Oh sure, we've got Paul Thomas Anderson all figured out by now. After four very fine films -- Hard Eight, Boogie Nights, Magnolia and Punch-Drunk Love -- we've surely got the filmmaker's number by now: He makes strangely sweet and slyly witty ensemble pieces, right? So then what's he doing making an adaptation of Upton Sinclair's massive tome Oil!? A straight-faced period piece in which the most recognizable names are Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Dano? This is not what we've come to expect from good ol' Paul T. Anderson!

And I suppose that's what makes the director's There Will Be Blood such a stunning surprise. It's more than a "departure" for the director; it's a monumental display of "evolution" that'll wow the established fans and impress a helluva lot more new ones. This is a dark, compelling and effortlessly engrossing film, one bolstered by a lead performance that ranks among the very best of Mr. Day-Lewis' impressive career.

The film will most often be compared to Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, so I guess I can get the ball rolling on that particular crutch -- but it's also an apt comparison. Which is not to say that There Will Be Blood will necessarily be dissected and revered 75 years from now, but the stories are certainly similar enough. Anderson's film opens with a long passage of dialog-free footage: A lone man hacks his way through a mine using a pick-ax and some dynamite. The year is 1898, and Daniel Plainview is about to become an oil man. We witness the man's unwavering resolve as he pulls himself from a vertical shaft after breaking his leg in a fall -- and if you think that accomplishment displayed some tenacity ... just wait.

I'll admit that I am a jaded enough movie-goer that very few bits of news manage to make me giddy with anticipation, but the Paul Thomas Anderson fansite Cigarettes and Red Vines has made me giddy as a fanboy on the opening day of ComiCon. The site posted a "spoilerish " photo (it's only fair to warn you) from the set of his latest movie There Will Be Blood -- one of the first photos to emerge since the production was announced. The film is based on the Upton Sinclair book Oil!, and is the story of the early days of the oil business starring Daniel Day-Lewis as a prospector in rural Texas. Anderson wrote the screenplay for the film, and there is talk of release in October of this year, which would put it right in the wheelhouse for Oscar contention, if it's as good as we hope it will be.

Usually whenever Anderson's name is mentioned, it's in connection to the other directors who just don't produce the amount of films they should (other nominees include Wes Anderson, David Fincher, David O. Russell, and Spike Jonze.) Considering the amount of truly awful movies I see, I'm just grateful Anderson's making one at all. The few he has made so far are among my favorites, so I really can't complain. Throw Daniel Day-Lewis into the mix and it's like Christmas in July -- or I guess in this case, October.