Lackluster

Rating: 5/10 (28 July 2019)

Let me start off by saying, scenes from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood are really quite great, but as a whole, the film is just seriously lacking in depth. This is easily Tarantino's most underwhelming film. About halfway through, I realized this isn't a piece of historical fiction that was going to graphically display the Sharon Tate murder. But instead, was actually an alternative reality about "what might've happened" mixed with this awkward "what the real life of Hollywood stars is like". Which made for an awkward movie-going experience. All criticism aside, the ending was fantastic. I'll sound like a sadist for a second, but Tarantino is known for his graphic and violent scenes, and I got just a small taste of that. However, I think Tarantino would have done a much better job showing the Manson followers slaughtering Sharon Tate and her guests. I suspect he didn't do that because he didn't want to be predictable. Ultimately, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood left me upset that I paid money to see it. Even worse, the guy behind me in the theater fell asleep. I think his response is a pretty accurate summary of what the entire film experience was like.