Matt Hurt’s review published on Letterboxd:
I really don't think it can be overstated just how mesmerizing and perfect Daniel Day-Lewis' performance as Daniel Plainview is in this movie. He's terrifying, despicable, and full of complexity. Day-Lewis is a master of his craft performing in a film with a brilliant auteur at the helm in Paul Thomas Anderson.
PT Anderson, with cinematographer Robert Elswit, does not waste a single shot in creating one of the most visually striking movies I've seen. The wide shots, along with Jonny Greenwood's haunting score, evoke a distinctly Kubrickian feel that's made all the more impressive by Anderson's ability to inject his own voice and style into the film. The beginning of the movie feels somewhat similar in tone and style to 2001: A Space Odyssey's Dawn of Man sequence, yet it still serves as a beautiful introduction to Daniel Plainview as a character and the oil and greed filled world over which he reigns.
Perhaps the most satisfying thing about the movie for me is the juxtaposition of Plainview and Paul Dano's character Eli Sunday. The bitter rivalry the two embark upon in the film is magnificent as we're shown how similar the two of them are. I'm honestly not sure if Eli has the self-awareness to truly know he's a false prophet and a swindler, or if he's just naive. But Plainview's feud with him is riveting nonetheless and made all the more so by Plainview's recognition of their similarities. As such, the climax of the film pays it off in a really shocking way that helps perfectly bookend the story of Daniel Plainview for us.
The way Plainview interacts with his son H.W. and a supposed half-brother named Kevin who arrives later in the movie, really hammers home the ruthlessly lonely and conniving nature of Daniel Plainview. He's a creature of relentless power and persuasion thanks to his fortunes with oil, but that comes at the price of being unable (or wholly unwilling) to attach himself to anyone or anything. He's a deeply selfish, hubristic character who is only concerned with greed and success and has no allegiances to anyone. And, again, Daniel Day-Lewis gives one of the best performances in cinematic history.