Phantom Thread follows Reynolds Woodcock, a scrupulous, renowned dressmaker in 1950s post-war London, as he falls for his benevolent, yet resolute muse, Alma (Vicky Krieps), who becomes the only thing in his life that he cannot maintain control over.Paul Thomas Anderson can craft short memorable scenes in his filmography that encapsulate the quintessence of the entire emotion and tone of his films. Scenes that come to mind are the processing scene from his 2012 epic of the soul, The Master, or from 2021’s adolescent love story, Licorice Pizza, where the two lovers run towards each other as night falls, intercut with earlier moments of their running escapades. These scenes are usually pocket-sized pieces of the film, yet without them, those films would never be the same. The same principle applies to Phantom Thread.

Licorice Pizza opens with a bursting toilet and adolescent boys dashing in chaos as a result; no better way exists to encapsulate a film of 1970s pandemonium and splendor.