PeaceBang
The manic mind of the minister -- Auntie Mame Meets Cotton Mather. Blogging about Unitarian Universalism, UU Christian spiritual practice, occasional cultural and political ravings, and the inner life of ministry. PeaceBang is the alter ego of a small town pastor serving an historic New England Unitarian Universalist congregation.
There Will Be Blood: A PeaceBang Review
January 30, 2008 on 1:06 am | In TV/Movies/Theatre/Book Reviews |You’ve undoubtedly heard the buzz about Paul Thomas Anderson’s magnificent film, “There Will Be Blood.” I don’t have time to write much about it, but I thought it was a masterpiece.
Daniel Day Lewis is riveting as a misanthropic oil man - he’s in nearly every scene and does an impeccable job creating an unforgettable character that should earn him an Academy Award and cement his status as one of our best living actors — but it’s Paul Thomas Anderson’s story-telling skills that really got me in this one. It’s a wonderful film: totally American yet Shakespearean in scale and operatic in emotion. The first hours can be slow, but the cinematography and exquisitely detailed period set pieces, plus the thrilling score (so fascinating that I had to nudge my friend and say, “This music is SO COOL” to which he whispered back that someone from Radiohead had composed it. Is this true?).
So, I loved it. It was well worth the 2 hour and 40 minute investment. Paul Dano is to be commended for holding his own on screen with the demonically talented Day-Lewis, and I think all preachers should rush right out and see it on the biggest screen they can find. This is not a renter. This is a go-see-a-matinee and take sermon notes work of art.
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Let me be sure I understand this…. you were able to take sermon notes during a film in which Daniel Day Lewis was in practically every scene?
Honey, your powers of concentration are Waaaaaay better than mine! My mind tends to wander when he’s on screen….
Thanks for the film review.
Liz
[LOL! MENTAL notes, Liz, just mental notes! And he’s so demonic in this one that mostly I was pitched forward in my seat going “OH MY GOD” as one unbelievable moment after another blasted through the epic narrative. Believe me, he’s no dreamboat in this one! - PB]
Comment by Liz Hill — January 30, 2008 #
Awesome movie! I didn’t think about it in terms of a minister’s must watch list, but I suppose it is.
If only UUs could find a way to get that much DRAMA in a sermon (okay, maybe temper it a little)
This is one of the best movies I have EVER seen.
Comment by Aaron SAwyer — January 30, 2008 #
My husband and I also had a “nudging” moment followed by a comment on how amazing the music was!
That just futher proves the point: Great music, great acting, great story…great movie!
Yes, indeed.
Comment by Brindin — January 30, 2008 #
“I Drink Your Milkshake” just screams “sermon title” to me.
Comment by alkali — January 30, 2008 #
I just saw it last weekend and was equally rivited. But let’s be clear here: you will come out of the theater feeling like someone reached into your guts and squeezed them hard. This is not a fun movie. But yes, epic, Shakespearian and operatic.
I saw it with my bro and SIL, who both hated it. SIL was really put off by the score, found it very disturbing. She wasn’t mollified when I told her it was supposed to be disturbing.
Does everyone know bout IMDB.com? (Internet Movie Data Base) It’s a great place to go read about movies, and when we came home from seeing this I looked up the viewer reviews (not the critics), all of whom thought it was fantastic.
So did I.
Comment by Judy Welles — January 31, 2008 #
I’ve not seen this yet, but would like to.
However, I’m a huge Radiohead fan and yes, Jonny Greenwood did the score for this. Apparently it is not Oscar-eligible, though, because it was not entirely done specifically for the movie.
Comment by DSticker — February 3, 2008 #