Once Upon A Time In Hollywood review

Quentin Tarantino's 10th film(sorry QT, Kill Bill was released as two films...I call em 2 films), OUATIH often feels like someone else directed it. This is a very laid back movie. It's probably his only film that could be categorized as strictly a comedy.

It's also easily his most loosely structured film. This is a 2:30+ film that never really connects into a single storyline. Mostly it follows Leonardo DiCaprio's fading star actor and Brad Pitt as his longtime stuntman/best friend. But it also sort of follows Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate, the actress who was killed by Charles Manson's cult. But maybe not in this film, as Quentin may or may not be doing some of his Inglourious Basterds revisionist history here.

The film's promotion made a lot of the Manson connection, but Robbie's casting here is basically a big misdirect. The Manson stuff is very much on the periphery. We see him I think just once. There is one incredibly unnerving sequence set at the ranch where his cult gathered, but the main character in that scene doesn't even ever find out what's really going on.

The cast is loaded with big names mostly just popping by for a scene or two. It was great to see Al Pacino and Kurt Russell and even Luke Perry in his last filmed role. But the best is this little girl who shares one fabulous scene with DiCaprio.

Pitt is at his charming movie star best, but my god is DiCaprio the standout here. It's no surprise that one of the greatest actors of that last quarter century is great here, but this is THE best performance of his career. I loved all the recreations of his TV shows and movies. It's flawless stuff. The detail in the movie is spot on.

I'd probably rank this closer to the bottom of my Tarantino rankings, but every film he has made has been at least on my top 10 list from that year, as will this barring an amazing fall.

There is a time jump roughly 2 hours in, and that essentially 3rd act it kicks off is not quite at the level of what proceeds it. It's more of what you'd expect from a Tarantino film, but that first 2 hours was such an unexpected change of pace that I kind of missed it.

Rankings:
1. Pulp Fiction
2. Kill Bill Vol. 1
3. The Hateful Eight
4. Django Unchained
5. Reservoir Dogs
6. Jackie Brown
7. Death Proof
8. One Upon A Time In Hollywood
9. Kill Bill Vol. 2
10. Inglourious Basterds