When Daniel Plainview raises his hand covered in oil, it's like a prophet praising God, followed immediately by another guy putting an Ash Wednesday-esque mark on the baby's forehead with oil. Religion overtones: Oil = God. #HATM

Alexi wonders how long DDL and the film crew had to wait for that adorable baby to reach up and touch his face and be all cute. Probably a loooong time. #HATM

The "sympathy of a single dad" trope exists today. It's not the same as the sympathy for a single mother. The single father is a saint, the single mother is a slut. -- Alexi #HATM

It's already interesting that we don't see Native, Black, Latinx, or even Chinese Americans, although we know they're in the west. It's too white for early 20th century California. -- Alexi #HATM

What kind of accent does Daniel Plainview have? We can't nail it down. Anyone know? #HATM

Nothing like the local land surveyor looking to get a cut from the oilman. #HATM

On the one hand, Daniel Plainview uses his son D.W. as a prop to play "family man" and gain more business. On the other hand, he absolutely did not have to adopt that abandoned baby, so that was a deliberate anti-capitalist choice. Aka, love. #HATM

Mineral wealth can offer opportunity/wealth for a local community, but inevitably, it is ephemeral. Think about Alaska; it spent years funding things w/ oil wealth and now it's struggling immensely. "They have a gigantic budget problem." -partner #HATM

Plainview's snubbing of preacher Eli Sunday's request to be introduced at the drill's opening, on the surface, makes it seem that thematically, capitalism is at odds w/ religion.
I.e., capitalism=bad/greedy, while religion=good/moral. But that's not true! (As we'll see...) #HATM

Plainview is SUCH a complicated character: he correctly shames a father for hitting his daughter; this is SUCH a rare/good trait for a rich dude to have in a patriarchal society!

YET, becomes verbally abusive to his son, post-deafness. So he's ableist, among other -ists. #HATM

What do all y'all think of Eli Sunday (the preacher) so far? Do we like him? Do we think he's sincere in his beliefs; sincere in his desire to spiritually help his community? Or, do we think he's a greedy charlatan; as bad as Plainview, but cloaked in moral righteousness? #HATM

Is Eli Sunday putting on a show for Plainview right now, or would Sunday be this charismatic without Plainview there? Or, without any church audience watching him at all? #HATM

This scene is trying to physically--literally--show us the two as opposites, but equal. One godly and seemingly without want. The other, ungodly and with want. YET Sunday wants fame, too (he asked to be introduced loudly @ drill/well opening); & Plainview is not pure devil. #HATM

Your son is clearly hurt in some way and you go and say, "Why are you looking so miserable...there's a whole ocean of oil under our feet!" to a colleague. This further complicates his character. How much did he ever love his adopted son? #HATM

We wonder how they shot this insane oil-on-fire slash flame-of-death scene!! Certainly not CGI?? Or was it?? #HATM

& then there's THIS SCENE! W/ Plainview cuddling his son; Plainview is so obviously loving towards H.W.; so hurt & sad for H.W.; no doubt feeling immense guilt for somewhat causing his own son pain; for disabling his son in this way- in this society-at his level of wealth. #HATM

This discordant, frantic cello(?) music is making us feel upset and uneasy; just like how we would feel in Plainview's situation. #HATM

What do we think of actor Ciarán Hind's character, Fletcher Hamilton--Plainview's righthand man--? Just an accomplice in Plainview's greed? Or is he more complicated than that? #HATM

Is Eli Sunday so wrong for asking "where's my money"?? Like, where is his money?? For the church?? That Plainview promised?? #HATM

Why do I kinda agree with Sunday when he berates his own Dad??? Omg what is wrong with me, I'm not actually down with violence at all!!...but I am upset the Sundays didn't get more $$ for their land/oil...!
....I'm having some very complicated feelings right now. #HATM

The guy playing Henry (Plainview's long lost brother) was "that one guy" in The Mummy! ............where he sported some light brownface. Yeahhhh. #HATM

Ok so we think that Plainview is def a complicated man who BOTH uses H.W., AND very genuinely loves him. So, is Plainview's frustration w/ H.W. post-deafness bc he's mad @ himself, but is A Hardened Man, so takes it out on H.W.? Or, bc he is ableist-slash-against-"weakness?" #HATM

"I don't like to explain myself." -Daniel Plainview.

....THIS DOES NOT BODE WELL FOR OUR QUESTIONS.

