Artistically, there’s a great benefit to filming a movie in script order. For the actors and the director, they can easily track the arc of emotions and story beats to go on the journey laid out by the script. However, it’s rare that the needs of mounting a production can film this way efficiently. I thought they might’ve been able to do it with There Will Be Blood because the film starts very small and intimate. As Daniel Plainview’s story unfolds, the town builds up around him. The jump in time for the ending is to a location in California that could be prepared while the crew worked in Texas.
Not only was the film shot out of order, like most productions, several sources describe PTA’s style as “fluid,” often shooting the same scene in different locations and figuring out in the editing room which way worked best. One major exception is the flaming oil derrick. It was meant to be shot over two nights but on the first night they couldn’t put the fire out because the wood was too dry. Special Effects Supervisor Steve Cremin said to Anderson, “It’s going to collapse before it burns out, so you need to get everything you need now.”
The last scene would be something to witness, but if I was on set that day, all the unused takes might take away from the coda to Daniel Day-Lewis’ monumental performance. I’d be more interested in another scene with Paul Dano, like in the church. A scene where Eli wields the hollow notion that he has an advantage over Plainview.
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