The Big Picture: The 25 Best Movies of the Century – No. 2: “There Will Be Blood”

Hosts: Sean Fennessey, Amanda Dobbins
Release Date: December 26, 2025

Episode Overview

In this special installment of “The Big Picture’s” “25 for 25” ranking series, hosts Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins dive deep into their pick for the second-best film of the 21st century: Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood. This episode is a rich, lively, and thoroughly analytical discussion that explores the film’s cinematic achievement, thematic resonance, and enduring legacy, with candid personal reflections and plenty of trademark banter.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why “There Will Be Blood”—and Why Not #1?

• The hosts comment on the anticipated placement of There Will Be Blood near the top of their ranking, noting it was “bumped up from three to two” and, while it could be Sean's personal number one, this is a collective list.

  “These are only vibes. There's no greater vibe than There Will Be Blood. To me, if this were my list alone, this would be my number one.” (Sean, 02:17)

• Amanda affirms that strict rankings become less meaningful at these upper echelons, where discussion is “swimming in pure cinema” (02:01).

2. Production, Adaptation & Notable Fates

• The film’s evolution is summarized:

  • Cinematography by Robert Elswit, score by Jonny Greenwood.
  • Modest financial success; major artistic leap for PTA after a five-year hiatus.
  • Loosely based on Upton Sinclair’s Oil!
  • Paul Dano was cast as both Paul and Eli Sunday after the original twin actor was fired, resulting in a pivotal last-minute recasting (02:32).
  • Dylan Frazier, who plays H.W., was a non-actor plucked from a Texas school, never acted again (03:55).

• Quick plot synopsis is given for newcomers (04:15).

3. Major Themes: American Ambition, Capitalism, and Religion

• The hosts examine the film’s mythical status and its collision of “the two twin powers of America”: capitalism and religion.

  “There's money and industry and then there's God and religion and the clash.” (Sean, 05:08)

• Amanda observes that Anderson is “cannibalizing all that came before him,” making his own grand Western that also tweaks classic cinema—”not just a grand treatise… but a really discomfiting, like, fucked up, gets under your skin movie about a person who lurks in all of us” (05:35).

• The film’s “alienation” and weirdness set it apart, despite mining the traditions of Ford, Griffith, Huston, etc. (07:19).

4. Historical and Political Context

• Sean wonders if the film’s focus on oil and power is a deliberate echo of post-9/11 anxieties about energy and foreign policy (08:00).
• Paul Thomas Anderson’s refusal to explain his movies post-Blood is cited as deepening the film’s interpretive possibilities (09:10).
• The episode places There Will Be Blood as a foundational myth within a “trilogy about America” on their list, together with 25th Hour (the present) and, as revealed, Blade Runner 2049 (the future) (11:15).

5. The Character of Daniel Plainview & Masculinity

• Sean calls Plainview “the American character”—an embodiment of ruthless drive and expansionism (12:19). Amanda discusses how masculinity is central, noting, “this is a very, very male movie” (13:01).

• They praise PTA’s choice to withhold Plainview’s origin story:

  “One thing that I find so rich about Daniel Plainview is we don't get a flashback...The movie is not interested in that. That would be a little bit too simple.” (Sean, 13:56)

• Amanda notes the emotional ambiguity in Plainview’s relationship with H.W., especially in moments of tenderness (15:53).

6. Fatherhood, Sons, and Relationships

• The film is dissected as both a story about America’s original sins and a very personal tale of parenthood and loss.

• Emotional high points include the derrick explosion and H.W.’s subsequent deafness (17:39):

  “I burst into tears last night. The scene when HW is on the derrick and it explodes...and then the sound cuts out...and he says, I can't hear my voice. And then when he gets up to leave...that's crushing.” (Sean, 17:39)

• The abandonment of H.W. is called “really, really, really upsetting,” with the writing communicating Daniel’s conflicting priorities (19:05).

• Discussion of Anderson creating from both a son’s and (in later work) a father’s perspective (22:12).

7. Filmmaking & Performance: “Total Cinema”

• Amanda calls the movie “quite good” and Sean labels it “Total Cinema, baby” (24:00).

• Jonny Greenwood’s score is highlighted as elevating the film to iconic status.

• The hosts revisit Daniel Day Lewis’s method performance, calling it the “performance of the 21st century” (24:52):

  “He won an Academy Award for this performance. I believe it is the performance of the 21st century.” (Sean, 24:52)

• They comment on how DDL’s seriousness paved the way for cultural jokes about method acting, comparing his era with newer targets like Jeremy Strong (25:31-25:56).

8. Ambition, Gender, and the American Ideal

• A brief gendered discussion on how ambition is imbued differently depending on time and gender.

  “There's something expectation wise about, like, ambition and, and, and chest beating that is communicated to you...that I guess was not built in for women of my age. And so I feel freer.” (Amanda, 28:19)

• Daniel’s relentless drive—paired with an inability to connect or find satisfaction—unpacked:

  “He does have a few moments where he's kind of more vulnerable...But the men will build an oil empire instead of going to therapy thing.” (Sean, 29:25)

9. Source Material, Iconic Lines, and Paul Dano

• PTA’s synthesis of real history, literature, and film is celebrated.

• The “I drink your milkshake” line is called “one of the first memes,” a rare 21st-century line at the level of “here’s looking at you, kid” (32:23).

