THERE WILL BE BLOOD | The Search for Family
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 18 พ.ย. 2024
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I made a video on this film 4 years ago and planned to re-upload it after some copyright issues, but after re-watching the film I knew I had a different perspective to share on the film 4 years later.
For me, There will be Blood is a masterful character study with 'Family' as its most important theme. So much happens in the film but Daniels relationship with his son HW is the heart of the film.
This video essay digs into all the characters, how they interrelate and how they affect each other. I really enjoyed re-visiting the work of Paul Thomas Anderson again!
![Creating Daniel Plainview [1/2]: Research, Voice, Costume, and Development | There Will Be Blood](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/fAjXDXiHues/mqdefault.jpg)
![Creating Daniel Plainview [1/2]: Research, Voice, Costume, and Development | There Will Be Blood](/img/tr.png)
Can't believe I never noticed the tear at 5:25! Thanks so much for revisiting this masterpiece Darren! 👍🏻
Yup. Just made my favourite film even better.
This probabaly PTA’s best movie
InstaBlaster...
Mind BLOWN!!!
You never noticed that? You look like a fffffffffffffffffffffffffool
I have a theory about Daniel Plainview. The only time Daniel seems to genuinely care about someone who offers him nothing of personal gain is when he hears from HW that a young girl gets beat by her father for refusing to pray. Daniel then goes out of his way to confront her father, publicly shaming him and demanding his word to never do it again. Something tells me that Daniel was abused as a child. Likely by an equally fundamentalist father. Which would explain both his complex relationship with HW and his resentment toward religion: he never could rely on God to show him kindness and always had to make his own success. It’s possible that Daniel set out to start his own entrepreneurship in direct defiance of his father, which is why he assumes HW to be doing the same. He can’t accept HW starting his own business as anything but a personal slight.
This is a clever idea, I agree with this, I bet Daniels past is dark and it definitely comes out with the young girl section.
Great theory. I always felt that Daniel's reaction in that scene stemmed from childhood trauma.
I cried when she hugged him after his baptism.
Notice that he never hits HW. Even when HW almost kills him with the fire, even when HW hits him. Never eve considers it. A violent man in a time period where beating children was common.
Probably why he hates eli so much also
The best theory me and my friends have about what Daniel says to Eli after the baptism and humiliation is "I will eat you".
Because at the final scene he says "I told you I would eat you!".
Ahhhhhhhhhhh, nice, totally missed that, great spot! so happy someone noticed and shared that thanks!
+Darren - MUST SEE FILMS Thanks!! Me and my friend Henrique are huge fans of PTA, we talk about his films for hours and try to catch things like that. But we never dreamed about that tear in the train! That was so hidden, but insightful about the inside feelings of Daniel. The version 2.0 of the video is sharp, clear and right on the spot! Thanks again for all the great work!
I think Daniel tells Eli about the $5000 donation for the church (can see him smile & hand shaking) because after that scene you can listen Eli saying something about it.
Yes I'm aware about the deal at the ranch, but Why Eli has mentioned the $5000 at that moment "out the blue"? Daniel was forced to go to the church , was not planned.
I agree, but he probably said something a bit more natural like "I'll eat you alive you sniveling ass"
One little thing that has always stuck out to me is the similarity between the phrase:
‘Devil in plain sight’ and the name ‘Daniel Plain-view’.
I mean - the guy was literally underground in the first scene of the film.
Chris Serpicø wow I like ghat a lot, great points.
That first scene is the birth of a capitalist.
@@Joseph-ic8xd I’ve always thought of the film as something like a religious allegory, but the religion is capitalism.
That’s a great take though regarding the first scene. The symbolism/imagery all throughout the film is just incredible. The Oil, in particular. It’s like it is lava coming out of the mouth of hell. Yet, everything revolves around it, the baby is baptized in it, etc. I’ve always thought of the oil to symbolize greed, ie capitalism.
@@CipherSerpico It is kinda super obvious when you look at the scene where the oil rig is ablaze at night and it pans in on Daniels face, you see the flames building in his eyes as he watches in triumph. His partner is a good look at the normal person compared to him, kind of confused by Daniels appreciation for the mishap as well as being more concerned for "his son" while Daniel just brushes it off like the asset the kid is.
He also falls from the top and breaks his leg. Just like Lucifer.
Great analysis,. Here are a couple of things that I think are important:
1. It isn't Daniel that actually abandons his son, HW, but HW that abandoned his father. When Daniel returns after many years, he does so in order to get money from him so he can start his own business. In the meantime, his father had descended into alcoholism, isolationism, and depression. While Daniel had checked up on HW through others, HW appears to have been so focused on himself that he had no contact at all with his father for years. Daniel treated HW as his son from the moment that he adopted him. Even if he did so because he intended to use him in his business dealings, the fact is that in all the scenes in this movie, he is loving toward him -- except at the end. Daniel was seething at his son's abandonment of him, at his son's indifference to his suffering. Daniel wanted to achieve wealth and was completely driven to do so, but he also wanted family, and he never did get that. Additionally, it was Daniel who is responsible for HW marrying Eli's sister. Without Daniel, those two would not have married and they were clearly happy.
