ONCE UPON A TIME... IN HOLLYWOOD Review

"It's official, old buddy. I'm a has-been."

It’s been over seven years since we saw Quentin Tarantino on the silver screen with a brand-new film. This year, we’ll be getting another adventure within the director’s playground in The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth, and this time David Fincher will be helming it. But before we get there, I figured it was time to revisit Quentin’s film, Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood.

It had been a long time since I last saw it in full. It’s one of the director’s films I’ve seen the most (this being my sixth viewing), simply because I wanted to show people this experience. If nothing else, I always find it worth revisiting just to see how different people react to the finale. So, I popped in my Blu-ray copy and found it still held up as a solid, hangout film that’s probably one of the better films Quentin’s made.

The film is set in Hollywood during 1969, where Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a struggling actor working in the film industry. He’s had his license revoked for having too many drunk driving accidents, and is an aging Western hero who decided to bounce from his hit TV show, Bounty Law, and do theatrical films. Now, he’s stuck in neutral gear with his stunt double and best friend, Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), as they try to navigate through the rapidly changing film industry in their own respective ways.

Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood is known for taking certain historical liberties in the same vein as Quentin’s Inglourious Basterds. How exactly does it do that? I’ll let you find out on your own. As for the film itself, it’s easily one of Quentin’s more rewatchable films. I can be hot and cold on the guy (especially with what he’s been saying lately in the news), but the one thing he knows how to do is make a theatrical film.

He’s got a terrific eye when it comes to cinema, whether it’s by how his movies look or how he directs his actors, and this is no exception. I love how Quentin is able to recapture the old days of television through the film’s black-and-white photography and grainy sound recordings. It makes you feel like you’ve stepped back into that world through its audio landscape alone. Usually, filmmakers would just use clever audio editing to make us feel we’re in a certain time, but thankfully there’s more.

Even the production design by the late Barbara Ling and set decoration by Nancy Haigh are fantastic. You can feel the environment because they painstakingly recreated the look of it to make you feel like you’re there visually. As someone who’s visited Hollywood twice within the last decade, I still get reminded of this beautiful world Quentin and his team recreated, particularly in the terrain of the town. I should also point out that the team won an Academy Award for their work, and they deserved the high honors.

But really, the standout of the film is the acting ensemble. I really enjoyed watching this cast play off each other, even if some of the actors are a bit over-the-top in their roles. If anything, it still blows my mind that this was the film that got Austin Butler’s and Mikey Madison’s careers going in smaller parts, before they eventually earned Oscar nominations down the road in their respective careers. But of course, my favorites of the cast are Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt. The two of them have such amazing chemistry with each other, while also going on their own journey when they have to separate and live their own lives.

It’s probably one of my favorite performances from Leo, as he gives this believable performance as an aging movie star who’s frustrated with messing up his lines on set for a TV guest star appearance. His blowup in his trailer is definitely a highlight of the film for me. As for Brad, this might be my favorite performance by him. Unlike Leo, Brad is more reserved in his role, while balancing this rage that’s in him and that likable charm he can pull off so well. If anything, the role fits Brad so perfectly that he’s relying on that movie-star charisma we’ve known him for, while showcasing his dramatic chops.

Now, the elephant in the room: Quentin’s writing can either turn people off or work for him depending on the movie. Obviously, he’s long past the days of tight screenplays like Pulp Fiction, but some of his more recent stuff can be quite good. With this, I feel like this is probably the closest he’s gotten to that greatness the public has always associated him with. His current writing is a problem similar to the one I have with Martin McDonagh’s work, where he’ll write his characters to spout off pages of dialogue when he could’ve condensed the written word. But here, it makes sense as these characters are verbose people, running around film sets with giant egos hanging over them.

As for problems I have with the film, I don’t mind the leisurely, hangout pacing, but there are some scenes I would’ve trimmed down a bit. Another problem I did have with it is that while it’s a fun hangout film to throw on, I do wish it had more thematically to chew on for me. I appreciate Quentin taking on a movie where the leads aren’t the same sprawling, youthful spirits they once were, but it doesn’t resonate with me as much as it thinks it does thematically. Granted, it’s not tugging at your heartstrings like sappier directors would tell it, but there’s something missing from this that I can’t put my finger on.

If anything, I was reminded of how Paul Thomas Anderson would tackle this “end of an era.” Where you’d see Boogie Nights at the end of the 70s or The Master at the end of the post-WWII optimism, those films had something thematically rich to say that sticks with you long after it’s over. With this film, I definitely got this “end of the 60s in Hollywood” feeling, but it didn’t stay with me even on a subtextual level. Don’t get me wrong, I had a blast watching these scenes unfold and can admire the technical work, but it would’ve been interesting to see Quentin show a new side of himself we haven’t seen.

While I get that this film has its detractors, I can’t help but admire what Quentin has done. Both then and now, we’re in a world where Hollywood is more focused on leeching off of our nostalgia with unnecessary sequels, pointless remakes, and biopics on recognizable pop culture and media stars of the time. And to see Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood do something original is quite something to witness. Unfortunately, to get a movie like this made you’d have to have a two-time Oscar winner like Quentin Tarantino to helm the project, or else it wouldn’t get greenlit. Even if it doesn’t stay with me thematically, it’s an amazing ride I’m glad I take every so often just to witness Leo and Brad give some of their best work, as well as see the terrific technical work on display all throughout the picture.

Apparently, Quentin has gone on record to say he’s only making ten movies and then calling it quits. If he follows through with it, I’d be curious to know what that film would be. The guy has already built an impressive resume as a writer/director, and this film combines his comedic writing and action stunts. Maybe he’ll make a movie that’s a full-blown action adventure in the vein of One Battle After Another, where he’ll be able to play to his strengths while being put on a leash. Only time will tell...

🍿SCORE = 82 / 100