.

Anderson also never lets the viewer get comfortable. The story constantly veers off in surprising new directions and, just when you think you can discern the film’s trajectory, Anderson introduces a sharp turn that throws everything off balance. Even in the most mundane scenes, there’s always an expectation of something terrible happening. But this is a compelling kind of dread, one that causes you not to cover your eyes but to stare rapt at the screen, eagerly awaiting all hell to break loose.
Day-Lewis’ performance as the greedy, unhinged Plainview is only part of the reason for that lingering suspense. Much credit should go to Radiohead’s Johnny Greenwood, who created the film’s score. The music in “Blood” is full of sharp horns and ominous strings. As the film progresses, and as Plainview’s dark nature asserts itself, the score becomes a snarling, stalking beast, just as all-consuming—and compelling—as Plainview.

Speaking of consumption, let’s not forget the ending. It’s a bombastic, over-the-top climax to what is mostly a relatively quiet and contemplative film. All the blood promised in the film’s title flows freely and Plainview, the stand-in for capitalism, and Eli, the stand in for religion, have one final confrontation. Anderson tosses all subtlety aside here and uses the characters to make an obvious, but nonetheless damning, point. Anderson holds a dark mirror up to the 19th and 20th centuries and the resulting image is terrible to behold, but impossible to look away from.