2. Something that I think is important, and you may disagree with is that HW appears to have become his interpreter's son over the years. The incident that resulted in HW losing his hearing led him to his interpreter, and may have strained Daniel and HW's relationship permanently. If you watch carefully, particularly at the end with all the flashbacks, you see Daniel pushing HW away, but very subtly, you see his interpreter teaching HW, being very paternal toward him; he's at HW's wedding -- but his father isn't!, and he leaves with HW after that final meeting with Daniel.
Gigglesnort yeah, when my mother left me all alone with a bunch of strangers on public transport I was eager to find her and love her again too- are you freaking KIDDING me dude??! Lol Daniel should be glad the kid didn't kill him- not only was he LIED TO his entire life, his foster father USED HIM to scam people into thinking he was a "family man"- ie "human"- and then he threw him away as soon as he was no longer useful- he didn't even write down "hello" or "good morning" not even ONCE!! HW's father was sacrificed for Daniel's first well, then when he tried to "save" his fosterfather from his fake brother (he did it in a totally stupid way but lol, he learned his impatient idiocy from his "dad" after all) he gets betrayed in the worst possible way...Daniel deserves to die alone (although I was kinda hoping both HW and Paul/Eli would gang up together against him...sequel??😂😂🤷♀️)
Anyone notice how Daniel ends up killing the two men who claim to be his brothers? The “Henry” imposter as well as Eli at the end when he yelling to Daniel that they are brothers before he kills him.
Yeah its weird, a last attempt to connect but Daniel has seen RED at both points before he kills the two of them.
Imposter sus
Cain and Abel ish
I think the topic of his brother is a soft spot for him since he never got to see him before he died. So, others claiming to be his brother triggers him.
He is super competitive so he doesn't want peers
Probably many of you`ve noticed that in three consecutive scenes movie shows how Daniel`s wife learns and successively speaks the sign language whilst Daniel never does, in fact he constantly mocks his son for inabbility to speak.
Daniel simply doesn't have the heart and sensitivity to do it. In his machine like thinking, he would have simply wished that HW hearing will eventually return. He wants his full son, the son before he turn deaf. Son was picking up his ways as well. He loved him because of that
You have hell of an eye to spot that tear, man. watch this film 4-5 times. never noticed it. thank you.
I know, I basically gasped when I saw it, strange how big a deal that makes lol.
@@_MUSTSEEFILMS_ could be. I mean at least I don't have eye to look that much detailing. I must change my movie viewing style. Can you describe your movie viewing style?
I watch movies just like anyone else, but when it comes to making one of these video I re-watch a film multiple times, like 5ish so I become very familiar with the story and the scenes and every moment, so its not long until you start noticing things that weren't their on the 1st viewing.
I Noticed all the things Eli said he would do to the devil in his sermon, Daniel ends up doing to him; Kicking him, throwing him into the mud, hiting him and biting him (well threatning to eat him). All this happened after Daniel witnessed the sermon, like it was a blueprint of the humilation he will inflict on Eli.
Late to the party, only stumbled on this cinematic masterpiece recently and I'm hooked. Amazing performance especially by DDL.
This is a really good point, id never put together before, thanks for that. will be nice watching it again and seeing it coming more this time!
2:20 I like how he says, "did you tell me how to "run" my family". Very telling.
True. He probably sees H.W as his only real "family"
Everything about Daniel and his relationship with HW speaks to me in the most horribly intimate way. I've done my best (which of course never stopped me from making mistakes) raising a child from another marriage. Time flies and he's a young man now and even though it often has been difficult, I just hope he will remember the good times. Also he might watch this movie and it might remind him of the places we've been and the things we've done, and how I cared for him at a time he needed to have a father. Thanks for the tear scene, I wouldn't have noticed it, had I watched the movie a thousand more times.
The film must take on a totally new meaning when it parallels your own situation.
DDL's performance is so good it almost feels like the camera is following a real person throughout his life in a documentary fashion, especially due to the large jumps in time. It makes the final line even more poignant.
Exacto
That's one of the reasons why it's my favirote movie, everything about it feels so real.
I find myself obsessed with this movie. It’s slowly going into my top 3 movies.
Yeah I don't blame you, every time I re-visit it, I'm just blown away and it confirms how amazing I first thought it was.
@@realranger6297 funny games (us) and 2001 a space odyssey
Throughout the movie Daniel feeds his son on multiple occasions from a bottle or glass, and each time he does it with he becomes increasingly impatient and aggressive in how he does it. Just another small detail that contributes to the relationship built between the two.
Thats an interesting point, and its funny when he comes back near the end and tried to wine and dine and treat him better than ever lol. nice point!
I think he took the boy out of guilt and his not being able to fix his hearing after the accident added to his guilt so the boy makes him feel bad that is why he gets impatient. Emotions and business are not always compatible.
