As with any film that you see Daniel Day-Lewis in, Phantom Thread is something that seems to go off the rails at some point, but in this film it’s not in a crazed, chaotic sort of way. Instead the film has him as a rather aloof and sometimes cruel individual that designs and creates highly fashionable garments for high society. But when he meets Alma his life is changed in such a way that he can’t help but revert back to the man that he really is and eventually comes close to driving her off. When she figures out how to handle him however it becomes a rather interesting if somewhat confusing relationship as she keeps him weak just to keep him strong.
To those that enjoy this type of film it’s worth checking out.
10. The director got the idea for this film when he was sick in bed.
His wife looked at him so lovingly, something she hadn’t done in a long time, that he came up with the idea for this film.
9. Daniel Day-Lewis went and studied as he usually does for his roles.
He’s always delved deeply into his roles, finding out just what he would need to pull off the character and actually become that individual.
8. The actress that played Alma, Vicky Krieps, didn’t meet Day-Lewis until her first day on set.
She was encouraged to call him by his stage name so that he could stay in character. She even did this during the promotional tour so as to keep the character alive.
7. Lesli Manville, who played Reynolds’ sister, became a real life friend to Day-Lewis to cement the onscreen chemistry.
They had text each other a lot since the two of them lived respectively in London and Ireland, which made it hard to get together at times.
6. Day-Lewis announced that after this film he was retiring from acting.
A lot of people were troubled by this since he’s been an absolute gem on the Hollywood scene for a long time and losing him in any way would be unbearable.
5. The name of Reynolds Woodcock was initially a joke.
It made the director laugh so hard for so long that he decided to put it into the movie and it stuck.
4. Many of the staff are actual seamstresses or have something to do with the fashion industry.
This obviously helped to keep a level of authenticity to the film that might have otherwise been easy to see past.
3. The budget for this film was $35 million.
That’s not overly expensive but it’s not entirely cheap either, which means that this movie was well thought out.
2. Daniel has not seen the film in its finished state.
It’s surprising how many actors don’t see their own movies until years later, if at all. But this one apparently left him emotionally drained.
1. There’s no date given so as to tell what time period the movie is set in.
In the movie there’s nothing to say just what time period it is but by the style of dress and the surroundings it’s likely in the 1950’s.
If it’s his last film then it was a great way to go out.
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