But the real question: Did he drink his Milkshake?

One of my favorite films. You did a great job adding context to it. Btw I'm making a video about the Teapot Dome Scandal!

There was also extensive gas and oil drilling in Southwest Michigan during that time period. Few traces of that remain today. One of the most interesting is the intersection of M-51 and Red Arrow Highway a few miles west of Paw Paw which bears the name Tea Pot Dome. A nearby restaurant called Tea Pot opened in 1925 and is still in business. Another restaurant called Tea Pot East opened on the same highway a couple of miles east of Paw Paw. Both are quite popular with locals for their reasonably priced meals. By the way, Red Arrow Highway is the former US 12 which was replaced by I-94 in the 1960's. It is roughly based on Michigan's oldest highway, the Territorial Road connecting Detroit and Chicago. According to a historical marker in Paw Paw there was so much traffic on this highway in the 1830's and '40's that travelers often could not find lodging along the way and had to sleep outdoors.

One of the things about Paul Thomas Anderson's films is that he usually chooses a number of complex subjects to serve as a basis for exploring human nature in terms of character and relationships. While there is so much to make out of the context of There Will Be Blood, still one of my favorite films and top-ranking masterpiece of Anderson's filmography so far, it happens to be just as much a film about oil and faith along the same lines as his prior film Boogie Nights was about the adult entertainment industry of the 1970's and 80's, and his later The Master was about scientology. While each film's subject provides a very rich canvas, highly detailed and mostly accurate and realistic (or surreal) in depiction, the subject usually takes a backseat to the characters, their individual characteristics, their relationships to the other characters and how they respond to characters and certain scenarios from which they are irrevocably bound. A lot of it has to do with the fact that Anderson is following in the path of his hero, the late Robert Altman, who established this particular storytelling and filmmaking structure in the 1970's with classics like M*A*S*H and Nashville. In fact, Anderson was actually 1st assistant director for the elderly Altman's A Prairie Home Companion and offered to take over as director proper should Altman's ailing health intrude during production. There Will Be Blood is in fact dedicated to Altman, who passed away prior to the film's release. In terms of the plot and its message, it's not really just about oil or religion, or even about the capitalist practices - it's more about the ambitions and relationship of its primary competing characters Daniel Plainview and Eli. As Plainview is misanthropic, he's all the more ambitious in seeing oil just as a way to accumulate enough wealth so that he can live on his own terms away from people, who he has very little reason to like (it's worth noting that a number of the supporting characters, with the possible exception of his adopted son and imposter brother, don't seem to make much of an impression on either him or the audience, and when your misanthropic character is played by Daniel Day-Lewis, it's not hard to see why). Only Eli seems to appeal to him because the degree of and commitment to his own ambitions as a preacher seem to match that of Plainview and are founded on the same greed, which Plainview seems to show respect and admiration for, much less so when his adopted son and young business partner H.W. becomes permanently deaf from the practice and Eli's apparent fraud becomes even more evident, their contest for success more openly becoming a battle of wills that reaches an intense, apocalyptic climax at the end with Eli's admittance of his failure and fraudulence, and Plainview's reasserting his dominance as the true champion of the fight with murderous results. While much of that ambition and heated conflict can be found in the fossil fuel industry and fundamentalist religion, it's not confined to those fields - it's evident in human nature as a whole.

I only just watched this classic a few months ago. What a truly captivating and powerful performance by Daniel Day Lewis- spectacular. A great example of the never ending insatiable greed of man.

Wow! I never made the connections. Incredible lecture, as always! ❤

Dude I was just rewatching some of your videos and this popped up. One of my favorite films. Thanks.

Just followed you on Twitch which I never use but I'll try and watch the VOD's you have on your channel. Looks like great stuff!

Another exciting video, happy New Year in advance Cypher.

The Coyote Hills near La Habra were also mentioned and I believe the film's opening scene takes place in what's supposed to be Signal Hill.

Cypher I just want to say that I’m very appreciative of your channel. Even though my historical interests lay more with the Roman republic, late antiquity, and the French high Middle Ages I’m very pleased at how you’ve explained what makes a good historian and how to conduct research. This is definitely one of the best channels in YT and I hope you have success in your field.

Love ya man, you're always great.

This was fantastic. Great video. I’m also from SLO by the way!

As soon as I saw there Will be blood I clicked

This is the best analysis of this movie on KZfaq

Good analysis...Love this film.

Great videos btw. Interesting new conceptual ideas. Maybe I should have continued my education after all.

You all have a good new year !

Great topic. I am so curious about any connections that can be drawn between the protestant work ethic, which American rural Pentecostalism really embraced, and domestic violence. When I type it out like that it seems like an obvious connection.

4:46 Bob La Follette was the Bernie Sanders of the 20’s and I appreciate his service greatly Edit SO MANY OIL PUNS!!!!

always anticipated 🎉

I decided to one day do a Daniel Day Lewis Marathon from first to final movie. There will be blood completely surprised me at how good it really was his acting was so well done. Makes me wonder if Clint Eastwood directed a movie staring himself and Daniel Day Lewis how awesome it would be.