@@AnnaLVajda tbh we don't know the extent of the relationship Daniel had with HWs father. They were both working within the pit and I would assume they had a similiar level of claim and responsibility over the project, and would bond over that. Much like his relationship with the Ciaran character later on. And you see in the context of that relationship that character also has affection for HW as well. So I think given the circumstance, its inevitable there is going to be some bond between the working men there, even though Plainview might give lip service to the contrary, he is obviously an unreliable narrator (which makes the story so good)
Another thing to add on daniel's character as playing "god" is how he managed to crawl out of that hole and all the way to the city over hills and rough terrain with a broken leg haha
Sounds more like Lucifer, i.e. “The Devil”.
@@CipherSerpico slithering like a snake
When he shakes eli's hand he probably tells him "I will eat you " cause if you notice in the last scene before Daniel kills eli he tells him "I told you I would eat you "
Nice spot!! I'm sure thats it. Im getting a chance to see in in the cinema shortly so will look out for that moment again! Awesome
Thanks man! I really liked your video .you got some great points ! :)
Keith Richards leave it to The Rolling Stones to solve this mystery! Nice catch
Watching now details to follow....I thought he said that in the oil baptism scene, I'ma gonna hurry u under ground eli......I'll respond tomorrow on if he does say it in that scene. I've always wondered what he said
Fuuuuck! The tear is amazingly spotted Darren
I know, its not as bit a deal maybe as a made out, but id never seen that before!! had to rewind it when i saw it! lol
I don't know, I think that's a pretty great catch and is very significant.
i like how he tells Able Sunday how to raise his child, he also loses his shit over Henry being not his blood but hypocritically has no issue manipulating HW into thinking hes family. Its such rich irony
Yeah, Eli and Daniel both tell Abel that he's not a good enough father at different points. Nice mirroring.
The brother also makes Daniel cry. Remembering his family, reading the diary, after kill his "brother".
This is great, yesterday viewing the film I noted that yes there is greed and religion is rather easily dismissed, but that the story is mostly his inability to connect. In some ways it's his fault, in some ways a victim; his adopted son becomes estranged from him due to the accident and his long-lost brother turns out to be a forgery. Even in the last scene Eli calls him "brother", but Daniel does not share that sentiment. Great assessment of his use of words, and yes Daniel and Eli are both manipulators, and in a sense cancel each other, meaning religion and greed are respectively empty in the long run.
Great assessment of the ending. I've never had a problem with the ending that some have, as everything is wrapped up, although not conspicuously. Therefore I find your analysis of his final utterance as spot on.
Of course the great paradox of Daniel which is common in so many that feel alienated, is that he despises those more ignorant and incompetent but also despises the intelligent and competent as they are his competition, thus effectively hating the world.
Although it is the inconsistent nature of desire via neurosis that prevents often a happy life. Or as you say "burdened by our own nature". In saying that, the one potential criticism is that there is no indication Daniel ever tried to have a family, a wife. Maybe that would have been cliched. Or maybe it's just the nature of ambition to be unfulfilled. I think again one can assume possibly failed attempts at intimacy with a woman before. This would be similar to him ultimately being rejected/estranged from his son and being deceived by his brother imposter. There is an ambiguity to it all; that it is partly his fault, but he's also a victim. Every time he opens his heart slightly he is betrayed somehow.
I'm convinced that great movies can not be intentionally created, meaning that it requires a collusion of events beyond the direct control of any involved. Normally it is accomplished film makers that have great actors and a great story with subtext and symbolism, but even then there are so many things that just work out serendipitously and probably more to the point, unconsciously.
Wonderful connection between H.W.'s connection to Daniel's beginning of success and his end. Also great point about Daniel always having a "close associate" by his side, excellent insight, and wonderful language of "close associate" to show Daniel's need for connection yet inability for it to ever be more than an "associate".
Great analysis, yes I think that too many want to superficially look at this story as a tale of greed or capitalism, or assess Eli and religion (which is really a small part), but somehow overlook all the emphasis on Daniel's inner struggle and screen time interacting with his son and his sense of isolation from family. People are also distracted by some of Daniel Day Lewis' great utterances and moments of hysteria, but those truly have little to do with the ultimate meaning of the story. In the end, it could be said that the blood that was sacrificed for nothing is his own.
Thanks man, always great to hear this video reaching other fans of this film, who are clearly giving it a lot of thought. Which it totally deserves because it is a huge movie!
i loved reading this; so well put. maybe you should be making some vids.
@@nontology ong
This movie and Taxi Driver. My top 2 movies ever. Probably seen 30+ times. Still amazed.
Both great character studies. Love them both. Haven't seen Taxi Driver in a good while, may need to rewatch soon.
For me it's one of the greatest movie ever made
It has to be; the craftsmanship, the scale, the performances!
Your analysis makes me want to immediately go and rewatch each one of these covered movies!!!
