MOVIE REVIEW “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

I loved the actors, but personally I would wait for this one to come out on demand.

Quentin Tarantino fans have been anxiously awaiting Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. 

Award winning Tarantino is known for his satirical subject matters and violence. He did not disappoint his loyal base. The numbers coming out of Hollywood prove that, ticket sales are well over 40 million right now.

I have a different view of the movie. 

First and foremost, if you are debating watching this film, I would take five minutes to go back and read the horrific Hollywood murder of Sharon Tate and how she and her friends fell victims to Charles Manson followers.

The movie will make much more sense with a fresh memory. I have provided a link below:

CLICK TO READ MORE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tate_murders

I did not revisit the case. Of course, being a journalist I know everything about the murders after watching the movie.

And, now armed with that knowledge. I still stick with my initial thoughts and have even stronger ones about exploring the scenario surrounding Tate who was killed in her Hollywood home when she was eight and half months pregnant. 

My niece Jennah and nephew Armaan, 17 and 16, asked me to see the movie. I quickly took advantage of spending quality time with these two teens, like all kids they grow to fast and I embrace any moments I have with them. They are pictured below.

That being said, I don’t regret the precious moments together, but will say from the minute I sat down to watch the two hours and forty five minute film, yes, it was that long. I kept asking myself what is the point? What is the plot? I kept waiting and waiting for something to happen.

The film did not focus on Tate but rather on a fictitious Hollywood actor named Rick Dalton, played by Leonardo DiCaprio and his stunt double Cliff Booth, played by Brad Pitt.

While I felt, Tarantino did a disservice to the Tate story, and yes I know it’s supposed to be satirical, I commend the acting by DiCaprio and Pitt.

It’s their consistent talent that draws in fans over and over again.

Both were amazing in their roles and I have to also commend Margot Robbie, who played Sharon Tate. 

She drew you into the character, very sweet, very likable and leaving you with the sense you would want to know her better. 

It definitely had me researching more about her acting history. 

Back to the movie, my niece and nephew agreed there was no plot or purpose to the film but they did find it hilarious. 

Just recently, after I published the blog. Armaan added this to the review. Bias aside, I was so proud of my nephew and his deeper reflections. These are his complete thoughts:

If this film was directed by anyone other than Quentin Tarantino, I would not have enjoyed it as much. The excessively long film has very minimal plot development, excessive language and violence, and overall seemed like a waste of time. I left the theatre upon viewing the movie in an incredibly confused state, for I wondered about what exactly I had witnessed. After pondering over the movie for a while, I then realized precisely why it was actually a masked masterpiece-the film was made exactly to evoke that opinion from it’s viewers. Tarantino thoroughly planned out every line of the dialogue, every camera angle, every expression on the actor’s faces; The point of the film is to reflect the stereotypical view of the film industry itself. From the over-the-top language and violence to the seemingly random plot, the film was not constructed to be like other movies. The film simply illustrates a typical “time in Hollywood,” which is just why it is so unique. 

My nephew pictured below.

As, my nephew just pointed out,  the violence in the movie, reflected Tarantino’s style. Truthfully, I’m the adult but needed to shut my eyes during that part! 

I always promise to be honest in my reviews. I would personally wait for this one to come out on demand and save my money for another movie at the theater. 

Please let me know what you think.