Masterfully Shot, Expertly Acted and it Features Groovy 1960s Hollywood Style for Days

Rating: 9/10 (27 July 2019)

Once Upon has so much style, the environments the movie is set it are gorgeous. The sets look amazing, the costuming is unique (and although I didn't grow up in the 1960s, it looked period accurate?) and flashy. It might be an overused phrase, but I was transported into this world filled with dreams and imagination yet had so little substance. The movie does a great job of wowing you with how cool Hollywood was yet also showing the not-so-pretty parts of the love child movement that was taking over (there's a bunch of shots of dirty feet....because why?). Its fantastic work with the visuals and the cinematography that looks fantastic, even the TV productions that Dalton is "acting" in are shot in an interesting and captivating. I expected nothing less but I still left the movie impressed.
I didn't know a movie about a famous set of murders could be so comedic? This movie is part drama, part thriller but its almost a slice-of-life set in late 1960s Hollywood. The movie is more about the characters, there isn't much emphasis on the plot and you're more just spending time with these characters as they float through their lives. There were points where I just forgot that time was even progressing, it seems like it could take place over just a couple of days. I was okay with this but it made the movie feel almost like we were watching a dream. I didn't have a problem with this decision but it did leave the movie kind of directionless, I was enjoying the ride but there were a couple of times where I was asking myself, where is this movie going? When you've got such a funny and colourful cast of characters, you're going to be having fun either way but Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood operates on its own wavelength instead of following the conventional.
This movie is full of amazing actors, do you think I'm going to complain about the acting? DiCaprio and Pitt are excellent together and apart, I'm just impressed at how funny DiCaprio is when he wants to be, when did that become a thing? They're equally good even though I thought Pitt gave the best performance. Margot Robbie was really good but how she was used in this was a weird choice. Its not a "cameo" but she's separated so much from everyone else except Hirsch that I thought she was almost set up as a metaphor for innocence or an allegory for the dream-like lustre that Hollywood possesses. She's really good but I can't say she stole the show, she has little dialogue and is just dancing through a lot of her scenes. You have Margaret Qualley next with the most screen time? She's very bubbly and brings some levity. My next favourite supporting performances came from Mike Moh, Maya Hawke and Timothy Olyphant who are all good and funny in their appearances.
So while the movie is largely pretty upbeat with occasional dark moments, the ending is very much what you picture a climax in a Tarantino production. It goes bananas and even if you know the story of Manson family, it doesn't go where you expect. Although I enjoyed the rest of the movie, it was both fitting and it injected some tension. The creative team knows how to build things up and things ramp up big time in those final few scenes. Despite the movie mostly being comedic, I was surprised how worried I was for our main players and that much more surprise when things went a different direction. Minus there being some typical over-the-top beats, it was an excellent capper to this movie and it helped Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood gain some more of Tarantino's flavour.
I left the theatre in a bit of a daze after seeing this one. I enjoyed almost every aspect of it, the writing, directing, acting, costuming and makeup and even the pace were all taught and well done on the whole. Did I dig every single aspect of it? No but if that's your benchmark for an excellent movie, you're probably disappointed whenever you go to the movies. I liked this better than The Hateful Eight and I would put it up against any other film in Tarantino's recent output. I'd like to see it again to work out some of my deeper questions about it but for now I'd definitely recommend it to Tarantino fans and newcomers alike. Its one of Quentin's more accessible movies and while it does have really violent moments, other than the ending, its not too bad throughout. Some of the references definitely went over my head but I don't think that will interrupt your enjoyment of the movie. Despite the long run time, I thought this movie breezed by me and I'm happy to rate it at a 9/10.