Thanks Emily, thats probably the best complement. always great getting people excited about this films!
Fantastic Analysis. The train scene always explained his feeling for HW. The way he lingers for so long before leaving.
I know, thats the part you really start to feel for him, especially when he can't turn around and HW is trying to get to him in the background.
But if Mary was Eli and Paul's sister, that makes Eli and Paul Daniel's son-in-laws, not step sons. This is a great review!
Definitely PTA best film to date, it's a film that I could even have seen Kubrick make. Day Lewis best performance, beautiful camera work and a amazing soundtrack by Jonny Greenwood, along with one of the best endings in cinema history. PTA has made fantastic films even Hard Eight his debut film which sadly gets ignored by many but this film towers over all of them. I do have a soft spot for Boogie Nights though.
I actually see Anderson as this generation kubrick, the dept he puts on his films are truly the kind that kubrick did.
Also i loved boogie nights XD
Yeah this for me is his BEST film although PDL might be my personal favourite depending on my mood.
Darren - MUST SEE FILMS PDL?
he means Punch Drunk Love
Varun Jagga Oh, hahahaha, it`s REALLY great, and it SO underrated, but if i have to say magnolia and boogie night are a tie for me, but there will be blood is his best movie.
(also i loved the master punch-drunk love and inherent vice).
This is an amazing film. I love the themes of this film, there's so much that can be said about them. H.W. is essentially the only thing that Daniel himself truly loves, but as he's unable to have connection to him with his hearing loss, that love starts to dwindle. I always found the end pretty heartbreaking as Daniel essentially destroys the last little bit of relationship he has with his son so that he can let him go and become his own man instead of trying to make H.W. like himself, and when he lets go to the only bit of light in his life, he lets himself revert back to his secluded ways, by insulting Eli again, then also bringing up his brother Paul to add insult to injury and eventually killing him as he's had enough of restraining himself like he's done before. But this is my take on the dynamics of that aspect of the film. Your analysis of this film is amazing good sir. Can't wait to see your next video.
Thanks Jared, i totally agree with you here!!
No problem Darren.
Yeah I felt that too, while he never stopped loving HW, the machine, logic, investment business banking brain in him now sees HW as a "investment" that will provide lesser returns, as HW is now deaf, while he still loves him he realises he can no longer raise him to be his narcissistic self image and partner. In many ways, its a blessing to HW to be deaf to such a father.
This is, in fact, the best analysis of this film I have seen to date. What I love so much about this film is 5 people will watch it and there will be 5 different interpretations. I have a bias to my own point of view and this aligns itself most to what I saw in this film. but it covers the most points of the themes that were raised. Beautiful.
Thanks, totally agree because I've seen this film a whole bunch of times and every time it feels different and I'll even forget some of the things mentioned in the video and be surprised by them all over again.
I believe what he whispers to Eli is “There Will be Blood”...and in the end, there was
Wow iv never thought that before, but I love that ideas, it would be very fitting! Awesome suggestion.
Sometimes I wonder if PTA and DDL were even aware of the depths of the masterpiece filtering through them
I think you have the best analysis I've seen of the movie and its themes. The idea that Daniel is cold is wrong. He is rather temperamental, driven by his emotions as well as his ambition. He spills blood not in a calculating way but as an outburst of accumulated rage, guilt, fear, and self-loathing.
you blew me away with the tear that deniel sheds when he leaves HW. That is something that i have never seen before and i have watched this 6 times. I am going to have to watch this video over and over again just to understand it. Good job with your analysis; one of the best on youtube
Daniel speaks earlier I believe - 'There she is' in the silver mine.
Yeah your right actually, I'd like to read the script, wonder how much changed from the original plan.
I can't believe that I never realized that Danial and Eli are related by the end
They're not though. HW marries Mary and Eli and Mary are siblings. Daniel therefore becomes Mary's father-in-law and Eli is HW's brother-in-law but there is no legal term for the relationship between Daniel and Eli.
yessss.... but will there be blood?
Never!
Darren is the third revelation!
PRPHD best comment in this thread
Yes, there's gonna be a whole lot of that shit
That question was answered at the end of the bloody 3 hour movie.
This film is one of the best films in the last 50 years. It truly is a masterpiece. Daniel Day-Lewis is the greatest actor of his generation hands down...I love this film. The hardest scene to watch, is when he sends H.W away...It makes me tear up...I'm a 50 year old man...but I'm still human.
The comment about the single tear blew me away. Fantastic video. I was lucky enough to see this on the big screen in celluloid recently. Thanks for garnering a greater appreciation for this in me!
Thanks Gregory, I saw in a retrospective re-realse recently as well, which was awesome because I never saw it when it first was released.
Amazingly perceptive take on one of my favourite films. So far I've probably seen it around 4 times, never spotted the single tear drop, what great details to behold in this multi layered film. Well done!
So it's been four years. Do you still feel the same about the film? I can't get enough of this film.
