1960s Hollywood nostalgia mixed with wish fulfillment

Rating: 10/10 (22 December 2019)

I'll make the bold statement that this is writer/director Quentin Tarantino's best film thus far. However, "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood" is also Tarantino's most specific and idiosyncratic of film, which is saying something from the man who's made a career of making incredibly idiosyncratic films seemingly made only to sate no one but his own tastes in cinema, which makes the film also his least accessible. The story revolves around fading Hollywood star Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his loyal stuntman/personal assistant Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) figuring out what to do next with his career. Having been the star of a number of Audie Murphy-type of genre pictures and the TV western "Bounty Law" (which Tarantino actually wrote multiple teleplays for and teased he'd like to film on day), Dalton now finds himself relegated to guest spots on TV series as the villain so producers can build up their new stars by showing them killing off the star of "Bounty Law." Dalton has to make big career choices, deciding whether to continue acting on American television or consider opportunities to star in low budget Italian productions, much like Clint Eastwood did following his stint on the TV western "Rawhide," as did many other fading Hollywood stars and B-level actors. The other significant story thread that looms large over the film is Dalton's new neighbors, real-life director Roman Polanski and his young wife, actress Sharon Tate. They are introduced early and although a majority of the film follows Dalton and Booth, the audience is kept in suspense with the prescient knowledge of the horrific Manson Murders. The Dalton/Booth story and Manson story cross paths when Booth flirts with a hippie chick who invites him to drive her out to Spahn Ranch, home to the infamous Manson Family, as well as a blind and bedridden George Spahn, a brilliant Bruce Dern, who's renting his rundown backlot western town to the group. The film's one scene at Sphan Ranch is the closest Tarantino has ever come to making a horror film and the scene is incredibly creepy and unsettling. Tarantino does what he does best, which is build slow burn suspense that grows to an always satisfying climax (i.e. Bruce facing down Zed and Maynard, the opening scene of "Inglourious Basterds," or almost any scene in "The Hateful Eight). What he does so well in his films is that he establishes the threat of violence and keeps ratcheting it up until you can't stand it any longer, climaxing in an explosion of violence, which makes me really wish Tarantino get behind the camera for a full-on horror film. But I digress. "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood" is a love letter to the era it's set, creating a fairy tale world where there is a mourning for the passing of old Hollywood as well as a celebration of the new. It's hard to say whether I enjoyed more the film's characters and story or it's recreations of 1960s Hollywood. The Cinerama Theater, Bruce Lee working as Kato on the set of the Green Hornet (getting his ass handed to him by Brad Pitt's Cliff Booth in a somewhat controversial of a scene), to the charming backlot filming of various TV shows and movies, are all utterly enthralling in this Hollywood dreamland. This is one of those films where you just want to step onto the screen and live in this world. Though equally compelling are Tarantino's characters and plotting, which get better with each film. While DiCaprio's Dalton is completely vapid and self absorbed, but the audience can't help but root for the guy. While he's seemingly an empty shell, Dalton is talented and his loyalty to Booth is endearing, as is Booth's loyalty to Dalton. There's one scene in particular that stands out in the middle of the film where Dalton has a crisis-of-faith moment while making a TV western guest villain appearance where he pours his heart out to a precocious child actress whom his TV villain has kidnapped. The scene manages to be sincere, touching, and utterly hilarious. The child address, Julia Butters, nearly steals the scene from DiCaprio. With the exception of the film's finale, this is likely the most memorable scene in the film. As with most of Tarantino's films, he features a cast that's as eclectic as they are talented, which includes Margot Robbie as Tate, Emille Hirsch as her friend, Timothy Olyphant as an up-and-coming TV actor, Dakota Fanning as Squaky Fromme, and also Luke Perry, Al Pacino as a hilarious agent, Kurt Russell as a stuntman (possibly connected to Stuntman Mike in "Death Proof"?), Lena Dunham, Maya Hawke, Danielle Harris, Martin Kove, Clu Gulager, Rumer Willis, Rebecca Gayheart, Zoe Bell, Michael Madsen, Tim Roth, and James Remar. Tarantino often has great casts in his films, but this one is really special. Robert Richardson captures the era with dynamite photography, which feels both nostalgic while also capturing the Hollywood fairy tale elements of Tarantino's vision. Much credit also has to go the the production design team, who made this feel like an authentic vision of 1969 Hollywood, though it could very well be the Hollywood versions of 1960s Hollywood, and in either case, it's stunning. And without spoiling anything, the film's finale is ridiculously fun. In summary, if you love the types of films Quentin Tarantino loves, which runs the gamut of low-budget genre pictures to foreign arthouse flicks, you will find "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood" an utterly enchanting film experience.