Summary
Back in town, a train offloads some barrels for oil storage. Daniel returns to his house to find a man claiming to be Henry Plainview, his half-brother. Henry tells Daniel that their father has died and that he has come looking for a job. Daniel asks for proof of Henry’s identity, and Henry produces a letter from their sister. Inside, Henry explains his backstory: he tried a number oil ventures which failed and that he had been jailed for several months. Henry declines to go into more detail in front of H.W., apparently unaware of his deafness. Daniel then forces H.W. to drink milk mixed with a substantial amount of alcohol to keep him sedate and in bed. Outside, Daniel asks Henry a few more questions before giving him a job.
H.W. looks through Henry’s bag and discovers his diary, including a picture of a woman. While he’s doing this we hear the voices of Henry and Daniel talking about their backstories some more. We cut to them talking and drinking by a fire at night. Daniel talks about some of his early jobs but trails off and starts asking Henry about his personality. He asks if Henry is ambitious or envious of other people before explaining that he himself is extremely competitive and resents other people. Henry responds that his failures have stripped him of his own ambition, but Daniel asserts that if they are related Henry must have some of that ambition. Daniel goes on to say that once he earns enough money he will try to stay away from other people. Henry asks what Daniel will do about H.W. Daniel says he does not know, and muses about the possibility of his hearing coming back. Henry asks about H.W.’s mother but Daniel refuses to discuss the topic. He goes on to say that he is glad Henry is there because he doubts he could continue the work much longer on his own.
Later that night, H.W. starts a fire in the house. Daniel and Henry wake up and put it out. Daniel chases H.W. outside and grabs him. We cut to Daniel and H.W. sitting on a train. Daniel says he needs to speak to the conductor and leaves, asking H.W. to stay in the seat. However, Daniel leaves the train before it pulls out of the station. H.W. sees him out of the window and tries to follow him but is grabbed by Fletcher before he can jump off. All the while, Daniel does not look back at the train.
Daniel and Henry meet with representatives from Standard Oil led by H.M. Tilford. Tilford asks about H.W.’s condition; Daniel thanks him for his concern but refuses to discuss the matter. Tilford offers to buy Daniel’s tracts in Little Boston as well as an unrelated tract in a different area. They agree on a deal for the separate tract, but Daniel is more stubborn about the Little Boston land. Tilford promises to make Daniel a millionaire, but Daniel asks what he would do with his life after that. Tilford is confused by the question and suggests that Daniel would simply take care of H.W. Daniel admonishes Tilford for Standard Oil’s monopolistic practices and implies that they only profit off of the hard work of others. Tilford warns Daniel that his idea to build a pipeline with Union Oil might fall through, leaving him with no way to profit off the oil, suggesting that selling to Standard Oil is the easiest way out. He also suggests that Daniel could use this opportunity to spend more time caring for H.W. Daniel is incensed by this, threatening to cut Tilford’s throat. Tilford is confused; Daniel leaves after telling Tilford not to presume to tell Daniel how to run his family.
Daniel tries to plot out a route for his pipeline but discovers that the ideal route would have to go through the Bandy tract which he failed to buy at the outset. Daniel asks Fletcher about H.W.’s conditions at the deaf school in San Francisco. Fletcher tells him the boy is has a reasonably sized room with a good roommate. Fletcher asks about Daniel bringing Henry to business meetings but Daniel says nothing and leaves.
Daniel goes out to Bandy’s house and finds the man’s grandson. Daniel asks to speak with Bandy, but the young man says he is away and doesn’t want drilling on his property. Daniel explains that he doesn’t want to drill there and says he will be back in a week to discuss propositions with Bandy. Daniel and Henry travel through Bandy’s land, taking measurements and marking spots for the pipeline. Later, he strikes a deal with Union Oil, nailing a stake into a map where the pipeline has been plotted out. Daniel and Henry swim in the ocean in celebration. On the beach, they reminisce about their hometown. Daniel describes a nearby house that he coveted, but asserts that the house he will build for himself will be much greater. He then reminisces about the hometown peach tree dance, but Henry does not seem to know what he is talking about. Daniel looks troubled. We see a shot of the two men sitting side by side, Daniel in sunlight and Henry in shadow. Daniel gets up and walks away.