Yeah I do. Infact the more I watch it, the more I sympathise with Daniel and how he's really destined to fail from the start but how deep his need for love is but he just can't manage it unconditionally. I also got the chance to see this in the cinema for a re-release and it got so many laughs from the audience, mostly when Daniel was bullying Eli, and they were with him all the way to the end, but when Daniel hit him with the bowling pin, the air got sucked out of the room and it went silent. The audience completely flipped on him at the last minute. So awesome!
@@_MUSTSEEFILMS_ wow I wish that I could watch it in cinema because I never had the chance. I watched the film yesterday and I am so shocked how good it was and how good ddl was and how amazing yout analysis is!!!!! I realy got goosebombs during the video an nearly teared❤️
@@berkansengul5924 I never saw it initially in the cinema, but watched it in a rerelease and it was amazing! I was actually very surprised how funny the film was and how many laughs Daniel got when bullying Eli like it was all a joke, but when the bowling pin hit his head and we hear the noise, the cinema went silent and he completely lost the audience in the last few moments of the film, it was tragic and amazing!
I just wanted to say that this video essay is one of if not the best I've watched. Your editing, music, discussion of symbols and themes, are all really well done. It helped me look at There Will be Blood through a new lens and I really like your ideas on the film.
Thats awesome to hear, its a personal favourite of mine and it was fun digging into how much depth and detail were really in the film. Glad the video helped.
Watched There Will Be Blood & the Godfather Part II back to back one afternoon and was surprised by their similarities. The protagonist by the end destroys any family they have in their search for more power. Great video.
I just did a week of nights and was flicking through Netflix and came across this film, it had been recommended to me the last few years but I never gave the time to watch it until the other night, about 1 in the morning I put it on…it’s now my favourite film. The characters, storyline, sets and the fantastic acting throughout is nothing less than superb
One of the best analysis videos I've seen in a long time. I've had to watch this movie many times to pick up on some the subtleties you touched upon. I never saw the tear drop coming from Daniel's eye and I always wondered if he truly cared for his son HW or was HW just another means to an end for his oil business. I suspected Daniel really cared for his son to a point and it was nice to see from this video exactly where and when Daniel moved on from being a loving paternal figure for HW. However, I did understand Daniel's contempt for Eli because Daniel could see through him. Eli reflected Daniels own shortcomings as a human being and therefore couldn't stand to be around Eli only to eventually kill him...Great analysis for a movie that really makes you earn it's true understanding.
Thanks man, glad to hear this video has reach a true fan of this film, because I love it and aways happy to share about it!
Also note how at the end of the film, Eli pleads "we're brothers!" This not only harkens back to Henry's fraud, but further drives in the fact that Daniel has abandoned all hope of family. Of course Eli means it figuratively/spiritually but it's the final nail in the coffin.
I agree with you this is PT Anderson's masterpiece, possibly the greatest "money vs mammon" tale ever told in cinema!
Yeah totally agree with that final point!! such a great film!!!
great analysis of a film I consider a modern masterpiece
thanks, i know its such amazing film i was really moved by it this time more than ever!
i also like to contrast the religious content in this with where PTA was at just two films earlier with magnolia. Idk if it was growing up, being off coke, meeting Kubrick, 9/11... idk something clearly happened to PTA spiritually because this is an aggressively godless, evil movie. I love it so much
I saw an analyses on TH-cam that the final scene (Bowling Room) was a dream that Daniel had. Eli had not aged a day and the Butler does not react to a dead body in the room.
Hmm thats interesting, Id never considered that before but it does change how you'd see it. Maybe its Daniels worst nightmare, loosing his soon and then it just going dark.
@@_MUSTSEEFILMS_ -yes i finally watched it for the first time a couple nights ago. I did think that Eli not appearing to age at all had a deeper meaning. If you search for a ending of There Will Be Blood explained it’s like a 2 min clip on YT. Was a very good film-DDL and the cast overall were top notch. It’s strange how narcissistic often become CEO’s.
@@mikes455 Hmm that Eli ageing idea definitely is interesting and I can see it meaning more. thanks for flagging it up, id never really put that together and never came cross it before. awesome.
The tear is like a message hidden behind a framed picture. To be discovered in time.
Darren, I just wanted to share my appreciation for the effort and zeal you put into your videos. I found your channel a few years back through the Punch Drunk Love analysis and I've been a fan ever since. Your discipline and generosity to give insight into your process has been a big inspiration to me. We seem to be on very similar wavelengths in terms of taste in film. I too am an aspiring filmmaker who hasn't really dug too deep into the craft but appreciates many of the same works. So many of the films you've analyzed are among my favorites.
Anyway, keep up the good work. Cheers!
Thanks Santino, glad to hear your enjoying the videos. Iv been doing lots of writing recently and working towards a project that ill hopefully make, so will be exciting to share if it all comes together.
I thought I was the only one who saw it more than ten times. I love this film.
Glad this video could reach another fan!
