Review: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
To put it simply, this was a good movie. Was it the greatest Tarantino movie of all time? Should it win Best Picture this year? Most definitely not, but I enjoyed watching it all the same. There were elements that I loved and things that I had problems with, and I would recommend you go see it to develop an opinion of your own.
The performances were incredible – I would be shocked if that weren’t the case. Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio did not disappoint. If you ask my brother, “Brad Pitt really carried the movie,” and while I am inclined to agree, I also was impressed with the performances by Margot Robbie, Margaret Qualley, Austin Butler, Dakota Fanning, and Kurt Russell. Pitt and Qualley’s scenes together particularly stood out to me – I first saw Qualley in Spike Jonze’s 2016 Kenzo perfume ad and can’t wait to see what she does next. However, the whole thing did start to feel a little “here’s this random celebrity for three seconds.” I know Tarantino movies are usually pretty star studded, but nevertheless it stood out to me weirdly. Lena Dunham?? What are you doing here?
One thing that really got me was the pacing. I often found myself looking down at my watch during the extensive scenes on the set of the Westerns, thinking “why is this important?” I get it, it established Rick Dalton’s character as a washed-up actor and gave the audience nostalgia for a Hollywood gone by, but it got to be a little much after the second or third time. This was a disappointing feeling because I always associate Quentin Tarantino with killer pacing. When the movie ended, I felt that that they could have cut at least an hour out.
However, my comment about the pacing doesn’t hold water for the film’s last 30-45 minutes. I loved the quintessential Tarantino recipe of violence and comedy. Whenever I watch a Tarantino movie, I am reminded of what Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami said of him: “…since violence will never leave the American film, an important thing Tarantino has done is to find a way to at least make fun of violence, and that brings down the tension of violence.” I felt like the films last scenes could have been a short film on their own, although I guess that would take away from the nostalgic, corrupted feeling the first half set up.
And the best part about “Once Upon A Time in Hollywood?” That’s easy. Cliff Booth’s dog, Brandy. Winner of the 2019 Palm Dog at Cannes (really the only award that matters all year), she made the movie for me. Oh, and was anyone else mesmerized at the dog food sliding out of the cylindrical cans? Because I was.
Some interesting thoughts on the movie:
Vice on Brad Pitt’s acid dipped cigarette: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/7xg54z/lets-discuss-quentin-tarantino-inaccuracy-in-once-upon-a-time-in-hollywood-ending
The New York Times: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2019-07-31/once-upon-a-time-in-hollywood-nostalgia-make-america-great-again
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