Thanks for this video. Never saw the movie, probably never will, but I loved learning about the history! Also: HI KITTY!!!!

I bet Paul Dano was genuinely afraid because as we all know Daniel Day-Lewis is a method actor.

11:52 where can i find vods for these?

Great analysis of one of my favorite films! The manbearpig episode is what turned me off from being a south park diehard fan. Their "the truth is always in the middle" shtick was quite poisonous for a lot of serious issues.

I read oil back in 2022 and suffice to say it’s right up there with the jungle

OMG I LOVE James Burke! I've watched his Connections series again and again and again. They're so good!

I like the word "portentous" also. Thank you for using it.

absolute banger!

Great video! What you said about presentism, and how it's not necessarily a bad thing in a historical movie, reminded me about one of mine favorite historical movies, which hardly anyone heard about. It's the Polish movie _Szwadron_ (Squadron) released in 1993. It's about the January Uprising of 1863-1864 against the Russian Empire, told from the perspective of a young Russian officer becoming disillusioned. I recently rewatched it and it seemed to me way more relevant to the present, than it was when I frist watched it. Unfortunately. Edit: Sorry for going so far off topic.

Very informative and

Love the James Burke shoutout!

I read the title and briefly panicked as it seemed like you were announcing a spree of violence yourself

Thought you were going to mention the growth of prosperity gospel within the modern Christian church when you talked about Max Weber.

One of my favorites, love ❤️ Daniel Day Lewis

Awesome

One of the best movies from one of the best years for film

I've used that milkshake metaphor numerous times and never knew where it came from. Now I remember.

Man-Bear-Pig drank the milkshake.

Answer : no.

I'd like to read his dissertation.

Can you do this for Boardwalk Empire?

HA!!!! Clamper shirt! I love it.

Great movie, Oil! I think was still more humorous and enlightening

some of it filmed here in Marfa. brother was an extra in scene cut out. actors families liked his rock shop. several other ol west movies filmed here. giant,gud ol boys, dead men walk, . once knew a kid who was penticostal.or maybe last name. in grade school on visit to old homestead, he/family ignored me so walked cross town home.1st grade?

in answer to the final question. no. capitalism is based on individual greed. inevitably, there will be someone who wants what another has. and under capitalism, no holds are barred (a wrestling simile). indeed, cheating (using holds that are possibly deadly) is encouraged.

The best movie of the 21st century so far!!

Just wow.

Yaaaa, OK.....you right

Sadly, I think Propaganda films can often have the opposite effect that their messages convey. The whole point is to convince someone who needs convincing but I personally think they cause people to double down instead. It's like challenging someone's convictions, it's hard to do. I often use a graph that shows global temperatures during the later years of WWII which saw a noticeable increase, and then the sharp decline in those temperatures after the war ended. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand why. And being it was so far back in history that you can not call it "Manipulated" or "Propaganda" I think it's a great piece of evidence to show mankind's effect on global temperatures.

Watching this made me glad that I'm unintelligent enough to enjoy a movie at face value, without delving into the director's deeper meaning 🤔

GOOD MOVIE

There Will Be Blood was one hell of a strange 🤔 ride of a movie with a lot of dark elements.

Youre from San Jouquin County?! We grew up in the same neighborhood basically lol Stockton has a way of sticking on people like that

I saw this movie way back in 07, when I was 20... I know I enjoyed it, and talked about it for a little bit, but the time I saw it in theaters, was the last time I think I watched this movie. Apart from that, I don't remember exactly what my priorities 17 years ago were, so no idea why I never saw it again.

❤❤❤

Let us not forget "There Will Be Brawl" the smash bros fan film.

Will there be a "Based on a true story" review of "There will be blood?"

We have since legalized this behavior

I once woke my brother in a similar fashion to Mr. Plainview accusing him of being an imposter. He guessed the right color of our barn and then flew into an Instant Rage and was not happy at all. What else are brothers for?

There will be fur balls!

👍

19112-1921 1:46

another great episode but can we gat a special cat episeode? she seems cute :)

When the first 10 guys joined together for mutual benefit, at least one of them was that guy.

It's so sad seeing this character because sign language can be a little easier to pick up than one might think. Working in factories with more than two or three languages being spoken taught me whole languages of impromptu signs lol

Is saying DDL is a GOAT acceptable? Either way, I want to experience his process. He turned down Hanks role in Philadelphia, then lost an Oscar to Hanks in that role. He turns down epic roles regularly, simply because he respects the craft so much.

no i think that was just blood, no history

"I will teach you how to spill oil, with my knife!"

You forgot about manbearpig. Nevermind.

Will Durant on the bookshelf...

I'm kind of disappointed that Red Dead Redemption only included a cameo of Plainview, he would have been an awesome side character.

