MovieChat Forums > There Will Be Blood (2008) Discussion > 'I'm finished' (spoilers)

'I'm finished' (spoilers)

posted 8 years ago by JimmyMcCool
15 replies | jump to latest

When Daniel said he was finished, do you reckon he said it because it was his proudest achievement killing Eli? The same classical music came on that was played when the oil started pumping, and that was a significant moment and a great achievement for Daniel. He never liked Eli. Daniel doesn't just kill Eli, he destroys him, he gets him to confess that he's a fraud and tell him in no uncertain terms he's getting no money and he drained all the oil. He got away with murder before, he could do it again.

[–] McKealty 8 years ago

I think it was a little bit of both.

He was saying that he was finished with Eli and also that he himself was finished... Kind of a subconscious confession.

I've always had the feeling that he wouldn't get away with it this time.

[–] twominds79 8 years ago

The guy above nailed it . I loved the ending . So engrossing the final squaring off between Daniel and Eli .

[–] [deleted] 6 years ago

Yeah. I think that's it.

It had a double meaning. He was finished with Eli and he was finished too, as in ruined, rock bottom.

[–] irish-mclean 8 years ago

Yep, always saw Daniel and Eli as doppelgangers, as both were conmen as you said. But you said it right that Eli was a weaker version of Daniel, and I think his existence pissed Daniel off even more for that reason. I don't think he ever saw Eli as a threat more of a strong nuisance. Daniel knew he was conning people but also knew was producing much from it. When he saw Eli doing the same thing as he but in a cowardly manner, it pissed him off enough to murder.

[–] kmags84 8 years ago

It's almost as if he killed himself. Alone, no one else to entertain, all the success in the world. It can be looked at in both ways

[–] JimmyMcCool 8 years ago

It's almost as if he killed himself

I thought Eli was a weaker version of Daniel. They were both conmen, except Daniel was more of a pioneer and dominant.

When Daniel assaulted Eli on the oil field, Eli mirrored the same attack on his elderly father afterward. He had the same desires and intent as Daniel but he was physically and intellectually weaker.

[–] kmags84 8 years ago

I can agree with that. There are a lot of parallels between the two played out through the film. PTA likes to examine the topic. Did so with The Master and Inherent Vice as well.

[–] rarh87 8 years ago

Engrossing? Final squaring off? Please, don't make this sound like an epic scene from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Eli was NEVER a threat to Daniel, and we never saw some mutual and clever sabotage from both parts to destroy their image in front of everyone. So why kill the poor guy at the end? So we can keep seeing how big of an a-hole he still is after all these years? Very engrossing and game changer of a film. This movie has good cinematography and cool eerie soundtrack, but that's about it. All hype.

[–] jaseace 8 years ago

Agree^^. Eli wasnt really a conman and he was never a threat to Daniel but he was one of the few people that got the best of daniel when he was forced to "accept the blood" and be forgiven and Eli gets to basically humiliate Daniel for once.
It definately was not about the two of them squaring off. By the end Daniel was filthy rich but just so mentally unhinged and paranoid. He chugged half a bottle of liquor like it was nothing, his rage made him insane and finally snapped and
just let Eli have it at the end. The "im finished" line is meant to be ambiguous, I think he just finally lost his marbles after always getting away with everything. Im sure he didnt care it just felt good to pummel that little twerp eli eho once had the audacity to screw with Daniel.

[–] irish-mclean 8 years ago

Haha I always thought that was water he was drinking, as I thought there was no conceivable way a person could go through that much liquor after arising from a pass-out.

[–] deddhedd-1 8 years ago

It was water. Any human being would have thrown up or passed out if they drank that much alcohol that quickly.

[–] Girls_Dont_Poop 7 years ago

I think he meant he was finished with everything. As if he had nothing left to accomplish in his life.

[–] DaveBowman2001 (467) 7 years ago

He was also finished eating his steak dinner I thought. Kinda ambiguous. Tribiguous if there's such a thing.

[–] johnmiller (3318) 6 years ago

In the context of the scene, he is telling his butler that he is finished with his food. But, we know that the unsaid meaning is that he is truly finished. We know what Eli really was, but a court will not allow a pastor to be brutally murdered without making Plainview pay, most likely with his life.

[–] bigbadwolf666 (4707) 6 years ago

He just killed a guy. He is going to jail for the rest of his life.