The latest from Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights) wants
to bruise and batter you before you stumble out of the theater,
your faith in humanity damaged but good. Loosely based on Upton
Sinclair’s Oil!, it features a menacing performance by Daniel
Day-Lewis as an unscrupulous turn-of-the-century oilman whose rise to
obscene wealth fulfills the title’s promise. Holiday cheer it
ain’t—the best American film in years it definitely is. (See
movie times for
details.)