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• Wednesday, February 20, 2008 07:51 AM

  The preacher couldn't match-up to the capitalist, that's all....

  I thought TWBB was an extraordinary movie. I understand the point Zacharek is making however I believe it is misguided. I disagree that Day-Lewis' performance does not inspire conflicting sympathies within the viewer. I, for one, could see how much he loved his son, yet at the same time, what a monster he could be - he was absolutely full of contradictions! Where I think the problem lies is that it is difficult to balance-out Day-Lewis' performance and this is best illustrated in Plainview's scenes with the preacher, Eli Sunday. Frankly, those scenes left me feeling uncomfortable because I almost felt bad for Dano, the actor playing Sunday. I believe he was miscast. The role of the preacher should have been a bit more subtle but powerful, to counter-balance Plainview's mania. It was underwritten and one-note and could not hold it's own against Plainview. On the other hand, the scenes with Plainview and his son H.W. or his brother Henry are absolutely poetic. The scene in the restaurant where Plainview sits with his son, glowering over at the Big Oil perps for an offense made months before? Incredible. At the beach with his brother, with the waves trying to crash down and cool the obvious volcano that is about to erupt? You can see how Plainview gradually loses any shred of faith in the goodness of man, you see how his soul eventually turns black and burnt. Day-Lewis' performance is extraordinary. It's only that it's hard to balance out his performance with other performances/characters that are just as full-bodied, particularly the lead support. I believe that may the responsibility of the director, or perhaps casting to a certain degree? In any case, I do enjoy Zacharek's reviews. She adds a really unique voice to the typical movie critic round-up. It's evident that she really cares about movies, takes them seriously, which doesn't always seem to be the case.

  —Carmina Read Carmina's other letters
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