Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood
With acting that will blow your mind away and no certain plotline, this film is the weirdest film of Tarantino. And while long runtime might scare some it is no indication of film being boring at all.
“ONCE UPON A TIME… IN HOLLYWOOD” is Quentin Tarantino’s weirdest film (I know, right?). This film is about nothing. And is about everything, at the same time. First time in his career he delivers a film devoid of a proper plot. Storyline floats around rusting A-list actor Rick (DiCaprio), his stunt double Cliff (Pitt) and his new neighbor Sharon Tate (Robbie). Whole film is basically a compilation of vignettes of these characters’ lives. We see them struggle to deliver lines, remember circumstances of dismissal from jobs and even watch them watch films with their own performances. And this goes on for 161 minutes. Too long, right? Tarantino could have easily cut a good hour of this film and still deliver a proper product. At the same time, however, he could have added an extra hour and it would have been not a little bit boring by any means.
Casting is just AMAZING! You could just lay back and enjoy EVERY SINGLE PERSON on screen go crazy doing what they do best. DiCaprio blew my mind with everything he put in his character. Pitt still got all his magic and then some. Robbie shines encompassing wild and carefree, yet very accessible Tate. I literally could write a whole post about each of them and the rest of the stellar cast this film has.
My only complaint is with portrayal of Manson Family. Tarantino, known for giving his characters in-depth backstories, gives them almost nothing. We are to know that they are bad. Why? Even in “Inglourious Basterds” Tarantino shows Nazis do horrible stuff. Atrocities of slavers in “Django Unchained” are painted vividly. These are the characters far better known to everyone to be bad already, yet he still spends time to establish them as villains. Same doesn’t apply for Manson Family in “Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood”. He shows them as a bunch of hippy, dumpster-diving, free-spirited girls who might have some weird tendencies. I mean I do know they are bad people and the whole ordeal, but only because I googled where Marilyn Manson took his stage name. Because of that for me the ending seemed to be a little off.
Overall, I REALLY enjoyed this film and would urge you to watch it, if only for MIND-BLOWING acting. And shirtless Brad Pitt.
