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I've seen this film so many times, in three different variations now, that I'm not sure where to start. At the beginning I guess. My dad showed me this film when I was around 13, I wasn't quite sure what had happened, but I knew I liked it. But I don't think I watched it again for another five years, when I was in art school. One of my friends insisted on watching it over and over, which I had no problem with. Blade Runner is one of those rare movies, that no matter how many times I see it, it always seems fresh. There's so much to look at, so many details, that you're always noticing new things about the film. We were watching the original cut, the one with the narration, I've seen it so many times, that I still hear it when watching the versions without.
In 1997 I bought my first DVD player, and Blade Runner: The Director's Cut was the very first DVD I bought to go along with it. I watched it quite a few more times in that form, grew used to the new changes. Around the same time I saw it for the first time on the big screen, when they did a revival show, at the best theater in Seattle, the Cinerama. I bought and read the book Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner, a must read for any Blade Runner fanatic. I've read the original novel Do Android Dream of Electric Sheep? by Phillip K. Dick, a wonderful book, that truly only shares the dystopian view of the future and a cop chasing down rogue androids; if you want to expand the Blade Runner universe, again, a must read.
So yeah, I'm a fan. I easily place it among my top five films; if it weren't for The Matrix, I'd call it my all-time-favorite sci-fi film. I believe it's a masterpiece in every sense of the word. Beautifully crafted from top to bottom; from the set and costume design, to the gorgeous, dark photography; superbly written, great naturalistic dialogue, great acting, and top notch direction by Ridley Scott. At a time when everyone was trying to remake Star Wars, Scott and team set out on a completely different sci-fi idea, creating a new view of the future, and influencing a whole new set of filmmakers.
I was ecstatic when the long rumored Final Cut made it's way to DVD. And after watching it, I must say it's the best version of the film yet. It's not drastically different than the Directors Cut, there are only a few different cuts here and there, mostly in reference to Deckard's being an android himself; they extended Deckard's dream of the unicorn, which pays off by Gaff leaving him an origami unicorn at the end; saying that he knows his dreams and what he really is. The other big editing change, is when Zhora is killed by Deckard and she goes crashing through the glass store front; in previous versions it was obviously a stunt-man in a wig, now, it looks like actress Joanna Cassidy all the way through. The most noticeable change about the film is the way it looks.
It looks brand new, no more dirty prints, it is clean and gorgeous like it was shot yesterday, instead of 25 years ago. Some of the effects are slightly improved, not in a "look at me" kind of way like the new Star Wars films, but subtle, keeping with the original look of the film. My only problem with this new version of the film, is that it does pretty much spell out that Deckard is an android himself. I always liked that the original cut left the idea vague, leaving the decision up to the viewer. Scott has taken that decision away. He does that through the unicorn dream and the fact that at one point in the film, you see every androids eyes glow red, which Deckard's do when he's in his apartment with Rachel. Something that may have happened in the original cut, but I always missed, and is now pretty blatant.
One problem I've always had, is that if Deckard is a android, why is he so weak? He is constantly getting beat up by all the Nexus-6's he's tracking down. If the cops went to the trouble of getting an android to do their hunting, wouldn't they want him to keep the advantage of strength and quickness. It's a small quibble, and it gives me something to discuss with the other die-hard Blade Runner fans. All in all, I'm very happy with the Final Cut and the DVD set. It's something I will treasure for a long time, and hope will introduce the film to a whole new generation of fans.
Originally posted on What I Watched Last Night
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Paul Thomas Anderson has been one of my favorite directors for over 10 years now. His second film Boogie Nights was so perfect, so crazily wonderful that I instantly knew he was a filmmaker that would forever be remembered. His follow-up Magnolia was also a brilliant piece of filmmaking, his version of a rambling Altman film. With his fourth film Punch-Drunk Love, it was almost like he was taking some time off, doing something small and fun, it was far less ambitious than his previous films, but also very well made and a fully interesting film. There Will Be Blood is probably my favorite film of 2007, an incredible masterwork, something that I didn't even believe he was capable of. Which in my eyes, moves him among the all time greats, with only five films under his belt. My only complaint is that it takes him two to three years to make a new film, but they're well worth the wait.
Blood began as an adaptation exercise, P.T. wasn't sure himself that he was capable of creating an epic period piece, so he began by adapting some chapters from the book Oil!. Once he realized that something good was coming together, he wrote the entire film. He only saw one actor with the gravity to be able to play Daniel Plainview, Daniel-Day Lewis; and rumor has it that if he had said no, the film would have been scrapped. Let's thank the movie-making gods that it came together.
The film begins with Plainview working by himself deep within the earth, painfully digging out his silver-mine. On a trip back down the ladder a rung breaks free and he takes a long tumble, waking up with a broken leg he must claw his way out to survive. It's a gritty scene that shows us exactly what kind of man he is. The film moves to a few years later, when he discovers oil for the first time; another accident kills one of his workers, which leaves him with an adopted son. Time jumps again, to when he's really coming into his own, giving his already famous "I'm an oilman..." speech.
The film really takes off when he hears about some land ripe with oil and he moves into this small town, buying up all the land surrounding it, building the area's first oil rig and becoming a full blown oil barren. There is only one man that dares stand up to him, Eli Sunday, the local preacher and the son of the first man that Plainview bought land from. He feels betrayed because his family didn't benefit financially from the oil. He is constantly trod upon by Plainview, belittling him, even as he's becoming a well known religious profit.
The film is an amazing character portrait of a man drunk on his own power. Daniel-Day Lewis portrays Daniel Plainview as an incredibly cold man, he has absolutely zero compassion for anyone, except for his son; but he's even willing to throw him aside when it comes to his business. It's sickening, yet completely fascinating to watch as Plainview spirals down into his own lonely world, where only he and his oil exist. The film ends with him so caught up in it all, that human life means nothing.
The film will leave you feeling disgustingly refreshed, and give you a bit of an understanding of why the world is the way it is. These are the type of people that shaped the world, the ones with the lust for power and money, where nobody stands in their way on the way to the top. It's sad, but it's the truth.
There Will Be Blood is a full fledged masterpiece. Daniel-Day Lewis deserved the Oscar for best actor, while he's slightly over-the-top (I. Drink. Your. Milkshake!), he gives a fully realized performance, one that is also endearingly entertaining. Jonny Greenwood's score is so odd that it is a little jarring at first, but by the end, I couldn't have imagined another composer trying to capture the madness. Writer/Director Paul Thomas Anderson, proves that he can work in any genre; this is the best historical epic of the decade. The film is so beautifully made that you can practically taste the dust and oil. Every frame oozes reality, like we're witnessing history unfold before us.
Original written for What I Watched Last Night
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