There Will be Blood: Cam Haber

When watching the movie, There will be Blood, two important aspects of the film seemed rather intriguing to the eye. The first being the drastic emotional changes of the character Daniel Plainview. Daniel is seen in the beginning as a hard working “family man” but later is corrupted by the temptations of greed and fortune. The other aspect of the film I found rather interesting was the story’s ability to flash-forward in time through out the film. The film starts in the year 1898, from Daniel’s humble beginnings. He is a low waged hard working minor just trying to support himself in the old west. When he comes across an orphaned baby in a basket, who he names H.W, we see Daniel as a warm welcoming character in the early stages of the film. The next time frame is set in 1902 and we see that Daniel has become an independent owner in the oil mining business. He is still kind and a good father to H.W, but this is the first we see of his development into a businessman. The next sequence skips to the year 1911. Daniel has become a successful oil owner and is currently digging among a small town in California named Little Boston. In the 1911 Sequence we first see the selfishness of Daniel after his son H.W becomes deaf in an oil mining accident. Daniel believes the best thing to do is to stay with his business send HW away to seek special help. So he selfishly abandons H.W on a train heading San Francisco in hope for better treatment. With his son gone Daniel’s obsession with profit and ownership causes him to become mad with rage, and he treats his business like it is the most important thing to him. While H.W is away Daniels actions consist of threating other businessmen, killing his imposter brother, and beating up Eli. The only hope for Daniel is the warmth and happiness of his son, which is no longer seen by H.W through out the remainder of the film. This leaves Daniel in a state of depression and frustration. The last sequence skips to the year 1927. His relationship with H.W is no longer after H.W tells Daniel that he wishes to start his own oil business. Daniel now looks at H.W as a competitor and a trader and no longer a son. He calls H.W a “Bastard from a basket.” Concluding his last happy relationship. From here on out Daniel lives in his home isolated from society, mad, and depressed. The effects of his greed and wealth turn Daniel into a crazy alcoholic maniac and the movie ends with Daniel in this state.