#HATM

Plainview is a coward for lying to his son about "being right back" on the train. But, it's also weirdly a show of how much Plainview loves him and feels bad for sending him away.
**cute Avril Lavigne's first hit song**
#HATM

"You don't tell me about my son" and "I'll cut your throat." Is this ....."fatherly love"....?? Wow #HATM

Once again with the discordant, almost a-tonal string music. Supposed to make us feel the tension, surely! And we sure do!
Partner: "Notice Plainview's become angrier. What has happened to his son,& his actions in it,have hardened him even more."As if that were possible...! #HATM

And now with more frantic, pulsating music, now with more instruments included.
"It's a montage!!!" -Alexi
#HATM

Hey #twitterstorians and #cinephiles: Is this movie an ode to the old American West? #HATM

OMG turns out Jonny Greenwood ( @JnnyG) of @radiohead did the music for #ThereWillBeBlood!
Thanks, Jonny--we are feeling the tension.
#HATM

Why doesn't Henry know about the Peachtree Dance? HMMMMMMM #HATM

Where do we think Henry (Plainview's "brother"--that we now know is NOT his actual brother, but a friend of the brother, who actually died from T.B.)--falls on the spectrum of morality in this movie?
#HATM

"Plainview is digging the grave himself. He is a maniac." -partner #HATM

Again with the VERY COMPLICATED morality of Daniel Plainview. He wanted a brother! He values family! He is so, so, genuinely hurt by Henry's betrayal!
.............but he also is a cold-blooded killer. #HATM

"Got sick" is used here as a euphemism for "became deaf" or "has become disabled."
Hey, #twitterstorians and #disabilityscholars--is "got sick" a contemporary phrase? Did Americans actually use this phrase in the early 20th century? #HATM

I honestly can't wait for "a sinner here looking for God" (aka Daniel Plainview) to be absolutely 100% God-rocked by Eli Sunday right now.
(Again, so many feelings right now.)
#HATM

Notice that Plainview only starts getting truly emotional when he's forced to say "I've abandoned my child." The earlier "sins"--lust, capitalism, anti-God--don't bother him at all. #HATM

"There's a pipeline."-Daniel Plainview

What won't Plainview do for oil?

#HATM

Hey #twitterstorians and #engineers who are watching or have seen #ThereWillBeBlood: How accurate (or not) is the drilling technology--the tools, the wells, the pipeline--displayed on film here? Did they "get it right" for this time period? #HATM

This scene has "class analysis" written all over it. Plainview is acting "out of line" as acc to his class rank, yet he CAN bc he's rich. He's defending his parenting, which is sometimes seen as a feminine trait; yet here, he makes it masculine by humiliating the other men. #HATM

Notice that Daniel Plainview never bothered to learn a new language--ASL--to communicate with his son. He just "outsourced" that duty to someone else (a teacher). Who has probably acted more like a father to H.W. than Daniel. Read the capitalist themes closely, here. #HATM

"This anger. Your maliciousness." Wow, talk about Plainview looking in a mirror. #HATM

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY THE MOST PAINFUL SCENE IN THIS WHOLE MOVIE.

H.W. DESERVES. SO. MUCH. BETTER.

You move to Mexico with the only family that matters, H.W.! Mary loves you for who you are; she is your family now! #HATM

Since we're nearing the end of the movie, I have to ask all of you who have been watching:
What does Daniel Plainview want?
What has Daniel Plainview ever wanted?
#HATM

Plainview won't take the liquor from prodigal annoyance Eli Sunday, yet, he will keep pulling on his own liquor.
And now Eli, the holy man, is drinking.
Eli: "We've seen ups and downs."
Oh, how much--and how little--has changed!
#HATM

"I'd like you tell me that you are and have been a false prophet.
HAS Eli Sunday been a false prophet? Yes or no?
#HATM

Even if you think Eli Sunday is suspect, or annoying, or at fault, isn't it true that he absolutely IS owed money by Daniel Plainview? Doesn't this fact alone complicate both Eli's and Daniel's characters? (This is obvi an inverse of Plainview's earlier humiliation by Eli.) #HATM

Eli looks like it is ABSOLUTELY killing him to pronounce that he's a "false prophet."
Does this mean he's been genuine in his faith the whole time? i.e., even tho he's fallen on hard times and looking for a payout now, that his faith is in tact? And has always been? Or no? #HATM

This scene is brilliant: both Eli Sunday and Daniel Plainview ARE BOTH FALSE PROPHETS.
And yet,
THEY'RE BOTH SO GENUINE IN THEIR BELIEFS.
#HATM

This scene is so good and yet so very hard to watch. #HATM

Capitalism wins? Faith loses? What are we supposed to take from this dreadful scene?
#HATM

And then, finally, the movie finally ends with normal--quite typical--classical music. No more atonal strings. And we sigh with relief and apprehension.
Bravo, #ThereWillBeBlood! Bravo, fellow #watchers! Bravo, #HATM!