As we close in on the end of our mission, there are films that are out there that are on my must see list and that is certainly true in regards to today’s film. One of the best actors to come out of the late 20TH century and well in the 21ST is Daniel Day-Lewis (The Crucible) and for today’s film we are watching There Will Be Blood which is based off of the book Oil! by Upton Sinclair. Daniel Plainview (Lewis) is a semi successful oil prospector who is looking for that piece of the pie that will set him for life. One day a young man by the name of Paul Sunday (Paul Dano) gives up some information on oil in California and it kicks off this story of family, religion, hatred, oil, and madness. The film also stars Paul F. Tompkins (Hell And Back) as Prescott, Dillon Freasier as H.W. Plainview, Ciaran Hinds (Bleed For This) as Fletcher, David Willis (The Good German) as Abel Sunday, Sydney McCallister as Mary Sunday, Kevin J. O’Connor (Peggy Sue Got Married) as Henry, David Warshofsky (Now You See Me) as H.M. Tilford, Hans Howes (Death Warrant) as Bandy, Russell Harvard (The Hammer) as Adult H.W., and the film was directed by aul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights).
Right from beginning to end, Daniel Day-Lewis is intense and he commands the screen like any great star. Can you believe that right now he has only 29 films to his credit? He’s definitely one of those actors that doesn’t need to star in five films a year which means he chooses his roles and this was made for him. He was definitely the star of the film, but he’s not the only one who shined in the film. Paul Dano at first is a little confusing because he is first known as Paul Sunday, but then all of a sudden he is known as Eli Sunday. I didn’t realize that he was playing two different characters, but his performance as an early version of a evangelist was brilliant. It’s a constant war between Eli and Daniel throughout the film, but it all boils down to greed on both their parts. The film was excellently written as the story flows nicely, but there’s more than just oil. There’s the family angle between Daniel and his son H.W. that is a big factor as well. One of the coolest scenes in the film is the oil well that burns up in flames which could have been looked at as a disaster, but is ultimately a blessing. If you want to see what acting is all about then you go on to Netflix and you check out this because class is in session and Day-Lewis is ready to teach. I am going to give the film an A for a final grade.
I could have saved today’s film and watched it on Wednesday for Ass Whoopin Wednesday, but there was nothing else on that I wanted to watch. So for today’s film, I chose to watch the third and final film in the Taken trilogy in Taken 3. In the third film, things seem to be going as smooth as usual in the life of former government operative Brian Mills (Liam Neeson). That is until he gets a phone call to meet his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) for some bagels and instead finds her dead in his apartment. The police believe that Brian is the killer and now it is up to him to fin who the real killer is and clear his name before it’s too late. The film also stars Forest Whitaker (The Last King Of Scotland) as Franck Dotzler, Maggie Grace (Faster) as Kim, Dougray Scott (Mission: Impossible II) as Stuart St. John, Sam Spruell (Snow White And The Huntsman) as Oleg Malankov, Don Harvey (Die Hard 2) as Garcia, Dylan Bruno (Saving Private Ryan) as Smith, Leland Orser (Taken Trilogy) as Sam, David Warshofsky (Captain Phillips) as Bernie, Jon Gries (Napoleon Dynamite) as Mark, Jonny Weston (Insurgent) as Jimy, and the film was directed by Olivier Megaton (Transporter 3).
I still have yet to watch the second Taken, but I am saving that one for Ass Whoopin Wednesday and hopefully that one is better than this one. This film wasn’t bad and you have to love the idea of Brian Mills being the one chased in the film instead of him always chasing others. My only issue with the film is that it wasn’t that exciting of a film like how the first film was. Who we think is the bad guy in the film isn’t even that cool of a bad guy either. He looks like an idiot and he hides in a hotel even though he is supposed to be so dangerous (a frustrating Russian mobster). I definitely liked the twist the film had as I had a feeling in the beginning, but with the more the film went on I sort of forgot about the person being a suspect. Forest Whitaker was as amazing as he usually is and definitely a highlight for the film. The action in the film in my opinion was pretty decent, but it just doesn’t top that of the first film. While there were some pretty good chase scenes like the highway chase, there wasn’t enough to boost the wow factor in me. By the this film, I think it’s safe to say that you should know what to expect by now. The only thing different is that the formula has changed just a tad and Liam Neeson is Liam Neeson.I think it’s also safe to say by this film that he is a really bad parent. I am going to give this film an C+/B- (can’t really decide yet) for a final grade.
365moviesin365dayschallenge 