Six Lewis clips

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I agree with Rope of Silicon's Brad Brevet's belief that the Best Actor Oscar is pretty much Daniel Day Lewis's for the taking. If any one scene from There Will Be Blood is the clincher, I suspect it's probably the one called "I've Abandoned My Child!," which Brevet has posted along with five others.

Lewis shows us Daniel Plainview's reluctance to play the part of a sinner, and then his irritation at the goading from Paul Dano's Eli to really and truly atone before God, and then his increasing rage at Eli's turning up the emotion and the frenzy. The comes an odd synthesis of pleading and snarling -- half confession (possibly sincere on some level), and half "I'll get this sanctimonious preacher one day if it kills me."

In his introduction of these six Blood clips, Brevet cautions viewers to watch them in sequential order -- as I do also. Be sure, in particular, to watch "I Will Bless the Well" before "That's It, Ladies and Gentlemen."

These scenes contain no spoilers. They're morsels, samples, hors d'eouvres. Except for "I've Abandoned My Child!," that is. It contains a cupcake-sized spoiler. Okay, a spoiler the size of a McDonald's Happy Meal. Change that -- it's the size of a regular small cheeseburger without fries or coke. All it really tells you is that Plainview is a fierce conniving monster, but then you knew that going in...right?

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on December 28, 2007 at 6:28 AM

comment #1

kkfun says ...

Yes, it's ture!!!

Recently, quite a few celebrities were said to appear on the millionaire luxury club "Meetrich.com". OMG!!! Are these famous guys fond of internet dating for now?? Maybe they are indeed so rich that they feel boring sometimes to need new things?

Posted by kkfun at December 28, 2007 7:48 AM

comment #2

arch451 says ...

I normally don't like to watch clips before I see a movie, but since I don't know when the fuck this movie is coming out where I live I will take a peek.

Posted by arch451 at December 28, 2007 8:32 AM

comment #3

dre says ...

You never know. I always thought Daniel Day should have won for Gangs of New York but The Nose ended up taking it home this year. I thought this was going to be the year Depp was honored career-wise more than the individual performance but the lack of a SAG has my eyebrows raised. Looks like Danny boy might have it

Posted by dre at December 28, 2007 9:59 AM

comment #4

BNick says ...

Seems like his biggest competition might actually be Clooney, based on the precursors.

For me there's no comparing the performances. DDL totally inhabits the role, he haunts the movie. His presence is simply monstrous. The Brody performance in 2002 was more Oscar-friendly than Clooney's is this year, making DDL harder to knock off, IMO.

Posted by BNick at December 28, 2007 10:27 AM

comment #5

Devin Faraci says ...

I think Plainview IS sincere when he confesses. And he hates it. It's what sends him over the edge in regards to Eli. He was willing to get up there and look the fool to get what he wanted, but he wasn't willing to get up there and feel what he did.

Posted by Devin Faraci at December 28, 2007 11:15 AM

comment #6

BurmaShave says ...

Ciaran Hinds is in this movie? Awesome. One of the best character actors working today, and the saving grace of MARGOT AT THE WEDDING.

Posted by BurmaShave at December 28, 2007 11:25 AM

comment #7

Glenn Whipp says ...

Here's what Day-Lewis told me about the conversion scene when I interviewed him:

"My belief was that some part of him understood very clearly that he had abandoned maybe the only person he had true affection for, and some part of him may have even, if only perversely, enjoyed the catharsis of admitting to that. Obviously in EliÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s presence, thatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s what makes it a dirty thing, a dirty secret. Yet somehow, thereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s some feeling in the congregation thatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s confusing, I think. ThereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s a real love there. A real sense of good will coming toward him. Which is something he wouldnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t know how to begin to absorb. But he feels it. But youÃ¢â‚¬â„¢re right, on a primal level, heÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s angry that heÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s forced into this admission (laughs) in the presence of the town.

And that posted clip is just a taste ... the scene is amazing, particularly the way it ends.

Posted by Glenn Whipp at December 28, 2007 11:55 AM

comment #8

Geoff says ...

He should win the Oscar.

That scene definitely shows his need to just get up there and go through Eli's bullshit...but at the same time it really does strike a nerve. Plainview, in my mind, becomes more monstrous as the film progresses....but there's still some of his soul in this scene.

But also...SLIGHT SPOILER I GUESS....

Eli begins to slap him and Daniel pretty much starts to smile and take it and make a mockery of that "demon exorcising". And then there's that moment after when he says something to Eli we don't hear. He HATES Eli.

It's brilliant acting.

Posted by Geoff at December 28, 2007 1:20 PM

comment #9

BNick says ...

Geoff, I loved that moment after the ceremony, too. When I saw it, I wondered if it was ad-libbed and if DDL had just menacingly walked over to Dano and started growling something at him. Whether or not he was in character, Dano's reaction was appropriate.

Posted by BNick at December 28, 2007 1:31 PM

comment #10

Glenn Whipp says ...

Dano just shrinks. It's not in the script, but I don't think it was ad-libbed, either. The way PTA captures Day-Lewis walking over to Dano, shaking his hand and saying something to him ... it's so beautifully staged, happening in the background just as the congregants are about to come streaming down the aisle to welcome Plainview as a new member. If push came to shove, I'd have to say it's my favorite moment in the movie.

Posted by Glenn Whipp at December 28, 2007 1:38 PM

comment #11