Full Timeout: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Full Review

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is a classic Tarantino film given to us in a very unorthodox way. Plenty of his classic tropes are here, but this felt different, mainly due to the story, or as some may argue, lack thereof. It felt at times like I was watching a Hollywood nostalgia circle jerk, which was not a bad thing, it was necessary for the world building. Tarantino using the real life story of Charles Manson and the Sharon Tate murder to frame his story was absolutely brilliant, with it being wrapped up beautifully at the end.

Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio were incredible. If neither of them is nominated for a best actor Academy Award it will be an absolute tragedy because they both deserve it. This is Pitt’s best performance since Moneyball, and at 55 years old he still looks like a full course meal. The entire cast was jam packed of recognizable faces and every single actor killed it, no matter how small their part. Bruce Dern, Emile Hirsch, Al Pacino, Dakota Fanning and Kurt Russell are just a few of the big names to pop in and contribute to this cast. Margaret Qualley, Austin Butler, and Julia Butters were all standouts among the rest, each surprising the hell out of me with how well they did. This is also notably Luke Perry’s final film after tragically passing away earlier this year.

One of my favorite scenes involved Cliff Booth (Pitt) and Bruce Lee (Mike Moh) getting into a verbal altercation that ends with Booth throwing Bruce Lee into a nearby car. It was hilarious and showed how much of a badass Cliff was, giving the ending more credibility. Unfortunately, the scene has faced some backlash, particularly from Bruce Lee’s daughter Shannon, who was upset with the way her father was portrayed on screen. She said “He comes across as an arrogant asshole who was full of hot air, and not someone who had to fight triple as hard as any of those people did to accomplish what was naturally given to so many other… It was really uncomfortable to sit in the theater and listen to people laugh at my father… [it] made my father into this arrogant punching bag.” I am not someone who will ever claim to know anything about the struggle a person of color goes through, especially one who broke so many barriers and was so iconic as Bruce Lee, and sitting in the theater I saw no problems with the scene. But, after reading Shannon Lee’s comments I do understand how that may be upsetting. She does say that Tarantino may have been trying to convey how Bruce Lee may have been stereotyped in Hollywood at the time, but to her, and many others, it did not come across that way. Hopefully Tarantino reaches out to Lee to explain his side of the story and apologize that she was upset at the portrayal of her late father.

On the flip side of that coin, Sharon Tate’s sister, Debra, said that Margot Robbie’s portrayal of her sister brought her to tears. “She made me cry because she sounded just like Sharon. The tone in her voice was completely Sharon, and it just touched me so much that big tears [started falling]. The front of my shirt was wet. I actually got to see my sister again… nearly 50 years later.” One of the biggest problems I had with the movie was the lack of dialogue Margot Robbie was given. She is a fantastic actress, and while she did great with what she was given, it felt like she spoke 4 times the entire film, even though she had probably the 3rd most screen time. I also just could not buy Leo as a bad, washed up actor. No matter how hard I tried to trick my brain I just couldn’t believe one of the greatest actors ever as someone who lost it. Now that is not so much of a complaint as it is me just having a dumb brain, because Leo killed every scene he was in, even when he was supposed to be bad. Tarantino’s foot fetish was on FULL display in this one. There were several scenes that seemed to focus entirely on Margot Robbie and Margaret Qualley’s feet. Classic Tarantino.

We were led to believe that Charles Manson would play a bigger role in the movie himself, rather than just his influence. In the trailer, it is cut as if while Clint is on the roof fixing the dish, Manson turns around to meet his gaze, where we get the creepy smile and wave. That scene was ultimately cut from the film, with Manson gracing the screen for all of a minute, give or take. I was initially disappointed with this, but after thinking it over I loved the fact that he was sort of this mysterious figure that had such a huge influence on the story that was told without even having to be seen.

The last 20 or so minutes were flawless. The Austin Butler-led high as could be members of the Manson family set out to kill Sharon Tate and company but were distracted by revenge killing Rick Dalton, who had screamed them off his street minutes earlier. They instead found a tripping Cliff Booth and his loyal pup, and were so inept that they not only lost the element of surprise, but allowed Booth and his dog to kick their ass. The over the top gratuitous violence was as funny as it was brutal, capped off by Dalton torching a blinded hippie in his pool with a flame thrower. The aftermath may have been even funnier, with Dalton, drunk as hell, explaining what had happened to the police. I was in tears by the end of the whole ordeal. The final little twist of Rick being invited inside of the Tate home for drinks after unknowingly saving their lives and changing history was a cherry on the proverbial sundae. Tarantino gave us another classic and if it truly is his final film, we can all be happy this is what we got.

Score: 90/100