"An Inconvenient Truth" was a film by Larry David's wife about talks that Al Gore was giving about a real and growing issue. It wasn't really "Al Gore's movie"-

You should watch a KZfaq channel called forgotten history. Love to get your take on his videos

only thing i have to disagree with is the south park comments cause south park just never gets old

2:37 💀

Dang, now I kind of wanna know what you think about the series M*A*S*H...

Great breakdown. The parallels to capitalism and environmentalism is very evident, but the discussion on how Calvinism begot Capitalism is even greater. I'm not sure that that was explicitly the desired intent of the story by showing the corruption of the preacher, but it is clearly something that comes through in the narrative almost innately. Calvinism is still ever present in the televangelists who preach prosperity gospels; that God blessed those that gain wealth and the more the greater His love, then asks for sizably disproportionate donations to prove their devotion so He bestows it back 10 fold upon them.

I'm a wheelchair-bound Guatemalan American that can pass for white and I'm genuinely scared of a resurgence of eugenics with the gene editing capabilities which we have today. I know that people don't consider my life to worthy of living. I'm also very concerned about the popularity of eugenics within the youth, especially the various "pills", since it trickle down from in-els to popular culture. The black pill especifically is just scientific racism repackaged with modern internet lingo.

Great analysis, I personally found myself not enjoying the movie. There is some fault in its deliberate pacing, which demands patience from the audience. While Daniel Day-Lewis delivers an exceptional performance as Daniel Plainview, the film's character complexity leaves some viewers like me craving more insight into the protagonist's psyche. Nevertheless, the film's exploration of greed and morality, coupled with its stunning cinematography, makes it a compelling and thought-provoking experience overall.

(MAN IN THE MIRROR NODS HIS HEAD)

This is exactly why I think there’s a good case to be made that Harding was our third worst president.

King Richard has black and pink toe beans

To answer your final question: hell naw.

Mr kitty cat needs more air time😊

How come nobody has a mint condition copy of the Durant books? My girlfriend has a set, and they are just as beat up as Cypher's.

Gore before Moore!

Allegory... Al Gore...? Is there a new conspiracy theory here?

In my opinion the idea of the Protestant Work Ethic has been used as a way to blame the poor for not succeeding materially.

Regarding the environmentalist point. Even though it cam be interpreted it that way it really isnt the film's intention which in truth is obviously a more literal interpretation which you clarified prior. They ARE purely allegorical and I personally like to keep it that way and remain within strictly within the film's intentional meaning. However your comments about Pentecostalism relative to the film were gold since I knew nothing about that stuff. Also this "new historism" you mentioned at the end sounds almost heretical. I'm ok with people using the current events of a time to further garher more interpretation from a movie/series/piece of art etc. But there is always a vision that the artists and writers set forth for you to see and it should be appreciated as it's intentional objective meaning. It's King. Anthing else like your environmentalism point and the iraq war is just extra.

Ugh...global warming.....

2:43 just so you know… this is the same as the current uk government

I didn’t really see any homoeroticism in this movie. I feel that’s something you’d have to go actively looking for.

"South Park is that shitty relative that you have good memories of". Wow, that hit home... But accurately sums up what I feel about South Park.

From a historian to another: yes, I love your video-essays. But that is not the point. You ask yourself: is there a connection between the ways of the american people in the late 18tth c. and the mass shootings of today? But then, you also say that ruthlessness was the only to survive in that jungle (as a reference to the predatory practices of most of the oil tycoons of the era)... yet... aren't those tycoons the "pillars of society", as Ibsen put it? They were the pillars of that society (i.e. the one of the late 18th c.), but they are also pillars of this society, the one we have today - they serve as role models. They are " success" stories etc And you are taught from your very young age that murderers and con-men and thieves are ... role models.... what do you think might be the consequences. in terms of society (axiological terms to be more precise)? But let's take it a step further: aren't those guys the ancestors (therefore, father-figures, educators, role-models etc) of the political elite the US (and the rest of the world, for that matter, for this madness is not exclusively american - quite the contrary. the american way has made it ... glamorous, that is all. The European ways simply acknowledged people like Rockefeller or Ford or their European counterparts - but did not preach their stories as "success stories". Why? because they were common people. It would take time to make counts & thieves out of just thieves, common and simple thieves).? Aren't people like that the very essence and origin of most of the power and wealth of the US political class (to which one should add the sons and daughters of slavers who are now in the US congress).? Conclusion - what kind of society one might get when their pillars are blatant stories of murders and corruption and thievery and childish predatory practices, undisguised by e.g. the European or the Asiatic facade of hypocrisy that covers-up such acts? Does this have something to do with school shootings? What is to be expected from a world where you are taught that a true american does the american thing, that taking your own fate in your own hands, together with a gun, for God has indeed created man but Colt has made him equal, isn't it?

142nd

Comment

This movie is so boring, yet gripping, a bit like Silence, a slow burn or whatever the term is for that. Suppose its to make you feel what the characters feel.

what do you mean he wasnt charismatic? paul dano sold the hell out of that role!!