I just finished watching There Will Be Blood. I'm intent on that mission to catch up on my movie watching and I figure I'm still two years plus behind. I stall...how to describe my thoughts and feelings about this newest PTA endeavor: mammoth, as ever - his movies are a filmic definition of "SCOPE." I was just reading all the reviews to see if anything anyone could say about this film would put a finger on how I feel about it. In every review, no matter how glowing, the word "flawed" kept coming up. And yet the relentless four-star ratings. This film is proof that a work doesn't have to be perfect to be good. However, I'm not entirely convinced that this is a good movie.

I couldn't look away from it, even though it was so effing long it took me to sittings to finish it. But it was more like a train wreck than an, "Oh, I loved that movie and every scene had me entranced" experience. I can't tell you that I actually liked it. I'm not entirely sure I didn't like it either. Grrr. There is no doubt that Daniel Day-Lewis is, as ever, unchallenged as the best actor of our time. The only other who comes close, in my opinion, is Johnny Depp, in the ability to completely become a character.

Again I stall. The Daniel Plainview character states more than once, "I believe in plain speaking." Uh Huh. And you should always trust people who say "Trust me."

The score, composed by my new hero Jonny Greenwood, is maybe my best answer to this question of how do I likes it: not since The Exorcist has a film's music so constantly kept me on guard, off-balance, or tense for what was about to kick me in the face. It served more as sound effects than any conventional definition of music, and reminded me constantly that I should question every word and every motive and every emotion in every scene.

If you like that sort of story - enjoy this film. If you don't like it, but you want to experience fine filmmaking or masterful acting - study this film. If neither of these pleases you - skip this film. It's too brutal to withstand otherwise and it feels sometimes like yours is the blood the title calls for.