Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Quentin Tarantino is one of my favorite filmmakers in regards to his writing, style, and directing. His filmography is pretty interesting since he has stated that once he reached his 10th feature (Kill Bill counts as 1, not 2 according to him), he will retire from that work. Having seen most of his works (except Jackie Brown, Death Proof, and Hateful Eight), his standard trademarks in them includes some level of violence, a some showing of his foot fetish, frequent actor collaborators (such as Sam Jackson and Tim Roth), excellent dialog, tense situations in the stories, and some involvement of criminals. This brings us to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, his 9th movie that he wrote and directed. The marketing was very intriguing as it appeared very different from his previous entries where it's more focused on some slice of life aspects during 1969. It was certainly one of my most anticipated movies of the year and I needed it more than ever to raise the quality against current mainstream media. I entered the auditorium as blind as possible and left it pretty satisfied while  acknowledging it’s not Tarantino’s best (but still much better than what’s currently on the big screen at the moment).

What's it about? The fictional story follows a struggling actor and his stunt double trying to remain relevant in the changing Hollywood landscape. This is a personal project for the director as he’s showing his love for the 1960s era through either little homages to what was on the screen during the time or parodying a few of his past ventures. It’s more of a mellow feature than anything intense in what Tarantino fans are used to with him. He shows how he views that period of filmmaking with some connecting parallels to how the industry compares to the modern day along with how he wished a tragic event would be told.

In regards to any issues with the storytelling there are some aspects that are going to test audiences. It does ask for patience from its viewers when watching the characters do their normal day to day routine. That being said the main meandering complaint I would lobby against it revolves around the scene where the stunt double goes to an old film lot area since it goes on longer than it should. The ending also does something similar to what Tarantino did with Inglorious Basterds in regards to that also being a fictional historical take (which might cause some issues for some).

How are Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt? In regards to our leading men, they more than deliver in bringing their prime acting chops in their respective roles. Leonardo has a less difficult time with his return to working with Tarantino (following being uncomfortable with the N-word and his hand injury from Django Unchained) where he does an excellent characterization of a struggling actor with confidence issues. Watching him struggle with the confidence and career vulnerability is both entertaining as well as a reminder on how talented the Oscar winner is. Brad, while dealing with a rather limited role by comparison, oozes a fun charisma and is great at portraying that reliable close best buddy. Honorable mentions go to Margot Robbie, Margaret Qualley, and Al Pacino for being welcome casting additions for their respective parts.

Controversial aspects: Let's get address this area since it wouldn't be Tarantino without something popping up. There are 2 controversial parts that will certainly be brought up when discussing this. The first being the scene involving Bruce Lee and Brad Pitt's fictional stuntman character. It's been mentioned behind the scenes how uncomfortable the first version of it was before it was revised to this. Despite the whole sequence being fictional and showing how reckless the latter is, the treatment of the former will certainly rub off those who love the martial artist the wrong way (which is understandable). Personally I see what they were going for and wasn't too bothered by it but it's a sticking point for a reason (despite just being made-up for plot purposes).

The ending is another can of worms that will be briefly touched here. Because Sharon Tate is in the film, there's also the inclusion of the Mansion family. Tarantino displays what he wished would have happened to those vile murderers in his own style. If you're unaware of the event in question, researching it before (or after if you have already seen it without the context) would add more value to it.

Overall Consensus: While not the directors best work, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood celebrates the 1960s era in filmmaking through a slow paced story that's boosted by excellent directing, wonderful acting, and great dialogue. ⭑⭑⭑⭑1/2🎟🍿 Runtime: 2 hours 41 minutes R

Reasons to watch it: You like any of the aforementioned actors. You are a fan of Quentin Tarantino's work and want to see what he does next. You don't mind a tonally inconsistent ending. You enjoy 1960s period piece movies. You don't mind long runtimes with a slow pace.

Reasons to avoid it: You dislike any of the aforementioned actors. You aren't a fan of Quentin Tarantino's work. You are annoyed a tonally inconsistent ending. You dislike 1960s period piece movies. You mind long runtimes with a slow pace.