We’re getting close! The seventh film nominated for Best Picture is Phantom Thread.

The Paul Thomas Anderson work takes us on a journey to 1950s London, where we meet Reynolds Woodcock (Daniel Day-Lewis). A renowned dressmaker, Reynolds’ scrupulous life is disrupted by a young woman, Alma (Vicky Krieps), who becomes his muse. Reynolds enjoys her company and using her as a model for his dresses, but she clearly wants more.

What Phantom Thread has going for it is its sheer visual beauty. I mean, let’s hope so since a key theme of the film is the fashion industry. The cinematography and overall direction of the film are exquisite. The wiriting is genuine amidst a simple yet bewitching musical score. Day-Lewis and Krieps offer outstanding performances (if this is truly Day-Lewis’ last role, what a way to go out). Beyond that, I left the theater scratching my head at what I had just witnessed. I’m a fairly adept film viewer but even I wondered if the true meaning of this film transcended my brain. I just did not get it. Reynolds and Alma acted like spoiled brats throughout the film. Their two personalities often butting heads and, frankly, they deserved each other. Anderson tried honorably to make this a suspenseful romance but, in the end, it fell flat. The ending particularly angered me and made me question why I even sat through the film’s little more than two-hour runtime for it.

If you’d like to see Day-Lewis in his supposed final role then, by all means, go see Phantom Thread. Otherwise, I wouldn’t suggest wasting your time. 

I Give It A: C

Check Out The Trailer Here