This is the epitome of a Tarantino movie, filled with style and indulgence and light on substance or purpose

Rating: 6/10 (28 July 2019)

Whatever you've thought of Tarantino's previous films, you're likely to feel similarly about this one. The most pleasant surprise and difference for me was the humor - it was by far his funniest movie from start to finish, with great individual lines ("we love pussy" "yes we do") to great character moments (Rick giving himself a pep talk or the acid scene at the end). The jokes landed well, and there were a bunch. As you would expect, the performances were very good, especially Leo, who's excellent as the lead, and Pitt, who's also very convincing. Robbie's role was completely insignificant to the plot (though obviously central to the meaning and real story being referenced here), and regardless of the implications of her role, if she was nominated for best supporting actress for a small few unremarkable scenes, I would be extremely disappointed.
My biggest frustration with the film, as always, is with the third act. Much like in Django, it felt like Tarantino was really doing his best to hold back and make a nice, consistent movie, was going along... and just couldn't take it anymore and let it run absolutely wild in the last 20 minutes. Fully indulgent and over the top violence ensues in a way that makes the rest of the carefully crafted Manson story and character stories of Rick and Cliff feel less serious and legitimate. The relationship to the real murders felt fairly tangential, especially with the ending we see. I appreciate that Tarantino makes a clear effort to portray Tate not as a victim but as a real person, but given her complete irrelevance to the movie's story, I don't think it's completely impactful. Beyond the real life story which is its inspiration, it feels like a classic grand Tarantino with little substance or things that will stay with you. I don't regret watching it as it's funny and isn't boring, but is definitely meandering, and the juxtaposition between the ending and everything before didn't work at all for me.