I love all of PTA’s films but I agree that this is his masterpiece. It’s in my top 3 movies of all time. Genius filmmaking and Greenwood’s score is brilliant. Inherent Vice is another one that will grow on you more & more every time you watch it
Yeah I really need to give inherent vice another chance, I enjoyed it but think I was caught of guard with my own expectations, so another viewing might let me see it for what it really is.
Great review! It really is one of the greatest American horror films. The fact that Daniel goes from our courageous hero to then deteriorating into the villain of the film has always been absolutely thrilling.
I know its such and amazing rise and fall. even if the rise is money and family and the fall is mostly emotional.
This is the first analysis to point out the parallel between Eli embarrassing Daniel at his “church” and the end scene where the tables are turned. Excellent review!
Hands down the best film of this century so far
Hard to argue with that, such an amazing masterpiece that I love going back to visit every year or so.
I wish I could upvote this more. It's like I've never watched the film before.
I too failed to notice the tear, thank you for pointing that out.
There was so much I missed here that you clarified for me. The film is so layered visually that thete is bound to be something you'll miss on first viewing that adds to both Plainview's character and the further development. That extends to the score, cinematography, and characters all used to reflect Plainview. I can't wait to see this again
Thanks, glad the video helped and has managed to reach other fans of the film!
Great analysis. I think this is spot on and something that everyone missed when it first came out. He loves HW, but his failure to cope w his disability leads to tragedy.
Glad you liked it, yeah I got side tracked by the capitalism conversion when the film first came out but really its the relationship thats at the heart of the film for me.
MUST SEE FILMS Again, great analysis. One other point regarding the name Daniel. You correctly noted the biblical ties to the name Daniel. I would also point out that the early church fathers prophesies that the antichrist would come from the lost tribe of Dan of Israel. The layers to this film… Worthy of Stanley Kubrick.
Just watched this for the first time in a few years so of course I had to come back to this excellent analysis vid.
Thanks man, Its actually been a while since I've seen it, I'm due a rewatch soon!! So awesome!
this video if fantastic, there will be blood is my favorite movie of all time and PTA is my favorite director of all time. so much about filmmaking to be dissected and learned
from. that was one god damn helluva analysis
Thanks Jack!! I know i did wonder to myself when writing this video if TWBB actually was my favourite film, it really moved me emotionally un-like my first few viewings years ago. I found his relationship with HW much more crucial and central than ever before! Glad you enjoyed the video!!
Darren - MUST SEE FILMS agreed, i've always found his relationship with eli the most moving just because of the way it brings to light Daniels tries motives and way of thinking. love it when you look deeper into PTA movies, it gives you a great opportunity to show how much of a gifted writer and observer you are. props to you man. any thoughts on inherent vice? not sure if you've analyzed that movie but regardless, would love to see you thoughts.
+Jack Draper Yesssss..... I would love to see darrens thoughts on inherent vice. such a unique film that, in my opinion, didnt get enough attention. Darren-please.
+Jack Draper Yesssss..... I would love to see darrens thoughts on inherent vice. such a unique film that, in my opinion, didnt get enough attention. Darren-please.
Ill need to re-visit it, kinda like The Master it left me a little cold afterwards but iv grown to really like The Master, so I'm sure with it being PTA there is more going on than first appears.
One of best American dramas, ever made ...themes Almighty cares about #religion #faith #greed
Fantastic analysis, honestly bravo - the best I've seen on TH-cam thus far.
Can't believe I missed the tear drop!
Thanks Tobias, glad to hear you enjoyed it. Its a personal favourite of mine, so always happy when it reaches other fans of the film. Yeah I'm pretty amazed at that tear too. lol.
Very good analysis, awesomely executed. Your voice is very soothing, and unobtrusive. I believe however, that the tear was a sweat drop...
Your editing is so much better. Your old videos used to be a bit like a recording of an essay played over entire scenes, whereas this feels like a legit video essay. GREAT WORK!!!!
Yeah my old 4 years video pretty much was that and I'm sure thats why copyright had an issue with it too. So yeah I'm glad that its shaping up!
Thanks for this! I think the essay is very well organized -- the major movements/sections (HW and Eli) are clearly defined, which gives the viewer a nice little breather, yet the flow from one to the next is logical and smooth. Well done! And even though I'm a PTA superfan, you made some great observations/points that never occurred to me. I'm ambivalent about your use of text on the screen. I loved when you highlighted certain phrases of sentences for emphasis, like you did with "When I SAY i am an oil man YOU WILL agree." I haven't seen many video essayists blend their own visuals with the film visuals in such a functional way. On the other hand, there seemed to be some moments when the text was just what was being said by the characters and added no additional emphasis, and at those times I would rather have just enjoyed the unaltered image. On the whole I loved this, just figured I'd give a little constructive criticism.
Great thanks Nick, its just a tool that can be used sometimes to highlight certain points and themes for different people! Glad it was making sense most of the time!
Does Daniel really drop a tear while on the train car with HW? I've obsessed over this film for so long and never saw that. Wow.
