Directed by Quentin Tarantino

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie

Rated R for language throughout, some strong graphic violence, drug use, and sexual references

In the early part of writer and director Quentin Tarantino’s career, his films were crime dramas based in Los Angeles, with such films such as “Pulp Fiction” and “Jackie Brown”. Fast forward to his latter half to his career, his films were historical dramas such as “Inglorious Basterds” and “Django Unchained”. The new Tarantino film takes something from his early part of his career and incorporates it with the historical dramas that he has been making this past decade. The result is “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”, a historical crime drama based in Los Angeles.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is the newest Quentin Tarantino film starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Rick Dalton, an fading actor who is trying to find his footing in late 60’s Hollywood. Along with the ride with Dalton is Cliff Booth (played by Brad Pitt), Dalton’s stunt double who is supportive of his friend and boss. In addition to Dalton and Booth trying to find their place in Hollywood, Dalton’s new neighbor is director Roman Polanski and actress Sharon Tate (played by Margot Robbie).

Anyone who is familiar with Hollywood history knows the story of Sharon Tate and the Charles Manson cult. Going into the film, I was worried that the film would show the real events in a gory fashion. Fortunately none of the real events were actually showed and the film is not a real historical drama. The film shows more of an alternative timeline of history, the same way “Inglorious Basterds” was an alternative historical timeline. This also ties into the the ending of the film which, without giving any spoilers, is very satisfying and surprising to say the least.

But the real highlight of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” are the main leads of Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt. I am unaware if DiCaprio and Pitt are friends in real life but the pair have great chemistry. The film introduces them as working together for years and I felt that connection through the film. It is as almost DiCaprio and Pitt have been friends and worked in films together for many years. If anything is taken away from the film is that I want DiCaprio and Pitt to work together more often. Every time both actors were on screen, it felt like two actual friends talking among each other.

The acting is top notch but specifically Leonardo DiCaprio proves why he is one the greatest actors of his generation. There is a scene where DiCaprio has to act as a cowboy. But DiCaprio has to act as an actor acting as an actor. This is has to be difficult for an actor to act an actor who is acting as another character. In this scene, DiCaprio is playing the cowboy but has to break character back to Dalton to remember his lines. He would have to instantly change back to his other character. This is all done in one take, it takes a great actor to act as an actor who is playing another character and having to change characters in an instant.

But as much as I had fun with “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”, there are still issues I had with the film. Unfortunately the pacing is slow even for a Tarantino film. Tarantino is known for having two and a half hour films filled with long and drawn out scenes but there was something about this film that felt off. Tarantino’s previous film, “The Hateful Eight” has multiple scenes of long, drawn out scenes but I actually enjoyed every second of that film. The reason being is because I know there is tension coming soon. The tension of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is the knowing that the Manson murders are coming but it’s not really tension. The reason being is that Sharon Tate doesn’t really interact with our main characters. She is more in the background and is brought back for a scenes to remind the audience that the film is centered around the Manson murders. Compare this to “The Hateful Eight” in which we know all the characters are in danger due to the tension. But in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”, the only character that is in danger is Sharon Tate, who is more of a background character and not a main character.

Another issue is that the film does not go anywhere. The main plot is that an actor and his stunt double are trying to find their place at the end of the Golden Age of Hollywood. But as the audience views the film, there is not an end goal. If one were to view the film without knowing who is behind the camera or knowing who is Sharon Tate or Charles Manson, that person would be asking “where is this leading to?” I wouldn’t blame them because the majority of the film is an actor trying to act. This is something I worry about as I feel as the majority of the audience would probably be tuned off for a major portion of the film.

Overall, I had so much enjoyment of the film, but that is coming from a Tarantino fan. If you are a Tarantino fan, you should check it out but for the average viewer they may want to reconsider. Not because it is a bad film but because the film would feel long and boring to the average viewer. I would probably would view the film again but unfortunately the film falls into the lower half of the Tarantino filmography, but there is still enjoyment to be had in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”.

3/4