'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood' (2019) Review

Quentin Tarantino’s rapturous return to the silver screen since its announcement in 2017, to its first screening at Cannes, and Quentin refusing the hypothesis of a journalist, we have finally arrived at what is arguably, for many, the most anticipated movie of the year. It’s a special time for cinema when a Tarantino release isn’t the only competition for topping the list of must sees in 2019, the movies are in a good place. As has become customary with Tarantino's choice of subject matters, his decision to cover the Manson murders caused some worry among fans, in previous films he has chosen to rewrite history, which some have considered to be insensitive. But as always, it was quickly followed and drowned out by the expected excitement of what feels like the prodigal son returning home. As he turns to the Hollywood of the late sixties, a time when the studio system was gasping for air, while the movie brats of the counter culture took control and created some of the most important films ever released. A time of transcendent classics, grindhouse films and dirty movies, all of which get an honorary mention in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Quentin has built a career on intertextual referencing genres, national cinemas and every aspect of pop culture. However he has yet to deep dive into Hollywood as a narrative backdrop, this feels fresh and warmly familiar all at once. With a nod to Sergio Leone in the title, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood follows a failing movie star and his stunt double as they try to recapture fame and fortune in the final days of Hollywood’s Golden age. Isn’t this the fairytale Quentin Tarantino was born to tell?

Built on a cast of stars playing stars, from Bruce Lee (Mike Moh) to Roman Polanski (Rafal Zawierucha) and Steve McQueen (Damian Lewis), but it's Margot Robbie’s stellar performance as Sharon Tate that captures the spirit of the film. She is kind, warm and quietly commanding, although her screen time is far less than her co-stars this does not diminish what is achieved with the time she is given, epitomised in a moment of meta-magic as she attends a screening of one of her own films. Both Dicaprio as Rick Dalton and Pitt as Cliff Booth are incredibly entertaining, funny and refreshingly honest, the nuance and humanity in both characters, mixed with brilliant performances, creates some of the best and funny character work in the Tarantino-verse. Both men in different ways must deal with being washed up, getting old and fighting for relevancy, while being pushed to the sidelines for the fresh face of ‘New Hollywood’ embodied by the Polanski’s moving in next door. However its divisive portrayal of Bruce Lee has caused some uproar in-particular with Lee’s own family. It’s pompous and arrogant and heavily implies that Lee was all bark and no bite. A perception however which, within the narrative, finds its origins in an unreliable source. It’s a risky move from a director who has spent his career playing risky moves, either a touch of creative and challenging storytelling or a cheap shot laced with poor taste. Neither are enough to sway the enjoyment of the overall spectacle.

Once again Tarantino weaves his mythology into the real world, expanding the ‘Tarantino’ version of the 20th century. However on this occasion, in contrast to Basterds, the after-taste is hauntingly bittersweet. At its core this film is a fairytale tribute to Hollywood, to its shiny golden age, the people who embodied it, and to the trailblazers who turned it on it’s head. It’s a tribute to Sharon Tate, an actress who sadly is more famous for her death than her body of work. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood shows a war of two worlds, and the battle ground it takes place on. As Rick and Cliff drive through Hollywood and the neon lights of the surrounding iconic Cinerama theatre and restaurants flicker to life, creating a vibrant, romantic dreamworld. It shows a time that is long behind us but we all revisit fondly, even though most of us were never there nor were we even alive. Yet its familiarity is so clear through film.