That night, the two are at a tavern. Henry is drunk and dancing while Daniel sits brooding in a corner. Henry asks Daniel for more money, which he begrudgingly gives. Later they are at camp and Daniel wakes Henry up with a gun. Daniel asks for the name of a neighboring farm in their hometown. Henry cannot answer and admits that he is an imposter who knew the real Henry Plainview and took his identity after he died of tuberculosis. He explains that he was adrift and came to Daniel because he was desperate for a place in life. He asserts that his and Daniel’s friendship is genuine, but Daniel shoots him dead. Daniel buries “Henry” in a watery ditch by their campsite while the sinister music from the film’s opening plays. Daniel looks through Henry’s diary and finds the picture of the woman, and one of a child which might be the real Henry.
Analysis
This section is primarily concerned with the arrival of “Henry Plainview,” the man claiming to be Daniel’s long-lost half-brother. He comes to Daniel at a very pivotal moment: the wells are beginning to generate a serious flow of oil, but H.W. has been permanently deafened and Daniel’s relationship with Eli is in tatters. H.W.’s disability has left Daniel feeling isolated and alone, unable to communicate with one of two people (the other being Fletcher) who he could call a friend and confide in. Henry arrives at the perfect time to fill this role. Under normal circumstances, Daniel would probably be more skeptical of Henry’s claim (recall the interrogation he put Paul through before giving him any money; Henry’s claim is far more doubtful on its face than Paul’s claim) but the new hole in his life has caused him to let his guard down. Once he begins to form a connection with Henry, he intentionally marginalizes H.W.’s place in his life, perhaps demonstrating how H.W.’s role in Daniel’s life was as much utilitarian as intimate, if not more so. He feeds H.W. alcohol to sedate him while he spends time with Henry, ultimately leading H.W. to set the house on fire in a desperate bid for attention. This is the last straw, leading Daniel to send H.W. to San Francisco and completely excise the boy from his life. Henry fills the role of a family member used to project the image of a wholesome family business; Daniel immediately begins taking him to business meetings for which Henry lacks any relevant experience or qualifications.
Henry himself is an interesting foil for Daniel. All Henry really wants out of life is to find a place where he genuinely belongs, whereas Daniel seems allergic to the very notion of belonging anywhere. Henry is completely unambitious, content with a basic level of stability and comfort after many years of hard living. Daniel is infinitely ambitious and never content with anything he gains or accomplishes. Yet despite these massive differences between the two men they form a very intimate relationship, more than any we have seen Daniel form thus far. Daniel confides in Henry his deepest and truest feelings about the world, as well as warmly reminiscing about their hometown. Yet it is also these memories of home which spoil the relationship. Henry’s inability to remember certain details about their hometown puts a splinter of doubt in Daniel’s mind, quickly driving him mad. Daniel had allowed himself to reconnect to his more human side, acknowledging his past and his family, and forging personal connections with others. In killing Henry, Daniel negates all this progress and cuts himself off from the rest of humanity again. Daniel never fully recovers from this moment; he is never as sharp or confident again after this point, turning to alcohol and leaning into the more combative aspects of his personality.
One more scene of note is the negotiation with H.M. Tilford and Standard Oil. Tilford is unique among the people with whom Daniel negotiates in that he never feels genuinely threatened by Daniel’s demeanor. Even when Daniel threatens to cut his throat Tilford seems more offended by Daniel’s bizarre manner than worried that Daniel might actually try to kill him. This is because Daniel has no power over him; Standard Oil has a monopoly on the oil industry, and the best Daniel can do is circumvent them, which is what he hopes to do with his proposed pipeline. If Tilford can’t get Daniel to sell his leases, then he’ll just move on to some other oil finds in California. The house always wins in the end; Tilford knows this and Daniel knows this. Daniel is particularly disturbed by Tilford’s suggestion that Daniel can give up oil work and spend more time with H.W. This both raises the distressing possibility of a life without work, which for Daniel is a purposeless life, and raise the issue of Daniel’s negligent fatherhood. This is a particularly sore spot in the immediate aftermath of H.W. being sent to San Francisco. Perhaps Daniel knows deep down he is in the wrong, or perhaps he is merely so territorial that he cannot countenance another person presuming to comment on his parenting.
