Movie Review: “There Will Be Blood”

This movie is based on a novel by muckraker author Upton Sinclair. The plot centers around the blind and completely immoral ambitions of Daniel Plainview, an imaginary oil driller in early twentieth century California. Plainview is enticed to drill for oil in a very remote area by a local Pentecostal lay pastor, Eli Sunday. Sunday and Plainview’s bitter rivalry force both to come to terms with their life long self deceptions. As per Hollywood usual, the entrepreneurs of the story are portrayed as being almost completely profit driven, while the local church people are cast as ignorant misguided simpletons. Daniel Day-Lewis (Plainview) and Paul Dano (Eli Sunday) portrayal of their respective characters are certainly worthy of an Oscar nomination.