Phantom Thread - Official Movie Review

Phantom Thread starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Lesley Manville and Vicky Krieps directed by Paul Thomas Anderson is reviewed by Alonso Duralde, Christy Lemire, Ben Mankiewicz and Matt Atchity.
Read what other critics had to say: www.rottentoma...
Set in the glamour of 1950's post-war London, renowned dressmaker Reynolds Woodcock (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his sister Cyril (Lesley Manville) are at the center of British fashion, dressing royalty, movie stars, heiresses, socialites, debutants and dames with the distinct style of The House of Woodcock. Women come and go through Woodcock's life, providing the confirmed bachelor with inspiration and companionship, until he comes across a young, strong-willed woman, Alma (Vicky Krieps), who soon becomes a fixture in his life as his muse and lover. Once controlled and planned, he finds his carefully tailored life disrupted by love. With his latest film, Paul Thomas Anderson paints an illuminating portrait both of an artist on a creative journey, and the women who keep his world running. Phantom Thread is Paul Thomas Anderson's eighth movie, and his second collaboration with Daniel Day-Lewis.
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[@internisus]

This might be one of the best discussions WTF has held in quite a while. So many interesting, nuanced observations that have left me terribly eager to see this film.

[@itaikahari9395]

internisus its just a gothic romance like Rebecca

[@musicmann1967]

Maximillien Robespierre buzzkill

[@internisus]

I just got back from seeing it and must inform you that it is not "just" anything.

[@musicmann1967]

internisus Indeed. Excellent movie!

[@mattjazzfan2288]

This is the longest review they’ve ever done, but it was so good that it only felt like it was 8 minutes

[@Filmatic5]

I think it has tons to say, which is in absolutely no way all decipherable in just one viewing. It didn’t drag for me one bit and I saw this as the second movie I saw in the same day, a double feature I lined up for myself. It’s absolutely ethereal and elusive, yet has sooo much to say.

[@andipandishoots]

"plus you have the science fiction element of a heterosexual man as a fashion designer in England in the 1950´s" *looks at camera* "I DON´T THINK THERE WERE ANY." gosh I love Alonso

[@AllenMacCannell]

Antti Kylmänen - I agree with Alonso. I'm 40 minutes into the movie now and going to sleep for the night. His character isn't believable to me but whatever. I'm glad they even allow such May-September hetero stories these days. Will stream the rest another day.

[@cactaceous]

Stupid comment made by a one track mind man. People praising a fantastic film and he has to drop that dumb non sequitor. It's a goddamn movie. Not a documentary. Right, because he's gay everyone else is gay when they say they were gay. It's as annoying as people who turn vegetarian and vegans now having to throw themselves pat in the back a thons and scold and teach everyone else. Grow up. Then immediately he says he heard it was inspired by a person he had never heard of before...!!! There you go ignorant, maybe he was the one heterosexual designer. Was it science fiction then? Jesus christ.

[@travisspazz1624]

The shape of water underwhelmed me, but Phantom thread blew me away!!

[@annaeverette8960]

How dare you, comparing Phantom Thread to that teenage fanfic

[@cinemagarmonbozia808]

I remember when Daniel Day-Lewis said The Boxer will be his last film. That was 20 years ago.

[@Shadowman4710]

A much underrated little gem, that.

[@eliassmith8760]

Actually he never said that, he just said that wanted to have some rest from acting and work on other things for a while but he didn't know How long that would be, it ended up being five years , it could've been more if it weren't for Martin Scorsese !!!

[@binaryg]

Can you supply his quotes on that???

[@TheRedneckOracle]

Cinema Garmonbozia good that was a terrible movie

[@brianpoetart]

Well to be fair, it always could've been more except for someone

[@anthonyburn1010]

Love the film, loooove the score, take a bow Johnny Greenwood.

[@josephwythe8757]

Yes! This was really the movie this year needed, IMO. My fave of the year by far, PTA never disappoints.

[@eliassmith8760]

Joseph Wythe PTA is in my opinion the most intresting and talented filmaker, he is the Stanley kubrick of our time ,his work is so beautiful !!! I loved so much THE MASTER and THERE WILL BE BLOOD, He was only 28 when he directed MAGNOLIA !!! HE IS THE MOZART OF CINEMA..

[@josephwythe8757]

The Master is the best film since The Godfather, imo.

[@authorrobjohnson3178]

Joseph Wythe Yeah, he's an underrated film director. I have to see this movie, I didn't know PTA made a new movie.

[@TheGreatGeeksCast]

Joseph Wythe I fully agree. Fully.

[@itsallgoodman4108]

@@eliassmith8760 Kubrick passed it to Spielberg(watch the interview spielberg does on Stanley) and Stephen passed the torch of the form on to Paul. It really does seem to me to be that way. The royal bloodline of Cinema

[@oldchicken2]

Gotta say everyone, I was really disappointed by your review of the Master and Inherent Vice. But here I really sense your love and appreciation of film craft and of PTA and Jonny Greenwood’s work. Excellent review!

[@widM_]

Inherent Vice was terrible, it's hard to like that movie.

[@cactaceous]

widM I urge you to watch it again. It's a very solid film that confuses a lot of people because it is supposed to be hazy. The first time I saw it I liked it but ended up confused because so much was going on. Then I saw it again a week later and the dots started to connect as I went along.

[@fragr33f74]

Haven't seen the film, but this is why I love filmmakers like PT Anderson. The smallest details create the opportunity for amazing discussions.

