ABSTRACT
The transformation of Upton Sinclair’s book title Oil! to There Will Be Blood prompts an allegorical reading of the depiction of oil in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2007 epic. The phrase There Will Be Blood connotes both a threat and a biblical prophecy, setting a dark and pessimistic chord, leading the viewer to anticipate a story about blood-shedding even before the story unfolds. In this chapter I will try to shed some light on the dark and different senses of these blood themes, which range from the promise of new life to violent death.
