Exploring a tortured artist’s toxic, isolated craftsmanship and restrictions from the outside world isn’t necessarily new or always fertile territory, but with humor, grace, and nuance, Anderson and Day-Lewis created a lavish, elegant tale told poignantly and with reflection, particularly from two high-profile and revered artists who are also known for their all-consuming compulsion and infatuation with their time-consuming work.
The results are certainly enrapturing and intoxicating, with a lovely and subtle lead performance from Vicky Krieps really tying the whole ensemble together with an intricate, nicely-woven bow.
In what might very well be his final performance, by his own admission, at least, Daniel Day-Lewis reunited with There Will Be Blood writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson to tell another story of power, wealth, and ego interwoven with one’s burning obsession with Phantom Thread, a notably more hopeful and unorthodoxly romantic period piece.