Phantom Thread (2017) is the best dark romance film of all time. This Paul Thomas Anderson masterpiece has it all: pageantry, ghosts, passionate power struggles, and a plot twist that is equal parts stomach-turning and erotically satisfying. The film's gothic atmosphere is a stunning homage to Rebecca, the Daphne du Maurier novel turned Hitchcock classic, but Phantom Thread's love story is anything but archaic. Actress Vicky Krieps brings to life a contemporary romantic heroine that is more than a match for Daniel Day-Lewis, her male counterpart. I explain my theories on why this unsettling love story ruffles the feathers of neoliberal critics and drove the legendary DDL into retirement.