There Will Be Blood Character Development

There Will Be Blood Reaction

One of my favorite aspects of There Will Be Blood is the character development throughout the film. Some of the factors that contribute to a character changing for better or worse include: Money, age, power, and greed. For example, Daniel Plainview, the main character of the film, is strongly influenced by the power of money and greed. In the beginning of the film, Daniel is seen as a caring father who takes care of his son, H.W., and is trying to make a substantial income to support himself and his son. However, the money that he continuously makes throughout the film begins to change him and his personality, and makes the viewer question whether he is doing things for the right or wrong reason. For example, when Daniel’s personality changed throughout the film, I began to wonder whether he was still taking care of H.W. because he actually cared for him, or because it may look bad if he gives up on his son while he is raising him just so he can focus on making more money. H.W. also changes throughout the film because of age. In the beginning of the film, H.W. is just a baby and is riding with Daniel on the train. I found this scene memorable because later in the film when H.W. is about 10, he is also seen riding on the train with his dad just before an altercation between H.W. and a man on the train. I think that H.W.’s change in age affects Daniel negatively because raising H.W. proves to be a challenge for Daniel because he is so focused on expanding his oil company, and the multi-character development throughout the film contributes to and is eventually the reason for the downfall and destruction of Daniel Plainview in the end of the film.