
"The kind of film that is easily called great."--Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
"An enthralling and powerfully eccentric American epic."--The New Yorker
"Best of the year!"--Roeper & A.O. Scott
A down-and-out silver miner raising a son on his own finds fortune as an oil tycoon when he hears that a small town out West is full of oil. As the well raises their fortunes, it brings conflict and hardships that money can't touch.


Opinion
From the critics

Community Activity
Quotes
Add a QuotePlainview: [mumbles] Abandoned my child.
Eli Sunday: Say it louder... say it louder!
Plainview: I've abandoned my child! I've abandoned my child! I've abandoned my boy!
Eli Sunday: Now beg for the blood!
Plainview: [sotto voce] Please, give me the blood, Eli. Let me get out of here.
Plainview: [aloud] Give me the blood, Lord, and let me get away!
“The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is.” -Winston Churchill

Summary
Add a SummaryA story about family, greed, religion, and oil, centered around a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the business.
A gentleman in the early 1900s works hard, with his son at his side, to become rich off a rich oil supply he uncovers in the desert. His intention is to become as far away from people as he can, possibly including his son. But a fanatical minister of "3rd Revelation" parish begins to get in his way, along with some others.
Comment
Add a CommentInteresting movie about the oil business.
OK, here goes: I'd bet that this will (some day) come to be considered among the best American movies ever. Astonishingly deep performance by DDL and tremendous cinematic vision & creation by PTA.
A great actor doesn't guarantee a great movie, but this is a gem. Superb direction, cinematography, script, music, supporting actors, story. It's a long movie, one that demands full attention and so not for those whose idea of entertainment is popcorn, car chases and non-stop background conversation. Essentially it's a character study, reminding me of Man For All Seasons even though Thomas More and Daniel Plainview occupy very different worlds. Both films are close-ups of men driven, obsessed, endlessly stubborn, willing to give up everything for their goals.
The recent news that Day-Lewis is retiring from acting makes viewing this especially poignant. Not all of his movies were as good but his acting was always special and here it has the support it warrants.
Don't waste your time with this one. 3 hours of pure BORING!!!
Elmer Gantry & Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood are two characters you want to HATE,another would be the character from Apt Pupil. This movie makes you realize how REAL evil is. This is a GREAT movie although I don't agree 100% that oil is evil but the heart of man for sure is evil.
That's funny that this movie is listed as #3 on the top 100 movies of XXI century. Because I believe critics proof how amateurish are they. In my opinion - you definitely see how helpless was director to put any ending , which would make sense. That's interesting because plot is awesome and for the most of the movie you think it is wise and interesting to watch and then director is making fool of yourself and of all critics who maybe shut down their profeesionalism (or maybe never had it)
I think everything about the movie is perfect. The score, the cinematography, and, of course, Daniel Day-Lewis, who embodies the role of Daniel Plainview so completely that you're immersed and unable to look away.
Some parts very interesting. Movie way too long. Lots of surprises.i don't like violence and cruelty. Some very weird characters. Always interested in the oil boom.
Loosely based on the Doheny family of early Los Angeles. Read "West of Eden" for the full story upon which this movie is based.
The rise and fall of an oil man, told with peculiar intensity -- and I do mean peculiar. If you have romantic ideas about family life and pioneer times, prepare to have them overturned, or pass this film by. Since this is a Paul Thomas Anderson film, There Will Be Blood is a collection of stunning scenes, rather than a smoothly flowing narrative that leads the viewer from A to Z. In fairness to the doubters, I did not give it five stars is because the film neglects the later life of one of its key characters -- it is possible to leave TOO MUCH to the imagination. Naming this as Daniel Day Lewis's greatest performance is like naming the highest star, but he is at the top of his game, as is his nemesis, Paul Dano. TWBB's spare, nerve-plucking score is among the best, if not the best I have ever heard.