[@super8mmo]

Paul Thomas Anderson is the best director alive.

[@JAContes]

I couldn't disagree more

[@TheTruthiest]

Most over-rated more like it. He is good for showcasing actors, but his movies don't have any interesting ideas or really connect emotionally.

[@WestonPedestrian]

Hes absolutely great but Terrence Malick and David Lynch are still alive.

[@lostintechnicolor]

I’m not a fan of The Master, and I really disliked Inherent Vice. There was a time when I would have agreed with your comment, but those movies were very disappointing for me. But that’s just my opinion...

[@sbrosier2383]

super8mmo Debatable. Denis Villeneuve is IMO - Sicario, Blade Runner 2049, Enemy, Prisoners, Arrival

[@briankehew579]

Magnolia is Paul's amazing "more is more" movie. Phantom Thread is his "less IS more" film; exceptional range.

[@sulthan2193]

✩Watch or Download Phantom Thread -Visit :top.channelmovies.net/movie/400617/phantom-thread

[@jonathanrodriguez4666]

This is gonna be such a bittersweet viewing experience if he’s really retiring

[@deckofcards87]

I think this is PT Anderson's best film since There Will Be Blood....Very different style, yet just as powerful. Sad to hear this was Day-Lewis' final role but it's a terrific closing act.

[@madphantom92]

I wanted Daniel Day Lewis to work with Christopher Nolan or Dennis Villenueve..

[@iansmart4158]

Carlos Santana buts he's already worked with Scorsese and PTA aka 2 of the greats!

[@nox5870]

I wanted to see Daniel Day Lewis take on The Joker actually ;D

[@Garland67]

Wow, that would be great.

[@eliassmith8760]

I wanted to see Daniel work with Jodie foster, Gary oldman and kate Winslet in a great historical movie directed by Mel Gibson !!! That would've been a Awesome...

[@TheBlackLodger]

Eh... Not even the Scorsese and Day-Lewis duo beats the Anderson and Day-Lewis one. They're the perfect match or should I repeat duo as proven by There Will Be Blood and now this movie.

[@guimrtns]

15:50 lmao love you christy

[@AngeliqueStP]

That was adorable ....caught me so off-guard, I laugh-snorted. :D

[@leobergmiller873]

g mrtns she is so awesome lmao

[@menevetsny]

Loved the use of Schubert's Trio during the fashion show. I drink your milkshake! I eat your omelette!

[@JozieLeePro]

The name Daniel Day Lewis will send me to the movies every time. So I ditched plans for the day and snuck off to the movies to see PT. True the music, the sets, the clothes were gorgeous. And the actors - Lewis to the godson doctor - were wonderful. But 10 minutes into the film I found myself fidgeting and it got worse as the film progressed. I wasn't bored, just not engaged. 15 minutes to the end - when she made his omelette - I dashed to the restroom, something I NEVER do. When the movie switched theme I lost interest. The final scene I thought, "Really?"

[@MarcosIsABaritone]

It's a film about two sociopaths, who, instead of directing their pathology toward society, direct it toward one another. Beautifully photographed and produced and sincerely acted, the ultimate statement about "love" as possession and co-dependence - justifying manipulation and irrationality - should leave one flummoxed as to how such a film could evoke romantic notions from such a toxic relationship. I left the film aggravated by it's cynicism and acceptance of this idea of "love" and the central characters revealing themselves as coo-coo for Cocoa Puffs. However, I completely recognize how so many, especially those who view relationships as a game and cherish ambiguity over earnest discussion, would admire this film.

[@michaelenglish1992]

Charles James is the name of the designer Alonso is referencing.

[@BobSullivanAKABuffy]

Ah, yes! Saw his show at the Met in NYC a few years ago. Gorgeous stuff and amazingly constructed!

[@RaymondwLin]

FYI, that guy who gave Lady Bird a Rotten....if you read his review, he gave it 3/5 which technically translates to 60%. And what does Rotten Tomatoes count as fresh? 60% ! So, it should still be 100% Fresh.

[@Llo834]

Raymond Lin when it's 3/5 or 60/100 the reviewer gets to decide if it's Fresh or Rotten. That bastard chose rotten intentionally because he didn't want it to be at 100%

[@itaikahari9395]

Raymond Lin doesnt matter guy its still solid

[@Ndoelicious]

I went to check on this a week ago as well lol

[@zeldaofarel]

I didn't like this movie at all. It was kind of boring. I hated every character. I'm just happy they're stuck with each other. It never really addresses how terrible they are.

[@xaicho]

It feels like I watched a completely different movie. The entire time I'm like, why does any of this need to happen. Why didn't she leave if she was so unhappy? Why not just let him be an ass on his own while she could find someone that satisfies her needs? Why the hell was poisoning a bonding experience and he still "loved" her even after he realized it was her? He was a dick to his staff and I'd be on board if she was doing out of some sense of altruism to help those women but I couldn't for the life of me understand why she insisted on staying and playing these games other than to just break him down because I don't believe that they actually loved each other much less even liked each other. I'm also willing to admit that this was too high brow for me and I just didn't get what it was supposed to be. But it was literally two hours of me just thinking, one or both of them could leave at any moment yet they continue to stay in each others presence with these unhappy scowls on their faces.

[@anonymousgirl799]

Oliver Reeve You took it literally, instead of realizing the subconscious pathos of the underlying characters. Amalia and Woodcock were clearly in love at first sight, even if they had a "strange" way of showing it, with the petty fights and arguments along the way. Woodcock lost his structure, confidence and concentration, because he was in love. He had to be "broken down" and "reassembled", by Amalia, like one of his dresses, so he could submit to a relationship of give and take, instead of one- sided loyalty.

