Phantom Thread

A paean to epic fussiness. You don't see that every day. Nor, in the case of many moviegoers, should you. Those who are fans of stuffy English dramas will probably get their kicks watching this one, and I can certainly see some appeal in the work in and of itself. There are moments where the interplay between the characters really works and provides sharp entertainment. But the tale also comes with its limitations; the aforementioned fussiness leads the viewer to wonder if there really needs to be this much sturm und drang in the relationship. Maybe everyone should just chill a little bit. Perhaps the biggest surprise is that Daniel Day-Lewis does not overwhelm with brilliance in his role; he's good, and is probably incapable of a bad performance at this point, but his fastidious fashion designer lacks some of the energy that his previous and more successful roles brought to the scene. Only in moments does our man crackle with his usual power. And moments, alas, don't add up to a total movie.

Lincoln

A typically reverential treatment of (roughly) the last half-year of our most iconic president’s life. Given the suteur--Spielberg--one shouldn’t be surprised that this film comes across as equal parts dutiful myth-telling (or retelling, really) and vigorously-applied varnish. The latter applies especially so in the service of Mary Todd Lincoln, though her takedown of Thaddeus Stevens (great work by Tommy Lee Jones) is one of the highlights of the film. The real strength here is Daniel Day-Lewis’s masterful work in the title role. Over and above the performances, this could have been a lot better, could have rejected schmaltz and hagiography, could have presented a more probing, more insightful interpretation of Lincoln--and yet, it is still a good enough movie about a more-than-great historical character, and that elevates the accomplishment into a success.

There Will Be Blood

You go in thinking this will be one of those ponderous, slow, boring "important" films--and then you glance at your watch and you're surprised that an hour has already passed. Every scene of this film is so compelling, contains such riveting visuals, presents such an unusual tableaux of score and sound editing, and wraps itself so tightly around another astounding performance by Daniel Day-Lewis, that the cumulative effect is a movie so mesmerizing you can't take your eyes off the screen. It's a marvel, a provocative and challenging film that is better than you think it will be, better than you think it could be. A must see.

Gangs Of New York

Best Picture? No. But it certainly isn't bad. The production is lavish and first rate. And Daniel Day-Lewis is simply extraordinary as Bill the Butcher; the movie is worth watching just for his performance alone.