There Will Be Blood
Blu-ray
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Dillon Freasier, Paul Dano
Paramount Home Video
Release Date: June 3, 2008

There’s a reason this movie was nominated and won so many awards this year, and having seen it, I have to agree with the Academy on this one. I don’t know if it’s better than No Country for Old Men, but Daniel Day-Lewis deserved his award for acting; as he chews up the part and spits it back out. I’m mean; name me a bad performance by Day-Lewis. I was watching Last of the Mohicans the other day, and was just as awed by him there as I was here. Of course, he’s not the only reason this is such a great movie. The cinematography, music, not to mention the rest of the actors adds up to make a movie that must be seen.

First thing to say is that this is surprisingly a good showcase for Blu-ray. You might not think that historical dramas are the best thing to show off your fancy new entertainment system, but when you think about it, they really are. All the long sweeping shots of picturesque mountains and rivers and nature and crap look clear as day and take your breath away. The film looks great and there are so many beautiful shots of the California locations that this movie begs to be seen on a big screen in HD. Director Paul Thomas Anderson and cinematographer Robert Elswit have created a visual masterpiece.

The second thing I have to mention is the attention to detail that the whole team brought to recreating early 20th century California. You can see that attention when you look at the special features of this disc. One of the cool things they have is a 15 minute segment that takes parts of the film and matches them with photos and old films of the time showing the actual process of digging for oil and the people who worked it for a living. The other interesting bonus is a half hour silent film from the time that tells the story of oil and the oil men. Both the half hour film and the 15-minute feature are accompanied by Jonny Greenwood‘s (Radiohead’s guitarist, but you’d never know from the score) haunting music from soundtrack. The only problem I had was that this is pretty much all the extras on the disc. There are a couple of deleted scenes, the trailer, an outtake scene, and that’s pretty much it. I would have like to seen some features on the production of the movie, or some interviews on how they got the period right, pretty much anything. Fortunately, there’s only the one version of the Blu-ray version, so at least they don’t make you choose. If you’re looking for the standard DVD version though, you’re probably better off with the single disc version.

And of course I can’t talk about the movie without bringing up Daniel Day-Lewis’ performance as Daniel Plainview, the oil man whose disbelief in God may or may not set in motion the terrible events that befall his efforts to start a well in a poor community. Attention should also be paid to Paul Dano who also turns in great work as a holy man trying to convince Daniel that he needs to give money to the church. Religion plays a significant role in the movie, as the film goes back and forth as to whether divine intervention is the cause of Daniel’s (the character) problem or if in fact there is no God. The film doesn’t give the viewer any easy answers, and makes for a thought provoking movie.

So, this is a really good movie, well deserving of its awards and one that should be seen by everyone. I mean, you need to see it just so you can understand when someone makes an “I drink you milkshake” joke. I wish there was more extras on the DVD, but the picture and sound will blow you away. Now if we can just get Last of the Mohicans on Blu-ray, I can be a happy man.