[@jeremyhodder9319]

It was a deconstruction of power dynamics in relationships. She didn't leave because she seen a lot to admire about him and was trying to deal with the things she didn't like and change them. Her way to make him more sensitive and caring was to poison him and force him to rely on her to take care of him. He stays with her because of his past insecurity with his relationships with women (his mother and his sister were always very demanding and in control and he admires that about alma when she starts poisoning him). Yes its demented, but as are relationships like this. I seen the people who most related to this movie was those who were in abusive relationships and those who tried to control and change those who they were with.

[@El_oh7199]

This movie looks gorgeous, the score is beautiful, with fine acting, but I was bored senseless. It gets a 6 from me

[@AllenMacCannell]

Logansolo Howlett-Jones - After 40 minutes, I'm going to sleep. Just shut steaming off. And this is before the part where she apparently poisons him which would be completely unacceptable for me to watch him accept that

[@AllenMacCannell]

Logansolo Howlett-Jones - I tried another 27 minutes but couldn't watch the pretentious justification of poisoning someone. And I never got to the subversive part

[@davehandelman2832]

I was really not a fan of this film... I LOVE PTA but found PT long and rather boring... Ah well. Looking forward to the next one!

[@peybak]

Vicky Krieps was in a weird German movie called The Chambermaid.

[@MichelleseaChelle]

I'm very excited to see this movie.

[@probusexcogitatoris736]

Daniel Day-Lewis has been saying he will quit acting for many years now. I actually hope he will quite, because it's getting old.

[@tonyp333777]

It’s so sad that sooooo many people are soooooo hungry for action and booms and fast pace and they need nifty 1 hour and 30 min films ………it’s a shame because in my opinion some stories need a elongation in the run time to fully macerate characters and create a world for the audience! this is a masterpiece and slow burn on a high end wick

[@SCharlesDennicon]

Wait wait wait. Did they just spend fifteen minutes talking about that movie without addressing the issue of the ending, how fucking odd was the main character's decision to let his wife poison him ? I liked the movie, but that just didn't work for me.

[@annaeverette8960]

Haha well personally I find it less disturbing to consider it might be an allegory of some kind (radical / expedited therapy, mushrooms = LSD?). I mean at least he knows he is being poisoned, and he implied his consent so... to each their own kinks, lol. "Tailor yourself to each other" is an excellent advice.

[@tracycameron5099]

I've watched it about 10 times and get something new each time.

[@juliemance4897]

Alonso, thanks for mentioning the M2M app, I just installed it.

[@juliemance4897]

Patrick - Signe Chanel

[@BobSullivanAKABuffy]

Oooh glad to hear that "on the biggest screen you can" at the end! I will be lucky enough to see it on the Castro screen next week followed by a PT Anderson Q&A. So excited after hearing yáll discuss it!

[@cjwright79]

I find it utterly blasphemous that when we're given the rarest of rarities, a truly great movie, that the dudes here are like, "it was too long, cut it down". Really? You really have better things to be doing at home, watching TV, reading about Trump, checking twitter, browsing facebook. When greatness finally comes along, that's your reaction, you want less of it? I think that if you were restless during this movie, that's your problem, not the movie's. I just bathed in the texture of Phantom Thread, I loved most every minute of it. Ironically I was less enraptured by the final thirty minutes. It took a sudden turn towards conventionality with the 'let's get married' angle, and then it had to make another sharp correction towards irregularity with the 'let's eat toadstools and magically transcend death' scenes. It's like you're being driven along a smooth road for most of the journey and then the driver decides he wants to shake things up and start taking bumpy shortcuts because he loses confidence in his ability to bring it home on time.

[@abbaskhani2613]

I like the fact this movie doesn’t have a breakneck pace. Like a delicious meal, to be savored.

[@46.56.A.]

Great performance from DDL but as for the film itself, it was quite meh. Even as someone who enjoys films that are slow it's usually due to the building up of tension with it having a lot of atmospheric depth. This didn't have either especially with the somewhat grating piano music in the background.

[@miguel167589]

This is my favorite review from you all, just delightful

[@dunkirknolan7018]

1. Phantom Thread 2. Boogie Nights 3. Magnolia 4. There Will Be Blood 5. The Master 6. Punch-Drunk Love 7. Inherent Vice 8. Hard Eight

[@2nd3rd1st]

Speaking of fashion, I want Ben's cosy soft hoodie!

[@malvanlondon8683]

Oscar for toast buttering sound effects anyone? lol. That sound mixing was indeed a stand out.

[@CasiodorusRex]

I saw this movie and there's not a chance in hell it's a 10. Christy should be ashamed. This movie was long and it was boring. There wasn't really a story either. It's a solid 6 at best. There must have been some Last Jedi money left over to bribe a few critics.

[@LEDASDREAM]

This is a story about love and Learning how to deal with each other????? No no no!!!

[@brucebanana4486]

I wish the movie came out my city already.

[@babyjake25]

raise your hand if you think it's smart to fall in love with someone who doesn't appreciate you. HE DIDNT. the only way he could? when he was sick....GREAT COUPLE, people. two halves make a whole nut.

[@MissMadelineMM94]

7:14 hit the nail on the head. His sister and Alma 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@HelpMeFindTheseSongs]

Damn Christy is very good looking. Such a cool, smart lady.