Yeah definitely because i slowed it down and watched it a few times to make sure lol. DDL is the man!
Something that stands out to me is the ease of learning sign language and atleast having it as a reference to communicate to some1 so close to him- yet nothing
Yeah, it just shows the stubborn lack of effort once he feels he's lost HW.
@@_MUSTSEEFILMS_ yea it also stands out that he cant b happy for him to get married ( something he never could find ) aswell as h.w pursuing oil which most fathers would be proud of ( a scene that stands out is when h.w finds the oil seeping out which lead to the big score he was certainly happy with him then )
@@JasonVoorhees10100 I know, it always felt like Daniel really tried to love him at the start and then after sending him away, it was never the same.
@@_MUSTSEEFILMS_ yea i always felt by the end - it wasnt from lack of communication that he cant love him - its because hes not his true son mucha like having no living brother. No1 in his life to love
@@JasonVoorhees10100 Yeah I reckon once he rejects HW at the end, he's completely lost it, and thats why he crosses the line with Eli, nothing left to live for, now reasons or love, just anger and guilt left.
After watching this and several other synapses, I’ve come to the realization that Daniel was doomed from the moment he adopted HW. HW lit the fire inside him which could not be extinguished, and Daniel lost control in himself, when he lost control of HW. The idea that he could use this boy without any repercussions, to build an oil empire, was something he was not able to overcome. Everyone he faced, he humiliated, and conquered, everyone except his adopted child.
Totally agree. I does feel like he was destined to fail from the start. But just like you hinted at, the story is really a love story about HW and Daniels inability to fully love him unconditionally, but on first viewing the film can appear to be about oil and greed and money, but at the heart, its a deep father and son tale.
I've seen people comment that your editing has improved a great deal for this essay. I heartily agree. On top of that your narration is massively better. You are now projecting your voice in a comfortable way. Well done Darren
Yeah well a few things have changed. I got a new microphone which really helps, I learnt how to balance the audio level which I didnt know anything about and iv being doing a lot of realy short snappy video recently so that helps with my editing style! Glad it came through!
You're a filmmic monster Darren! Bravo! One of the great movies of the past 10 or more years
I don't see Plainview as the evil character weak analysis labels him as. Yes, he kills but he's clearly not a psychopath as he does develop emotional connections to the brother he never got to meet and HW. It's a wonderful, layered film. My favourite of this century so far.
Yeah its probably in my top 10 of all time! love it!
Crazy dude; this makes so much sense. Amazing Work!
to me daniel plainview has always been a sympathetic character, not many reviews agree, apart from yours. I love this film.
sympathetic might be overstating it, but at least more complex,,, people are always looking for straight out villians, which really is a shame because everyone has a story when you dig deep enuff
I always think that when the movie end that Daniel is gonna walk out of the situation by Bribing his butler
Imho this is the Best Movie and performance of all the times. Great.
Agreed. Its so intense, I love coming back and rewatching this film.
Great analysis of the movie while tapping into the underlying familial themes that I've always felt were important in the movie but couldn't put it into words. Gotta love P.T.
Another wonderful analysis. Darren keep it up brother I can't wait to watch your next one.
Thanks man, such an amazing film, really enjoyed investigating it again!
This is the best film analysis I've ever watched. Subscribing.
Good job.
Thanks man, got a new video coming out in a few days, very excited to share!! Appreciate the positive feedback on such an awesome film!
I really love this analysis. I loved TWBB when it was released but I've become completely obsessed with this film. It's perfect.
It really is, I saw it in a re-realse recently in the cinema and it really is a masterpiece.
MUST SEE FILMS My current favorite scene (I say current because it changes) is the moment Daniel is silently looking on the church crowd with such contempt. The acting, the cinematography/framing is so flawless and powerful I can't get over it!
I know thats an awesome. moment, I love when Daniel blesses the well right infront of Eli after he asked to do it. lol.
just stepped into the World of PTA. This video essay opens many perspectives for me, some you mentioned, some were just created inside: i am heading towards your PDL analysis now, thanks man, great research!
I work in the oil industry an absolutely love this film.
Excellent study, Darren.
Yes, this is a masterpiece!
Fantastic analysis! thank you.
One note: Daniel disowns is son in 1927. After that, he degrades for two years in alcoholic misery, before killing Eli during the aftermath of the stock market crash in 1929.
Some brilliant catches in here... thanks for this.
Thanks man, its a well detailed film so was very fun to pick apart!
Brilliant analysis of a beautiful haunting film
Thanks! Yeah its very haunting, it always stays with me for a few days after I re-watch it.
I finally found you sir! I do remember your foley87 channel few years ago and was awestruck at your analysis of this movie and the master. I love this particular movie to death and I seem to get more out of it each time I watch it. I'm glad to see you're back on TH-cam and doing what you do best man. Cheers!
Thanks man! Yeah thats what the channel was originally called back in the day and TWBB was my 2nd ever video, that version got blocked for copyright though so over time iv been re-vamping and upgrading the channel! Love this film!!
