Very Awesome

Rating: 9/10 (2 August 2019)

The ninth film from Quentin Tarantino, "Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood," follows the lives of several people involved with the film/tv industry of 1969 Los Angeles, and stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, and Margot Robbie in the lead roles. Quentin Tarantino is probably one of my favorite filmmakers of all time, and I have never been disappointed from a film of his. Naturally I was incredibly excited to see this film, and so far it is my most anticipated film to see of 2019. I was eager to see DiCaprio and Pitt co-starring in the forefront, and curious as to how Tarantino was going to handle Sharon Tate as a character in the film, who was portrayed by Margot Robbie. Yet again, Quentin Tarantino has made a wonderfully shot, intriguing, entertaining, and hilarious film, with such respect to a rather delicate subject. Probably the easiest point to hit on is the impeccable acting. DiCaprio should be nominated for an Oscar for his work, as he is absolutely breathtaking. Portraying an aging television actor, Rick Dalton, DiCaprio acts out multiple parts in his role, as you see him portray the different characters he takes on as a part of his profession, as well as Dalton himself, a complex character with prominent flaws and thoughts. The most impressive aspect of his performance was his shift in accent and dialect, as he has a bit of a speech impediment when talking regularly, while he is able to completely get rid of it when he is portraying a character. Brad Pitt, who plays Rick's stunt double Cliff Booth, is a much more simple man, seemingly, yet very intelligent and witty. The chemistry between DiCaprio and Pitt is amazing, and you can really feel the connection they have with one another. The ensemble cast that make up the rest of the characters are very good, and may get less credit for their work, just based on the divided up screen time, and sheer amount of extremely talented performances. I feel that there may be people who comment on the screen time of Sharon Tate, and how her character may not really have an arc, but the deeper you think about her character's meaning, the more I feel that she is portrayed exquisitely. Concerning the film's narrative, I felt very invested in how I should feel about certain characters, and this just makes the events that happen in the film even more impactful and emotional. Tarantino's dialogue is brilliant, as most of his films, and scenes are made even better with clever conversations between characters. The costume and production design are amazing, and throughout the film I was really curious about how they captured certain scenes. This film makes you feel like you are living in 1969, from the way people talk, to the the way they dress and dance, and the perfect 60's soundtrack, you feel like you are right there with the characters. Tarantino also crafts some very tension filled scenes, so much that I tensed up in my seat while watching them. Considering the thematic material in the film, I felt very content with how things were handled, and despite what some people might say about Tarantino and his films, he does have a true sense of morality. "Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood" explores friendship, but also talks about the influence someone can have on another person, and how much that can impact them. It also seemed to me that there were several motifs present, such as certain characters wearing sunglasses, and the privilege of driving, which attests to the freedom people were given by vehicles during that time, and how it represented status. Critics are divided right now over the film's ending, which was probably my favorite part of the film, and felt surreal and earned. Without spoiling anything, I truly feel that Tarantino has something to say about publicity, which is definitely not apparent at first, but seems to recur to me when I think about the film's ending. There is very little to criticize with this movie, and really what I found felt minuscule. The second act probably has about a ten minute section that may slightly drag, but it still very good and entertaining. While I loved the third act, I felt that the beginning of the third act was a bit inconsistent tonally. There was a several minute section that involved switching between different characters that I thought involved too much mood changing for such a short period. It would help also going into this film with just a little bit of background knowledge on the events surrounding Sharon Tate, as it will just enhance your experience. I absolutely loved "Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood," and I think this may be my favorite Tarantino film. This is definitely a film you should checkout, and it is good for a film like this to exist, as it pays homage to a great period of time in an extremely nostalgic way, yet has so much originality that it is like nothing I have ever seen before.