[@sharpaycutie2]

The Twist or toxicity of their relationship serve no point. Why would I go to see two peeople in a destructive relationship like this with no resolved healing? 50 shades of Grey even had a reasoning behind his fetishes.

[@yourguess3455]

try watching Bad Timing...now talk about toxic relationships

[@prashunpcchakraborty70]

What's with these people? The mood, the atmosphere the setting, the cinematography isn't fluff to be cut down on fools!

[@cesarnavarrete248]

It´s about Hitchcock. Think about it.

[@lawrence-yx1ew]

Wonderful movie however I felt myself getting restless. I wasn't expecting such a slow movie. The trailers were a bit misleading. That being said, go into this movie knowing it's a slow slow burner and you'll enjoy yourself

[@TheMisfitPond]

Good review! It’s kind of spoilerish but not too much to where people know exactly know what you’re talking about. But I think it would best enjoyed not knowing this much. The trailer is enough lol I agree with Christie. I also gave it a 10/10. It’s a perfect film

[@bgpolak]

Christy’s opening was all we needed to hear!

[@EinsamPibroch278]

Spoilers, 'cos you need to be warned against this movie: Phantom Thread is Stockholm Syndrome Garbage. Alma refuses to move on, and the day Reynolds considers kicking her out, she poisons him. He doesn't know he's poisoned, but was convinced Alma was the one for staying by him in his illness. He marries at the spur, but in the months after considers divorce since she interferes with his work with a totally grating personality. She poisons him again, confesses to it in front of him, and somehow he becomes smitten by her all over again. His art lifestyle is totally shot, has a kid even, all 'cos he most likely suspects his next home cooked meal will be his last if he ever speaks up to his wife again. This movie inspires Men to Go Their Own Way.

[@graphiquejack]

Lol. He clearly knew he was eating the poisoned mushrooms the second time and was clearly okay with it. Maybe he realized that he was far too rigid and he was in danger of losing her, his creativity in fashion (remember that Cyril accused him of not being chic or modern when a client of his moved on to another house) and understood that he was too stubborn to change on his own but understood that he needed to. I don’t think either character is sympathetic and I think the relationship is messed up, but you can’t put that all on her. The only person I really loved in this movie is Cyril. She’s badass

[@DamjanPlamenac]

Hi Paul!

[@carolann724]

I loved it but agreed that it took too long to go to the darker side.

[@babyjake25]

the acting was good. the cinematography was good. it's the plot that sucked. as mentioned i wanted more character development too. i think ladybird was definitely better. wonder wheel another better movie. neither of those were perfect but easily better than this. had potential but very disappointing.

[@sadcoreprince]

I love Christy. Just saw this movie and hell yes it’s a 10 out of 10 for me too

[@camgrant1318]

I disagree so much with their review of this movie. One of best movies of the year? Maybe in 1990. There is nothing here to make you feel anything. Acting was very good but there is no purpose or need for this trite movie. There are actual revolutionary, exciting and emotional films in 2017/2018 and this one along with Darkest Hour are for the +60 crowd who yearn for the simple days of paints by numbers oscar bait movies. I can't believe it got nominated for best picture alongside Call me by your name, Lady Bird, Dunkirk and Get Out. Adios Daniel Day Lewis

[@graphiquejack]

Cam Grant I thought Dunkirk was yet another war film that the Academy orgasms for and was nothing special at all. There are a lot more innovative films than Phantom Thread in the category, but it was a good film. I didn’t love the twist personally... I would have preferred a more conventional resolution to the story. Honestly, they were awful for each other and should have divorced. But hey, one person’s poison.... ;)

[@smokeylonesome4328]

What does a film coming out in 1990 have to do with anything? Films were better then...

[@temshasanaie2478]

10/10?!! What if he ate the whole omelette?! This movie needed to show them having sex at least. I thought he was in the closet the whole movie or something? Way too british for me

[@Garland67]

10:50.....so funny!!! Great review. Fascinating.

[@itaikahari9395]

LOADING Best Actor 2018 : GARY OLDMAN

[@basquat76]

It sounds like a really sophisticated soap.

[@brucebanana4486]

basquat76 that sound really good to eat.

[@tikifreaky5204]

Yup, I saw it 100%

[@TheIsh1988]

Great film actor. I wish critics would stop overrating him and Meryl, cuz it makes everyone else dislikes them....

[@Shadowman4710]

I'm not sure you can overrate Lewis. My brother used to think that about him...and then he saw "There Will be Blood."

[@leobergmiller873]

TheIsh1988 no one doesnt like Daniel Day Lewis

[@mck7646]

Learn to spell.

[@mendozaartstudiollc1354]

You think Phantom Thread made you figit, try "Precious" on for size or perhaps another PT Anederson film.

[@acrophobe]

As usual, PTA delivers another masterpiece. Fuckin guy sold his soul to the got. damn. devil.

[@marshacreary9771]

3:38-3:55 Telling the story more efficiently or effectively

[@Stand_By_For_Mind_Control]

I'll watch anything with DDL in it, but this doesn't look like his most interesting work. Or PT Anderson's for that matter.

[@vutlharimaluleke9287]

How good is Alonso's maths? Well done sir!

[@PhantasmagoricSplend]

Wow. Just wow. The ending tho.

[@akash3464]

HAPPY NEW YEAR

[@crobeastness]

where can I find their top 10 lists?

[@electrictwilight]

Alonso's thinking of Charles James.