Is it me or did you guys notice Daniel is not religious or don't like to practice it.
when Ellie tries to pray for the family dinner and holds every one's hand.
Daniel didn't let him hold his hand and pulls it back. 10:49
Bcuz his main target is to persuade their father to take his land for the oil
Intentional or not this is an essential or literal documentary on malignant narcissism.
Epic film and an all time great but anyone confused or taken aback by Daniel Plainview would benefit from learning about this pathology.
Yeah, I'll be a patreon. Love your dedication and passion. Like a Mississippi blues player going down to the bar and playing for 5$
Thanks Chris! really appreciate any support! Glad you liked the video!
The name Daniel translates to
"The Judgement of God".
The name Eli is the prefix in other
Biblical Hebrew names like Elijah or Elisha
and translates to either "Ascent" or "My God".
So, in the case of this film character...
the name Eli can loosely mean
"I ascend to (be my) God".
In short...
Daniel and Eli are two megalomaniacs
who are trying to "out-god" each other.
Also...
the last scene where Daniel
beats Eli to death with the club
(just before he says, "I'm finished!!")
reminds me of the scene in Genesis
where Cain kills Able with a club
due to religious jealousy in Cain's heart.
🤔🤔
Out-God each other. lol. Thats clever, well put.
Good insights. The thread that runs thru this film is Plainview---and he is ambitious---without limits.The family element is surely there (though I thought Daniel was naive accepting a stranger into his life so easily,for his character's nature,anyway).The similarities & differences between Eli & Daniel make for such character development,also.My question is: were Eli and Paul the same person or really twins? If Eli is pretending to be Paul (in the beginning) it adds much more depth to the story and wow---what writing!
Yeah, I think it would make Eli's character even better and smarter if he was actually pretending to be Paul in the beginning, but he seems genuinely upset that Daniel tells him that Paul is doing better than him at the end.
Great work, I enjoyed this video a lot! The more I watch essays of this kind, the more I feel the need to join in as well...
This is one of the most unsettling films I've ever watched which is kinda funny considering the fact that it is a masterpiece and also that there is like no gore.
Yeah exactly, that character get right into you're head. Iv watched this film loads now and actually grow to sympathise with him more and more and feel like he's destined to fail from the start as incapable of real genuine love.
@@_MUSTSEEFILMS_ I would like to see what transpired between Daniel and his father when he was young that made him leave Fond a lac and never return. I think his upbringing had a lot to do with making him this person, and also the graft that he must’ve done for years by himself deep down in the holes and mine shafts just repeatedly hitting rock with a pick axe. how long was he down there? Did he utter a word to anyone in that whole time? I think this dehumanised him to the point of no return, which is ironic as this inhuman work ethic and insensitivity is also the thing that makes him successful.
@@rossl5908 I know he's a fascinating character and I bet his childhood affected him alot. Theres a video online of Taratino talking about TWBB and saying that Daniel almost has the right to go for everything in the film because of how much he struggled at the start and dug the holes and dragged his broken body to safety at the intro.
I think the only flaw of this film is casting Dano as twins. It never seemed apparent to me and was outright confusing. The rest of the film was sublime. DDL is The Man.
Yeah, I agree, I don't think it would have hurt the film at all if it was just brothers rather than twins and they had a different actor.
I haven't seen this movie in quite a while but I did own it on DVD & I've watched it repeatedly. I do imagine that (lacking up close examples or imagery of father-son bonds/relationships) this movie has probably shaped more than it should what my images are in that department alongside a particular comic book franchise. I don't need to criticize the latter, but I have concerns about the former. Thanks for shedding light on D.P.'s humanity. I have seen him described as being without it & I have usually disagreed. I also personally consider Eli the true villain & that Daniel's agnosticism was destroyed through his experiences in that town & everything that followed. The brother angle was an interesting touch but also highlights how inexperienced I am. Fine by me.
Yeah I agree, I always felt Daniels humanity and even though it wasn't clear, I never saw him as a terrible person, even though he does bad stuff, but that final sequence at the end is where he really crosses the line for me and it becomes almost a tragic tale.
This is how a movie should be reviewed. You dissected the scenes.
I love the ending. I'm sick of people like Eli.
Thanks Armed. I loved breaking this movie apart, with PTA there is always depth and detail, not the same can be said for all films.
brilliant. never thought of it this way. my absolute favorite movie. I need to watch it again as I've changed since I first viewed it. now that I'm a father, it should be a doozy.
Wow i can't even imagine what it would be like to watch as a father, i got a lot more emotional this time watching which i didnt feel last time, it was way more clear to my how important HW was to the entire film than before!
i love the soundtrack
Best FILM I've EVER Seen!!!
Eli didn't become his stepson just because HW married Eli's sister. Other than that, great video
Paul Duno is really so much under rated no ones talk about him but he has given amazing performance in THis movie, The Prisoners & Swiss Army Knive...