Tarantino's nostalgic tribute to Hollywood.. or his own career..

Rating: 7/10 (30 July 2019)

I'm a big fan of Tarantino's films. So, I was excited to see his "ninth film." This movie was clearly a work of craftsmanship. All the elements were there. The acting was absolutely on point. Leonardo DiCaprio gave us passion, development, remorse, and discovery. Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Margaret Qualley, and the rest were all pitch perfect. Cinematography, editing, sound, all masterfully dealt, as one would expect. The writing... well.. the dialog, was there. But, what about the story? A movie doesn't need a plot, but a good movie always has something to say. So what was this film trying to say? (Besides being an ad for the tobacco industry)
That's where this film started to diverge from his earlier work. There wasn't much gratuitous violence (until the end). While each scene was interesting to watch as a crafted slice-of-life biopic, without the over-the-top theatrics, it got, at 2h 41m, frankly a bit boring. I've seen people walk out of his films from shock value; I could see them walking out of this one for boredom. It did hew closely to his template as a historical what-if revenge. This time around, it was the Charles Manson murders. Unfortunately, I didn't know this going in and, not having lived through it, I wasn't versed in the details. So, unlike his previous forays into nazis, slavers, bounty hunters, etc., the context wasn't as universally familiar. I needed to find something else to resonate. It also feels at this point that the revenge-twist climax is Tarantino on writing auto-pilot. I think at heart, this was really just a nostalgia film.
Also unfortunately for me, I didn't live through and couldn't relate to Hollywood in the late 60s, nor do I have a desire for that brand of misogyny. Maybe I'm just too young to really appreciate this film? Sharon Tate's character was sweet and innocent and showed her potential; but it had thin writing and little development. Maybe that was the point. Margot has the chops, but the empowerment of Pam Grier or Uma Thurman was sorely missing as the male leads save the day for his shrieking and flailing real-life wife Daniela Pick.
I suppose this flick gives a window into another time and place... But really, the best I garnered from it was that, on another level, it was actually a self-allegory. A nostalgia not just for Hollywood, but a tribute for Tarantino's own career and films (it was quite replete with insider references). How fitting that the main character was wrestling with fear of being washed up and past his prime. Is this some self-awareness of Tarantino's own insecurities? Unfortunately, I fear this movie makes it a self-fulfilling prophecy...