[@adagiobreeze8493]

This film looks more visually dazzling than “The Shape of Water “

[@babyjake25]

this is movie has a dumb ending. and the whole thing is unrealistic. I was expecting a much better more creative and logical ending. it started to drag towards the end but could have totally redeemed itself with a revealing ending where everything comes together. but nothing comes together. they hate each other but just put up with each other by purposely making the asshole sick so he is more tolerable and his wife can take care of him and feel needed. they are both sick in the head.

[@edgardevice]

Best film I saw of 2017.

[@schmoab]

Great movie and great review. I can’t wait to watch this one again on video

[@MOBROOKS]

This was an amazing film although the ending was somewhat of a cop out.

[@gwubbo1160]

4:49 he touches her hand and she moves it away . Not to flip the page but to get away

[@sebm3029]

I’m curious as to which 30 mins Alonso would cut. Such an idiotic comment

[@raymondergarcia]

I write this interpretation of The Phantom Thread not to ignite debates or arguments, but to state the truth. Because at its root, the truth, simply - cannot be reduced. I give fair warning that this post will be long and challenging to both read and to come to terms with its claim, as with the story of Daniel Day Lewis the actor, it comes with grave consequences and a heavy heart. A true matter of life and death. So for those without the intellectual stamina to engage in critical thought, I will spare you the agony and suggest you allow your mind to wander to a more shallow end of the pool. And to those who as Shakespeare writes, would rather choose death over life, "To die: to sleep; No more; and by a sleep to say we end The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;"... I recommend you return to your slumber of the mundane. As we souls trying to awaken continue on our journey, there is no room for haul around dead weight. I begin by addressing the elephant presently in the room, which at the time of this film's release, had yet to stomp on stage. But that's neither here nor there, as today is all we really have and today Daniel Day Lewis has made his first "public appearance" in over 4 years. The legendary giant of an actor had chosen quite the non-public setting of the Big Apple to publicize his private will. Now I will extract the meat from a recent yahoo article to lay the groundwork as they are integral clues and will connect the dots of this layered story, with his life being a sort of parody, or extension of his movie making career. The article states, "Daniel Day-Lewis will no longer be working as an ACTOR," his rep (re-present-ative) at the time, Leslee Dart, said in a statement to Variety. "He is immensely grateful to all of his collaborators and audiences over the many years. This is a PRIVATE decision and neither he nor his re-presentatives will make any further comment on THIS SUBJECT." Essentially this is saying that DDL (his name abbreviated for short) will no longer be a public character, but is choosing to be a private man. Suggesting he has served his term and is NOW aware between the difference of being PUBLIC vs PRIVATE in a legal sense. I will expand on this later. Furthermore, the article again quotes DDL, "All my life, I've mouthed off about how I should stop acting, and I don't know why it was different THIS TIME (referring to the post part dum depression of making the film as we will find he admits to later), but the impulse to quit took ROOT in me, and that became a COMPULSION," For clarity, Webster's defined compulsion as, "the action or state of forcing or being forced to do something; constraint." That theme of being forced to do something against one's will, by force, is not only present in DDL's life, in the characters of the Phantom Thread's fictional lives, but in all of our fictitious lives. To quote DDL once again, he states, "BEFORE making the film, I didn't know I was going to stop acting," he told W. "I do know that Paul and I laughed a lot before we made the movie. And then we stopped laughing because we were both overwhelmed by a sense of SADNESS. That took us by surprise: We didn't realize what WE HAD GIVEN BIRTH TO." Presuming the laughter stopped AFTER making the film. Spoiler alert, the action he had given BIRTH to was compulsory in nature, carried out by force and we will see both in the movie and as in Shakespeare's Hamlet, we also face the same sea of troubles of outrageous fortunes that Daniel is navigating through. How we decide to face those troubles is the ultimate way out of the storm. To be or not To be. In what? In war? I choose peace. Finally, the article ends with the admission of DDL: At the time, Daniel said he had no intention of watching the FINAL CUT of the movie. "Not wanting to see the film is CONNECTED to the decision I've made to stop working as an actor," he explained. "But it's not why the SADNESS CAME TO STAY. That HAPPENED DURING THE TELLING OF THE STORY, and I don't really know why." The article concludes with no cliffhanger. It ends with clear confirmation that his decision