| Book Review | Environmental History, 13.2

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| Book Review | Environmental History, 13.2 | The History Cooperative

Book Review

There Will Be Blood. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Paramount, 2007. DVD. 158 min. $34.99.
It is a surreal time for petroleum, as crude oil prices leave $100-per-barrel prices behind. Although a wondrous piece of visual story-telling, Paul Thomas Anderson's acclaimed new film There Will be Blood may be most important as an artistic interpretation of our contemporary plight.	1
The story of oil has been fodder for feature films for more than a half-century. In particular, filmmakers use crude to demonstrate the corruptive greed possible in a capitalist economy. If taken in the context of this tradition of "petroleum theater," the violent, heartless Blood puts a dastardly, cruel spin on the corruptive possibilities of crude.	2
One indication of the increased angst is the degree to which Blood alters the storyline of the book on which it is based, Upton Sinclair's 1927 novel Oil! Sinclair's account is a frontier-history of oil exploration told in a very personal fashion. The primary character is the boy, in this account he is known as Bunny. Its primary point, though, is to consider the value of socialism and alternative political approaches. Oil primarily serves as the epitome of American capitalism. Instead of politics, Blood joins oil with one's fight to face redemption of the soul.	. . .

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