  “You see the exact shot of the bowling alley.” (Amanda, 32:26)

• The line’s origin in congressional testimony is noted as masterful writing (32:48).

• The hosts defend Paul Dano’s performance against recent public criticism, arguing that his character must be “sniveling” and fundamentally unable to match Plainview’s brute force (34:18–36:33).

10. Visuals, Tone, and Comparisons

• The film conveys “doom” not through darkness, but in “broad daylight” on vast Western vistas (37:27).
• Comparisons drawn to Barry Lyndon, Citizen Kane, and especially Chinatown, referencing Manohla Dargis’s classic NYT review (40:58–42:29).

  “Any movie about history is invariably a movie about movies. And this is very much like a—I have synthesized, again, all of these grand visions.” (Sean, 41:56)

11. Reception, Awards, and Consensus

• There Will Be Blood’s critical and awards success:
  • 8 Oscar noms, 2 wins (Best Actor, Best Cinematography)—lost to No Country for Old Men, The Bourne Ultimatum, Sweeney Todd in other categories.
• The movie is a consensus top 5 film of the century, appearing highly ranked on the NYT, Rolling Stone, BBC, etc. (43:24).
• Amanda notes it isn’t her personal favorite PTA film, but accepts its canonical status:

  “Sometimes you gotta be obvious. Sometimes you gotta—It's not even obvious. Sometimes you gotta—I'm [going to] say, this is my truth. This is my truth.” (Amanda, 44:40)

12. Paul Thomas Anderson’s Legacy & Other Films

• There Will Be Blood is called the “fullest expression of cinema,” while The Master is “the fullest expression of PTA” (44:06–44:40).
• The hosts weigh pros and cons of including Phantom Thread, One Battle After Another, and Licorice Pizza—and Amanda welcomes the “distance” of later PTA works (46:39–47:31).
• Sean infers that the openness, or lack of “mystery,” in both Blood and One Battle is why they’ve resonated so much in their time, and reflects on potential critical re-evaluation down the line (48:17–48:58).

13. Recommendations & Closing Thoughts

• If you like There Will Be Blood, watch other PTA films, or classics like Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Citizen Kane, Barry Lyndon, or Night of the Hunter (49:44–50:14).

• On the enduring legacy:

  “If you haven't seen There Will Be Blood and you listened this far, I don't want to know about it. Keep it to yourself and then go watch it.” (Amanda, 50:22)

• The hosts agree their selection feels right; Amanda looks forward to their final rewatch for number one on their list.

Memorable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• Sean: "To me, if this were my list alone, this would be my number one. This is to me the absolute pinnacle of 21st century filmmaking." (02:17)
• Amanda: "It's taking on the themes of...America and capitalism and ambition and fathers and sons and California and like everything that is potent in [PTA's] work, but also...in 'important' film history. And it's a...really discomfiting, like, fucked up gets under your skin movie..." (05:35)
• Sean: "[Daniel Plainview] is the American character... You're preached this unrelenting drive to succeed, to grow, to do more, to encroach upon...more and more space in the world." (12:19)
• Amanda: “This is a very, very male movie....I don’t watch this embodiment of the American ideal and think like, yeah, that’s what I was taught to be.” (13:01)
• Sean: "One thing that I find so rich about Daniel Plainview is we don't get a flashback...The movie is not interested in that. That would be a little bit too simple.” (13:56)
• Sean: “I burst into tears last night. The scene when HW is on the derrick and it explodes... When he says, I can't hear my voice...that's crushing.” (17:39)
• Amanda: “I think that it's...written by a son rather than a father, if that makes any sense.” (22:12)
• Sean: "He won an Academy Award for this performance. I believe it is the performance of the 21st century." (24:52)
• Sean: “I drink your milkshake is one of the first memes. It's one of the...very few lines of dialogue from a 21st century movie that is on the level of here's looking at you, kid.” (32:23)
• Amanda: "If you haven't seen There Will Be Blood and you listened this far, I don't want to know about it. Keep it to yourself and then go watch it." (50:22)

Notable Segments (Timestamps)

• Historical/thematic frame & why the film ranks so high — 02:00–07:30
• Film’s politics, post-9/11 meaning, American myth — 08:00–11:15
• Masculinity, character study, and the genius of ambiguity — 12:19–16:42
• Visceral filmmaking and key emotional moments (derrick explosion) — 17:39–20:51
• Relationship between Daniel and H.W., father/son lens — 20:51–23:08
• Jonny Greenwood’s score, production design, and DDL’s performance — 24:00–26:39
• Memes, “I drink your milkshake”, Paul Dano’s performance — 32:23–36:33
• Critical reception, awards, comparison to PTA’s other work — 39:24–44:40
• Canon status and personal favorites among PTA’s filmography — 43:43–48:17
• Film recommendations & closing banter — 49:44–50:30

Tone and Style

The episode is a blend of rigorous film criticism, cultural context, and warm familiarity—a hallmark of Sean and Amanda’s podcasting style. The exchange is serious yet playful, with moments of intense close reading and others of self-effacing humor. Both hosts share equal enthusiasm, while occasionally debating canon status versus personal taste. Throughout, they maintain reverence for the film while acknowledging both its canonical status and quirks.

For listeners looking to revisit, understand, or appreciate There Will Be Blood (or Paul Thomas Anderson more broadly), this episode is a must.