to stop acting is DIRECTLY connected to his contribution to, as he puts it, "THE BIRTH" of this film, which told a story so steeped and rooted in sadness too literal to believe. The tragic hero. The failed antagonist. The role we have all been deceptively given on the world's stage. If you've made it this far, I commend you. We've pushed and fought through a field of thick and thorny brush, but rest assured we've made it through the other side, and have reached the meadow where the flowers of truth shall reveal themselves. And as with the blossom of a flower, inevitably comes the death of its petals. As the story begins, the tragic hero, Alma, recounts her blossom as her story unfolds. She imagines for the audience a palace of sorts to the likeness of a castle. One that only the eschalant of society has access to, one that she only dreamed to be a part of. Throughout the story, her character buds with exuberance as if displayed at the wedding of a royal court, only to be tossed overboard and meet the same demise of her metaphoric death once the last of her petals had fallen. Here is where you brace yourself for the ultimate truth. The same root that took hold in Daniel Day Lewis after making this film. DISCLAIMER, I speak generally as I am making the assumption that the reader of this post is part of the "known" world which has been colonized and commercialized. But I will tell you who Woodcock is, who Alma is, and who Cyril re-present in YOUR fictional, but legal life. Because all allegories are about you. A tragic yet true poetic allegory. Like the bible, like Shakespeare's Fair Youth Sonnets, ALL stories are about - you. All the world's a stage, and we are merely actors in it. Pull the curtain. Let the show begin. Black's law dictionary defines a "delivery" as the expulsion or extraction of the FETUS AND ITS MEMBRANES. Now I want you to conjure up the image of the opening scene that depicts the words Phantom Thread written in white cursive against a black backdrop. Simple, minimal, yet layered in meaning. Straight to the point of the needle. Can you see the shape I am seeing? With its native hue of resolution? It is a fetus in the mother's womb, cohesive and uncut. All pieces are still consistent. Void of space between the lines as it continues from beginning to end with no CUT. This symbol is the fetus, as it evolves in the womb of a pregnant mother, connected to the wall of her uterus and what I will refer to as the "extra embryonic material" of baby, or more scientifically referred to as, the PLACENTA. As a side note yet an important note, the word placenta is of Greek origin and it translates to "cake", which should give you pause the next time you celebrate, or as I like to more accurately put it, memorialize the person attached to the "birth" date, blow out/ex-spire its candles to make a wish, and as Marie Antoinette so brutally said, "let them eat cake". Are you beginning to see where I am headed? Now's your chance to like Woodcock tells Alma (in a more derogatory way), exit stage left. Go home if you can't handle the truth. Because the truth is bitter and has no concern for your love. You can offer up a plate of the most delicate asparagus coated in the finest butter, and the truth will shit all over your plate without remorse. I must address one more useful fact before we get to the MATTER of fact. The term birth is akin to "berth" which Black's Law defines as 1. a place where passengers sleep on a ship or train. 2. where a boat is moored when loading and discharging passengers or cargo. In other words, the arrival of a vessel at sea that enters a port and docks with permission of the dock master. An interesting fact, till this day the dock master of a port still issues a berth certificate which has been registered and incorporated into some sort of commercial body of law. A copy of this certificate is handed to the captain of the arriving ship. Coincidence? Are echoes of citizen-SHIP ringing in your head yet? We've only yet to arrive at the crime scene, the violent act has yet to occur. The sin is still brewing. But I'm sure this puzzle is beginning to take shape in your mind. Now I want you to recall as best you can, your memories of being born. I will use my own story as the prop as it tells the tale of the most recent metaphoric ship to arrive here on MY Earth. From the moment of fertilization to the 40 weeks thereafter of our first child, was all a blur. In over my head, all I could anticipate was the birth of my to be child. Ill-informed, naive and ignorant that within my wife grew a single cell zygote, and was developing into a multi-organ'd fetus with a very special organ and a very special function known as the extra embryonic material that bonds baby and momma in the womb. I gave it little thought as I was preoccupied with work and the mundane of life. And before I could stop to take it all in and meditate on the gravity of the situation, 40 weeks passed by in the blink of my bright eyes. And it happened one night. In the middle of the night. I found myself driving myself, my wife, and my expected baby to the scene of the crime.

