Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood

Before we get to the very first shot of the film, we are introduced to the vintage iteration of the Columbia Pictures logo, like the front page of a storybook. From then on, we enter a self-indulgent yet fruitful fairytale dressed up as director Quentin Tarantino’s ninth feature film. Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood is a noble and somber trip down the road of history to a bygone era of stardom and style. Showcasing plenty of his signature quirks and habits, Once upon a Time…In Hollywood also reflects a more tender side to Tarantino’s typically rebellious and edgy persona. It is a nod and a wink to what once was and what could’ve been, a time where Hollywood was more than a place of opportunity, but a place where myth and legend coincided with reality.

It is 1969 in Hollywood, California, where the movie business is booming, you can find a hippy around every corner, and celebrities of various statures fill the streets. One such celebrity is TV actor Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) whose days of stardom and televised heroics have been discarded for guest spots and more villainous roles. The only thing keeping his chin up is his good buddy and stuntman Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), who unlike Dalton, manages to maintain his cool in the face of adversity and opposition. Together, they drive and stroll through the streets of Hollywood Boulevard and beyond as they attempt to find work and revitalize their careers. At the same time, living next door to Rick Dalton is the young-but-aspiring Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie), whose Hollywood career is just beginning to blossom. Separately but simultaneously, our trinity of protagonists traverse the landscape of tinseltown as they interact with everything from kick-butt action heroes to a devilish cult just waiting to rain on their parade.

Tarantino has a knack for manipulating history to his own liking. Inglorious Basterds had Adolf Hitler shot in the face repeatedly by a machine gun point blank and then blown straight to hell by dynamite. This time around, however, Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood is not quite as bombastic and, if anything, is rather melancholic and patient, something you don’t typically see from someone like Tarantino. Unlike in his previous works, where he relies on a zany, nonstop, adrenaline-kicking pace to his stories, whether through action, dialogue, or both, Tarantino switches gears a little bit here, reaching more for a contemplative and poignant ode to a bright yet tragic chapter in Hollywood’s lifespan. In doing so, this might be his most personal project he’s ever worked on. Every frame is imbued with the love he has for the days of old, almost as if he’s reflecting on his own history as a filmmaker, and who can blame him. He’s been one of Hollywood’s most distinct and unique auteurs for over two decades. Whether through his actors, the musical score, the costumes, or the production as a whole, Tarantino’s passion and care for every detail is clear and apparent.

It must’ve been a huge honor for Tarantino to get to play around with Hollywood Boulevard for his project, and it’s evident that he made every detail count. The visual aesthetic is breathtaking and the source of what he’s trying to say. If anything, it’s inaccurate to call it a story and more so a tour through the streets of 1960s Hollywood. With plenty of recognizable sight and monuments as well as a slew of renowned celebrities, such as Steve McQueen, Bruce Lee, Roman Polanski, and plenty of others, Tarantino painstakingly recreated the look and feel of 1960s Hollywood and converted it into a story about a Wonderland that has since eroded away. The synopsis will tell you there’s a story, and that the story revolves around two actors getting their groove back. But honestly, the story is just an excuse to explore a touching, tender, and somber eulogy in honor of the passing of a once prosperous and glamorous era of filmmaking.

The bulk of the story, if you want to call it that, centers around the relationship between Rick Dalton and Cliff Booth as well as the little journeys both go on respectively. DiCaprio plays Dalton with a fire burning inside that never goes out and may very well be one of his best performances. As an aging acting hero, Dalton goes through desperation, anguish, and despair as he yearns for the days of old when everyone knew who he was and what he meant to them. On the opposite end is Cliff Booth, whose hard-shell exterior, swagger, and calm demeanor makes Brad Pitt the most charismatic of the cast, taking no crap from anyone and always keeping control in any situation he’s in. In this film, he’s the embodiment of cool, calm, and collected.

But even the characters themselves shouldn’t be considered “characters.” They don’t go through an arc of any sort and are basically the same characters when the credits roll as they were when we first meet them. Sure, they encounter obstacles and the sort, but by the end of it, they never really change their core personas. While in an alternate universe that would be a detriment to the project, it’s this kind of simplistic characterization that makes the story as effective as it is, because remember, in reality, there is no real “story,” or at least in the traditional sense. These characters act as guides for us the audience to witness and experience the landscape, imagination, and interconnectivity that was 1969 Hollywood. It’s a big bonus that these guides happen to be brilliantly acted as well as impeccably charming and charismatic. But none best embodies this concept more tenderly and intimately than ironically the one with the least amount of dialogue: Sharon Tate.

A lot of the discussion has been around Tarantino’s treatment of Sharon Tate, given that it was reported that she contains very little dialogue throughout the movie. Justifiably, even after watching the final product, plenty of people will take issue with how little she is used, and to be fair, I also wish they had utilized her more. But honestly, it works nonetheless. Everyone knows, or should at least be familiar with, Hollywood in 1969, particularly because it was one of the darkest moments in Hollywood’s history. The film is set within the time frame of Sharon Tate’s brutal murder by Charles Manson and the Manson family as its backdrop. It is considered one of Hollywood’s oldest and most heartbreaking tragedies given the aspiring actress’ bright potential as a movie star.

You can definitely sometimes feel the weight, dread, and fear of that fateful night hanging over you whenever Tate herself appears on screen. But with how Tarantino handles her, Tate becomes more than just some wannabe aspiring actress trying to make it in the city of angels. In many ways, she is a living embodiment of what Hollywood can be, of what it was meant to be. Margot Robbie beautifully captures Tate’s free spirit, innocence, and aspirations as she wanders around town looking to make a name for herself as well as appreciating the life she’s been given.

In arguably the film’s most touching scene, Tate attends a public screening of her newest movie The Wrecking Crew. As she sits in the audience and watches along, she becomes delighted to hear the people behind her laugh and cheer at her scenes while she puts on her glasses, sits back, and enjoys the ride. It’s a moment of pure joy and optimism. Robbie displays little to no dialogue throughout this scene and yet it perfectly captures what Hollywood strives to be, what it was meant to be. It’s obvious that Tate has a passion and love for the movies, and it’s also clear that Tarantino has a passion and love for Sharon Tate. He sees her not for what she becomes, but what she was meant to be, and in many ways still is. As such, he treats her with respect and love, making her the bright light at the end of the tunnel, keeping us from falling into the pitfalls of has-beens and old news and uselessness.

Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood is proof that Quentin Tarantino does have a heart. It doesn’t strive to be one of his usual high-stakes adventures and instead is a vibrant, patient, and elegant portrait of an era that has since succumbed to the sands of time. It is a tale as old as time, a place of aspiration, stardom, variety, glamour, and where nobody’s a nobody. All of it is told through the eyes of a man who’s spent much of his life perfecting the craft and his love of it permeates every frame. It’s hard to say whether this is one of Tarantino’s “best” works, but it’s safe to call it his most personal and poignant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELeMaP8EPAA&t=1s&w=585