PT Anderson is the genius behind that cinematic monument to free speech (ie: pornography), Boogie Nights. He also made Magnolia, which has a subplot about the authoritarianism and tyranny of fathers. Who are, basically, fascists. Needless to say, I expected a lot from this libertarian genius. His new film, There Will Be Blood, delivers, and then some.

In short, it as about The Freedom.

And by The Freedom, I mean capitalism. By which I mean oil production in California about a hundred years ago, back before Exxon made oil such an obviously libertarian commodity. It stars Daniel Day Lewis as an oil entrepreneur who tells stupid people bullshit in order to buy their land very cheap and then exploit its resources.

In other words, he was an innovator for The Freedom.

When one person refuses to sell his land, Lewis just buys all the land around the guy and then sucks the oil out from under him anyway. “Like a milkshake,” is how he explains it. This is The Freedom in action. It shows the power of capitalism, and how capitalism can make you money no matter what.

The movie is excellent because it proves, once and for all, that Hayek* knew what he was talking about. Milton Friedman would love it. And so, I think, will you, and indeed, all people who truly love The Freedom.

* For those who do not know, Hayek was especially pro-The Freedom, so I feel it is safe to say that he would have given the big Austrian thumbs up to Anderson’s vision of pornography and capitalism, and how they are excellent.

Filed under: Freedom on Film