[@raymondergarcia]

As my wife lay strapped to the hospital bed with a catheter intruding one end, and a needle pierced through another, she struggled in labor as if reduced to a ward in an insane asylum, trying to fight off both the pain of labor and the humility of incarceration. But we "had faith" in the institution we had trusted, and believed they knew what was best for her, thus we had no hesitations as my wife was monitored by machines like a mouse in a cage, a test subject of sorts, injected with foreign fluids, violating her most intimate space as they conducted "internal checks" at an excessive rate, and worst of all, induced a numb sensation throughout her body as they administered a drug in the form of an epidural that sent shockwaves of depressants through her central nervous system; sending her body to a momentary death. A death just long enough to deprive her of the natural God given sensations of bearing her first child. That Nirvanic and beautiful pain was stolen in the sake of discouragement and pity... Vanishing by the wayside of artificial chemicals whose potion was crafted to sensor the truth. But Alas, our baby had traveled through the metaphoric canal, still connected to the nautical naval, now ready to exit the waters of mother; The contractions (meaning to bring together or to abridge) had emerged closer, her cervix had gone through waves of dilatations (breadth, widening, the opening of the puerta/door/portal) and baby's crown was finally visible. Ahhh!!! With nervous excitement and blood filled anticipation, I ready myself to meet a Queen, a King, I don't know the gender yet, but I do know they are sovereign and royal as I can with clarity see a CROWN! The ghost of my wife in all her visible agony, yet void of complete sensation, then pushed out the evolutionary entirety of our 23 chromosome donation that has for 40 weeks evolved from a single cell zygote into a fully developed unique, original, vintage fetus with a 46 chromosomes "original package" that belonged to her and only her. And she is born. It all happened so fast, gleefully and still flushed with nerves I let the dockmaster do their job as they checked the vitals of the baby. Then they handed our child to her mother for the first time and in my vulnerable state of ghostly presence, the dockmaster asked me, "Dad, would you like to CUT THE CORD?" As if an honor only meant for the most deserving had been bestowed upon me, a twisted milestone of sorts. I stupidly, ignorantly, and hastily fall for the trap. And I commit the crime of aborting my own child from all her extra embryonic material. Her possessions. The ark that guided her genetic covenant through the allegorical 40 days and 40 nights of her Noah's flood. The Church that housed and sheltered her most holy of sacraments, and the baby Jesus that was her sacrificial lamb and bore her crossing of her motherland from the country where no man returns. In an instant. Without even asking my baby or considering her wishes, I abandoned her property that was so pure and innocent, unblemished, and without defects. She is now the phantom of the opera as the French saying goes, "Le Mort Vivant". The living dead. All the while, her placenta was still pulsating and yet to be naturally delivered from momma. And as Shakespeare so eloquently put it, her "Fair Youth", had ended before it had the chance to begin. The dockmaster and his goonies then yanked my baby's extra embryonic material out of her mother and disposed of it as if dumping a bag of trash. Unappreciated and neglected. Still alive and pulsating with blood, on its way to becoming a deposit and the MATTER of fact. THEE specimen that gave rise to the birth certificated decedent estate known as my daughters name. Held in title. Held in trust. Abandoned, unclaimed by it's rightful owner, and pirated at the Cesqui Vie trust law of the holy sea. Oh Henry VIII, you murderous king! You are to blame! You are the fault which caused me to de-fault on my child! She is not at fault! How could she be? She is but a precious jewel who's my job it was to protect. Ahhh!!!! You useful idiot! Not only have I failed to protect my child in her arrival, I am an assailant to the crime. A stumbling fool caught red handed with the weapon. Running with scissors never ends well. And as the saying goes, "the first cut is the deepest". And this is just the first of many natural shocks the flesh is heir to. Allah Shakespeare speaks truth once again. Like a drunken fool, I had offered up her dowry as she readies for her consummation. Enter Woodcock stage left. The proverbial Woodcock is behind the curtains in the backroom, fashioning her a new wedding dress, as the marriage between Church and STATE is about to commence. And with the weaving of a spell, with bright eyes I am handed a form. This form that con-forms to the will of another. An unseen force, yet one that strikes fear and as Alma puts it. Demands respect. Demands every piece of you. I handed the form over to my wife who was still in a state of pain and agony. And with her sign of nature, through her voluntary consent, and on my dumb watch, she offers her sig-nature as the legal guardian and informant letting the receiver know the cargo is ready for the taking. Like a chattel branded with hot iron and coal, my baby has been given a name. Not not just a name, but has been assigned a TITLE in ALL CAPS to signify her place in office. Still bright eyed with incompetence, I am told that I must take this evidentiary piece of paper to an elusive office of vital records to Re-chord her TITLE in a ritualistic registration. Ahh, she is now regal like Alma, the courting ended faster than it began. She had been placed on a pedestal and her dimensions have been taken by the metaphoric Woodcock with meticulous precision as his bookkeeper Cyril jots down her statics for the re-cord. Head circumference, length of arms, length of legs, body, belly. It is done. Her identification has been alchemized. And she is now part of the House of Woodcock. What was once the property of one becomes the property of another. From gill breathing sperm to encapsulated egg, this single cell zygote which has the handprint of God, Da Vinci's Sistine chapel, has been desecrated. Though the water creature fish had fully developed into a healthy amphibian fetus, simultaneously living in the waters yet breathing oxygen through the interface of her mother through the holy bond they genetically shared via the placenta. To finally, a walking, breathing, spirit filled bipedal in its entirety... I ruined, in the act of the cut. Dis-ease. To be out of ease. Without peace. Unwhole. In the eyes of the Church, this child now needs salvaging which can only come through salvation. The church is there to offer her Jesus, Buddha, and Allah. In the eyes of the STATE, she is incompetent and inconsistent. Another loony in the loony house. The STATE is there to offer its services of administration, benefits, and the management of her Cesqui Vie Trust as an incestuous and wretched trustee. And Woodcock. The middleman. The one who sewed her phantom limb back together again. Daniel Day Lewis. The useful idiot, so pompous and well respected. Revered by the masses. Whose name carries clout! The truth is out of our control yet it is inside of us all. Oh you stranger on KZbin! The gull to speak such blasphemies about my life!?! You digital avatar dare rain on my parade?! Well more often than not, the things we most cherish in life, are the things most toxic for our health. Ask Alma, as she desperately tries to gain the love and affection of Woodcocks, yet ironically faces the constant growing scorn of his condescending abuse. Toxic and un-natural. The marriage of CHURCH and STATE. Ultimately Alma is marginalized to an empty vessel without a soul. Le Mort Vivant. She has fallen for his trap. And is now the living dead. From the moment they had first locked eyes in the restaurant, Woodcock had found his mark. She was both his mark and his beast, his frankenstein to defame. He would chip away at her spirit, until she had little resemblance to the purity she once had. Expressed by his insatiable appetite, she would be something too grotesque to salvage. The first meeting of the two at the restaurant is the most important scene as it begins her downfall. Naively she enters into a contract with him as she takes his glutenous order. He asks her to re-member it, to make it part of her as if a member of one's family. He takes the original paper, symbolic of the evidentiary contract. He asks her out for dinner, knowing she would accept as she never stood a fighting chance. She then seals the deal in the act of handing him a document giving her Name (title), date, and initials, and most important; her voluntary sign of nature. He found his mark. She had given her signature and symbolically registered it into his keeping. The act of registration. This was not the first time the house of Woodcock needed a new body. Not a woman, not a soul inspired by God, but a vibrant, youthful body of whose soul was to be sucked away. That was the real deal. She had entered into a commercial trust that would revolve around her body being the collateral for the agreement evidenced by her birth certificated decedent (dead) estate. The part of her that was living once, as Shakespear says, " For in that sleep of death what dreams may come, When we have shuffled off this mortal coil". That mortal coil, reader, is the toroidal, spiral, umbilical cord that attaches baby to mother through the interface of the placenta, which is then alchemically sewn back together by the dressmaker with his phantom thread.

