Friday Night Flicks: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

 Maybe it's just because I've always been fascinated by the 1960s, as a decade of radical change, but I was so excited when I saw the first trailer for Tarantino's ninth film "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood". I've been fascinated by Sharon Tate since the 6th grade when I watched "The Valley of the Dolls" for the first time, and fell in love with her portrayal of the tragic Jennifer North. This week's Friday Flick is the long awaited masterpiece "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"! Read on for my review.

Acting: 8/10 

Leonardo DiCaprio deserves all the Oscars for his performance as Rick Dalton. DiCaprio goes jumps back and forth throughout the movie from a cocky cowboy to an insecure actor constantly on the verge of tears, in addition to the multiple made up roles in his movie scenes. The role of Cliff Booth was tailor made for Brad Pitt. Booth is the rock of the movie, or the everyman, sitting and observing the larger than life characters around him. To be completely honest, I wasn't very impressed by Margot Robbie's interpretation of Sharon Tate. I know that a lot of Robbie's screen time had to be cut and the story was meant to be centered on Rick and Cliff, but Robbie's Tate wasn't exactly memorable. Her character seemed incomplete and lacked depth. Despite being a main character, Robbie seemed to just bounce around the screen without purpose and saying meaningless lines, seemingly trapped in the "ditzy blonde" stereotype both Sharon and Margot have worked for so long to escape.

Costuming: 10/10

Before going to the movie, I read Kristina Rodulpho's article on the hair styling in the movie, and was fascinated by the extensive research done to prepare for the movie and how retired hairdressers were brought out of retirement to help with hair and makeup on set. All the extra work paid off, and it was absolutely mind bending to see the old Hollywood stars brought back to life. I fell in love with the costumes in the film and was especially interested in the differences between the sleek and colorful outfits the stars wear and the messy and faded garments of the hippies.

Set Design: 10/10

Tarantino's love for Los Angeles is always obvious, but it especially shows through in this film. The last time I was in LA, I hated it because it was dilapidated and dirty and it wasn't the LA I remembered when I was younger. Hollywood is more than a place, it's an idea. A glittering fairytale. Tarantino understands this and takes great care to make the neon signs of Hollywood shine bright again.

Soundtrack: 10/10

I love the way that Tarantino always makes it a point to not only pick great songs for his films, but also shows the set up to playing his songs. He always makes a point to show a characters flipping through radio stations, or winding a tape, or placing a needle on a record. I feel like it shows the characters taste in music and I find it very humanizing. I also appreciated that they didn’t just use the greatest hits of 1969.

Final Score: 9.7/10

All in all, I found this movie to be a new favorite. The twist ending was refreshing and beautiful, and I promise, if you love movies you’ll love Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.