Once Upon A Time In Hollywood (2019)

If there was ever a director that I had a ton of respect for, that distinct honor would go to Quentin Tarantino who has directed some amazing films in his career like Inglorious Basterds, The Hateful Eight, Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, and so many more. That is why I jumped at the chance to check out his latest that he also wrote in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio (Inception) as faded Hollywood TV star Rick Dalton who along with his bodyguard Cliff Booth (Academy Award Winner Brad Pitt) are trying to find their place and achieve more fame in an Hollywood whose golden age is starting to fade away in 1969. The film also stars Margot Robbie (Birds Of Prey) as Sharon Tate, Emile Hirsch (Vincent N Roxxy) as Jay Sebring, Timothy Olyphant (Gone In 60 Seconds) as James Stacy, Austin Butler (The Dead Don't Die) as Tex Watson, Dakota Fanning (The Runaways) as Squeaky Fromme, Bruce Dern (Nebraska) as George Spahn, Mike Moh (Inhumans) as Bruce Lee, Luke Perry (Riverdale) as Wayne Maunder, Damian Lewis (Dreamcatcher) as Steve McQueen, Al Pacino (The Irishman) as Marvin Schwarz, Samantha Robinson (The Love Witch) as Abigail Folger, Damon Herriman (Justified) as Charlie, Lena Dunham (Girls) as Gypsy,  Victoria Pedretti (The Haunting Of Hill House) as Lulu, James Landry Hébert (Gangster Squad) as Clem, and Kurt Russell and Zoë Bell (Death Proof) as Randy and Janet Miller.

That list of actors doesn't even put a dent on how many actors, long lost actors, and really good actors were in this film like Scoot McNairy, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Danielle Harris, James Remar, Lew Temple, Rebecca Gayheart, Martin Kove, Clu Gulager, Rumer Willis, Clifton Collins Jr., Harley Quinn Smith, Nicholas Hammond, and so many more. I know a lot of people complained about the pace of the film, but I have to be honest in saying that you know what to expect from a Tarantino film. One is that it's always going to be slow paced and it's going to feature a lot of dialogue included in it usually. So, once you know those things, his films are actually quite enjoyable and you have to appreciate what he brought to the table with this film. The sets alone in this film are absolutely amazing and the way it's presented to you is fantastic. Part of me felt like I was watching a special from 1969 mixed with what was going on. While I loved what DiCaprio brought to the film, the real MVP in my opinion was Brad Pitt and deservedly so considering he won the Oscar for best supporting actor for his part in this film. He carried the film and he had all of the best lines and scenes. The film is kind of a slow burn for the final battle scene at the end that makes the wait very worth it especially if you love Brad Pitt. While I didn't care for the change in the history of what happened, I also didn't mind it either. That is why I am going to give the film an A+ for a final grade because it was awesome. The Bruce Lee scene is controversial (in a way), but it was also funny at the same time.