Guised in Paul Thomas Anderson’s sweeping period piece of dress making and desire and the tragically beautiful score by Johnny Greenwood is the simmering rage of Daniel Day-Lewis’ final film performance as Reynolds Woodcock, an obsessive and emotionally lethal fashion revolutionary in the best film of 2017, the Phantom Thread.
There is so much to marvel at in this picture, too much actually. From Paul Thomas Anderson’s maturity as a writer/director, to the breathtaking sets and fashion design, to the dueling performances of Vicky Krieps as Lewis’ naive and femme fatale love interest jousting with Lesley Manville’s stern matriachal sister; this film stands as an absolute masterpiece that unspools into Day-Lewis’ final cinematic descent into madness.
The film is remarkably lean with its runtime, wasting no time embarking on a journey of love, pain, and redemption. The soft colors and warm aesthetic entices an emotional connection straight away, and builds to a complex and haunting finale.
Discussing Day-Lewis in this film is a near impossible task. There has never been an actor who has been as remarkably consistent when it comes to his limited and calculated body of work. He’s never been better as he is as Woodcock, and graces the screen with an intellectually brooding performance that must have taken every ounce of life out of him to put up on screen.
Anderson not only wrote and directed such a complex film, but he also acted as his own cinematographer, albeit uncredited. To think this came from the filmmaker of Hard Eight and Boogie Nights is gobsmacking. He brings this instant authority of sincerity and scope to the film with his opening scene, bracing the audience for the incredible battle of psychological warfare that lies ahead.
Phantom Thread is wonderful. It’s a genuine and passion fueled film by one of cinema’s most important auteurs, who brings to the screen a beautiful showboat of a film. Daniel Day-Lewis could not have picked a finer project to exit the stage with. The impression he left on cinema and the arts is immeasurable. There will never be another Daniel Day-Lewis.
Review by Frank Mengarelli
- The Phantom Thread
Summary
From Paul Thomas Anderson and Daniel Day-Lewis’ final film performance is 2017’s best film, the Phantom Thread.
