Movies Is the character, Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood a villain?

[Takes_Two_To_Tango]

That character I believe is more multi-layered than the average villain. There just more to him than pure evil, if he is even evil.

I think he loved his son very much so. Even though it's not his biological son. And he did love his brother a lot, he revealed a lot to his pseudo/fake brother that he wouldn't have revealed to anyone else.

So I don't think he's a pure villain per se. Just a very troubled man with deep wounds and a lot of psychological problems. Who knows how his childhood was like.

 

[Kowboy On Sherdog]

Just your average oil man...

 

[moreorless87]

No because the film isnt built around any kind of hero/villian plotline, its a character study but yes of course he's not a very nice man.

 

[Texan6533]

Not in a traditional sense, but he’s a terrible person

 

[StonedLemur]

Of course he is.
He has a guy working for him that dies, he uses that guys baby to buy up land and drill on people's property.

That same kid goes deaf from an explosive and he sends him to some boarding school because he can hack him being deaf.

That kid comes back and says he wants to drill oil and he berates the shit out of him and shuns him.

He kills a guy that was posing to be his brother, he kills the priest dude (which I understand lol), but overall he was a shady mothafucka.

 

[HenryFlower]

capitalism is the true villain

 

[Streeter]

The bowling scene made his being a villain rather clear. He may of not been the only villain but he was a villain.

 

[Flower2dPeople]

Just your average oil man...

Buying the whole cow, not just the milk shake.

 

[Zer]

I would've done everything the same as he did and I'm a good christian dude

 

[Sirwastealot]

He's an anti-villain

I'm not sure what that means but it makes me sound smart

 

[Kingz]

I'm an oil man, ladies and gentlemen. I have numerous concerns spread across this state. I have many wells flowing at many thousand barrels per days. I like to think of myself as an oil man. And as an oil man I hope that you'll forgive just good old-fashioned plain speaking. Now this work that we do is very much a family enterprise. I -- I work side by side with my wonderful son H.W. I think one or two of you might have met him already. I encourage my men to bring their families as well. Of course it makes for an ever so much more rewarding life for them. Family means children; children means education. So wherever we set up camp, education is a necessity, and we're just so happy to take care of that. So let's build a wonderful school in Little Boston. These children are the future that we strive for and so they should have the very best of things.

Now something else, and please don't be insulted if I speak about this: bread. Let's talk about bread. Now to my mind, it's an abomination to consider that any man, woman, or child in this magnificent country of ours should have to look upon a loaf of bread as a luxury. We're going to dig water wells here. Water wells means irrigation; irrigation means cultivation. We're going to raise crops here where before it just simply was impossible. You're going to have more grain than you know what to do with. Bread will be coming right out of your ears, ma'am.

New roads, agriculture, employment, education, these are just a few of the things we can offer you, and I assure you ladies and gentlemen, that if we do find oil here, and I think there's a very good chance that we will, this community of yours will not only survive, it will flourish.

I'd be happy to answer any questions that you might have. Yes.

 

[ChickenBrother]

Dude isn't a straight "villain," but is like many of the characters in GOT. He's either a bad guy who does some good things, or a good guy who does some bad things. He's just a jacked white boy with a narcissistic personality disorder.

Some of the scenes with his kid hit me in the feels. When he cuddles with him after the oil explosion - before running out to deal with the fire. Sitting conflicted on the train with him before walking out. Re-uniting with him, taking some pint-sized H-bombs and then taking him out for "goat's milk and good expensive steak" to try to make amends. But even when he does that, he makes it about himself and gets into the spat with the Standard Oil suits and drinks their whiskey.

But the best touch was when HW tells him that he's leaving to start his own outfit. He initially does it though his sign language translator but Daniel won't have it. He tells him to say it himself in his own words, and there's a moment of pride when he does. But then he immediately throws out the "bastard in a basket" line because he can't reconcile his pride as a father with his own narcissism.

 

[Fedorgasm]

The two people he killed kinda deserved it. One guy was a con man and the other had Paul Dano's face

 

[lifelessheap]

Well, he drank my fook'n malk shake.

 

[ChickenBrother]

he kills the priest dude (which I understand lol)

The two people he killed kinda deserved it. One guy was a con man and the other had Paul Dano's face

Killing Paul Dano's character alone disqualifies him from pure villain status lol. TWBB is a GOAT movie contender but Dano's casting was a headscratcher to me. He comes off like a mash-up of Jar Jar Binks and fucking Blippi.

 

[Takes_Two_To_Tango]

Of course he is.
He has a guy working for him that dies, he uses that guys baby to buy up land and drill on people's property.

That same kid goes deaf from an explosive and he sends him to some boarding school because he can hack him being deaf.

That kid comes back and says he wants to drill oil and he berates the shit out of him and shuns him.

He kills a guy that was posing to be his brother, he kills the priest dude (which I understand lol), but overall he was a shady mothafucka.

That's a fair assessment, thank you sir.

 

[Takes_Two_To_Tango]

Dude isn't a straight "villain," but is like many of the characters in GOT. He's either a bad guy who does some good things, or a good guy who does some bad things. He's just a jacked white boy with a narcissistic personality disorder.

Some of the scenes with his kid hit me in the feels. When he cuddles with him after the oil explosion - before running out to deal with the fire. Sitting conflicted on the train with him before walking out. Re-uniting with him, taking some pint-sized H-bombs and then taking him out for "goat's milk and good expensive steak" to try to make amends. But even when he does that, he makes it about himself and gets into the spat with the Standard Oil suits and drinks their whiskey.

But the best touch was when HW tells him that he's leaving to start his own outfit. He initially does it though his sign language translator but Daniel won't have it. He tells him to say it himself in his own words, and there's a moment of pride when he does. But then he immediately throws out the "bastard in a basket" line because he can't reconcile his pride as a father with his own narcissism.

Very well said, thank you.

 

[StonedLemur]

That's a fair assessment, thank you sir.

He's still a great character though.

 

[StonedLemur]

Killing Paul Dano's character alone disqualifies him from pure villain status lol. TWBB is a GOAT movie contender but Dano's casting was a headscratcher to me. He comes off like a mash-up of Jar Jar Binks and fucking Blippi.

His character is supposed to get under your skin...he succeeds, and makes you hate him to the point you don't really feel bad when he's killed lol

 

[HARRISON_3]

I thought he was Eli’s love interest.