Sometimes you leave a movie with questions, and maybe you think the source material will have answers. Or maybe you are simply interested in reading the novel that inspired or was adapted into that movie. But walking out of There Will Be Blood last night, I wasn’t so inclined to read Upton Sinclair’s Oil! Instead, I wanted to rush to the nearest Barnes and Noble and pick up a copy of the Bible.

I’ve taken enough film classes to know that it helps to have an understanding of the Bible in order to properly discuss a lot of cinema’s greatest works. However, I’ve managed to get by just fine in my film studies without having picked up the Good Book. Maybe I’ve depended too much on other scholars and experts to spell out the religious connections in specific films, but with There Will Be Blood I’m finally thinking its time to do the reading on my own. Most films studied in my classes had those obviously apparent shots evoking Biblical imagery — a man positioned in a crucifix pose, two distinct lines intersecting like a cross, etc. — and it was easy to think I knew enough to notice basic parallels. When it came to more specific Biblical allusions and imagery, I simply missed out on some deep textural appreciation, no different than missing out on allusions to other texts unread by or unknown to me.

Is it possible to enjoy There Will Be Blood without knowledge of the Bible? Of course. Would a Bible study really help me to fully understand what the film is about? Maybe. I guess the point isn’t actually that I feel lost. I am familiar enough with the Bible to have picked up on a lot of allusions that neither seemed connected to each other nor to the plot. They merely felt like allusions for the sake of alluding, perchance to remind us that this is a Biblical sort of story. And to fit in with the religious subject matter. I guess the point is, if I don’t feel like I need to read the Bible to appreciate There Will Be Blood, that I feel like I want to read the Bible to appreciate There Will Be Blood more.

I wonder what Anderson would think about his film being an advertisement for Bible study, even if just to me. I watched his film in a packed auditorium filled with young Brooklynites, many of whom I suspect have as little Biblical background as I. Did any of them have the same thoughts as they left the theater? Did any of them head to a book store in pursuit of the Good Book? I’m sure at least one of my fellow audience members will at least be more curious about that Bible in his nightstand the next time he’s at a motel. Or maybe they all walked away uninspired, thinking nothing more than, “that guy was angry,” and “he had some issues,” which were two of the post-film quotes my companion overheard while on line for the restroom.