[@raymondergarcia]

Woodcock made it clear on their first intimate rendezvous that he was not interested in her love, but her equity, strictly a matter of business. He would use her and abuse her without remorse, just a subject to be profited from. Commercialized. He would parade her around in the manner that his aristocratic clients would do in his dresses. His job was to fashion, to fabricate and weave a story of lies, and extort her essence by deriving an artifact in the form of a dress that had a link to her God given biological estate. And he did this with the phantom thread as the bond holding that TRUST in place, re-attaching her metaphoric deposit, a.k.a. the phantom limb. Her anty, her chip in the game. Her placenta. As Shakespeare Hamlet says, "Ay there's the rub." She was to suffer the same fate as Joanna did in the very early onset of the story once Alma's asset had been fully depreciated and sucked dry. Nothing more than a tax write-off to be sent to salvage. Alma, being a native of the land, Cyril instructed Woodcock to visit "the country" to find their next SUBJECT. Cyril said, "I will be there tomorrow". Alma, the indigenous woman, had begun her journey innocent and without defect. Sovereign. And had fallen into a conspiracy too evil to be believed. We readers, if you are still there, have suffered the same trap as Alma. Our God inspired/spiritual native, indigenous manhood and womanhood has been stripped of its sovereignty. We've been domiciled and domesticated from the people of the land to the souls lost at sea. Dead souls at that. A resident of the Situs. A citizen of the STATE. In her fit of jealousy and insecurity, Alma confronts the French princess by reminding the princess that the House of Woodcock was her residence. Do not make the same mistake as Alma. Do not be Hamlet and let the seed of injustice rot into a fruit of passion and revenge. You must be a pacifist and learn to forgive and forget. In full disclosure, I haven't even finished watching the film, but I think I know how this story will end. As Hollywood partakes in the soft disclosure of the truth, with an insidious twist that is; Alma becomes the tragic hero by devising a plan to murder and poison Woodcock. She is the Hamlet of Denmark. Enraged in madness, stooping to the same level as her abuser. She has made the decision to not let bygones be bygones, or let dead dogs lay, she seeks vengeance to, "settle the score". The world is a game and I'm just a player in it. That is my prize and I will compete for its deed. I think I will end here. I've beaten this horse to death and there is no more water for it to drink. Now that you've made it to the end, you can now re-watch this movie with a new frame of reference. The reference of TRUTH. Once you see the truth you can't unsee it. It will crawl out from the underbelly of the beast and shine like the brightest star. Daniel Day Lewis knows this. He has perpetuated this story in many of his "his-storically" based films. Glazing over the past, romanticizing, dramatizing, and propagandizing the "jus cogens" to the people fallen victim. Crimes of humanity. The trafficking of the innocent. Oh the twisted irony of the holly-wood. Now go. And return the authority back to yourself by the only means possible. Not through the sword, but through the word. Become the author of your own story and correct the fault that was not yours to begin. I gave you a shovel. Now dig.

[@pureuncutlakers1010]

This movie was not as good as all the critics say. And you know what, all the critics know it. This is one of those movies that separate the critics from everyone else. This movie makes critics feel special because hey, any idiot could tell you Goodfellas was great. But only a true film connoisseur and enthusiast could see the deeper meaning in Phantom Thread. Bullsh!t.

[@marshacreary9771]

4:11-4:17 The long way around= The circuitous route

[@erichvonmolder9310]

I just watched it, better late than never. At the end of the movie, my wife and I at the same time turned to each and I said, "FU." It was an immediate response! Daniel Day-Lewis wasn't so great, he was acting, like so many other actors, he did his job. The wife was poisoning him and at the end, he approved of it, ridiculous. None of the characters were even the least bit interesting - both main characters were a**holes. Riveting? Heck No. This is a D movie, forgotten in the ash heap of below average movies. You can't even compare this movie and Daniel Day-Lewis performance with any of his other movies. My Left Foot - Wonderful. In The Name of the Father - Wonderful. Lincoln - Wonderful. If you are looking for a point to the movie, it's not worth your time or effort.

[@ih8mcfly]

What has this got to do with phantom of the opera ? So misleading

[@fluff975]

good shit christy

[@marshacreary9771]

4:55-6:45 Hmmmmmmm

[@jmeekselectric]

16 minutes on this one.... 6 minutes on 3 Billboards.

[@Cliff537]

I love Paul Thomas Anderson but the trailers made this movie look super dull.

[@marshacreary9771]

7:11-7:48 Ergo, the Phantom Thread

[@binaryg]

Ben Mankiewicz "I'm not a genius" Duh, Really?

[@LateCambrian]

Fav of the year.

[@jakedee507]

lovely hair, Christy!

[@marshacreary9771]

Great discussion

[@ChubbyChecker182]

Just seen it. It's a bit crap.

[@pralhadshrestha7872]

"..no English heterosexual fashion designers in 50's" is that true or is Alonso Duralde just guessing.

[@reclaimedandrested]

Ben is cute😍😍😍

[@FayeMaramara]

I absolutely love this film!

[@irishkcguy]

Is this a sequel to Mr. Woodcock?

[@lostintechnicolor]

Ben seems miserable all the time... 😒

[@FrancoisDressler]

He can't do anything to bring an end to the infamous pedophile rings in Hollywood. I'd be depressed too.

[@vicaldama9314]

Cuz he wants to hog the camera

[@brianarguello7576]

The first half of this movie made me wanna sedate myself. The second half was great though.