Once Upon a Time in... Hollywood

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⭐4/10

I really didn't enjoy this one. It's about Leonardo DiCaprio as an actor who's star is fading in 50s Hollywood, as well as Brad Pitt as his stuntman and they... I dunno, don't do much. Margot Robbie is also in this movie and she... well I guess she also doesn't do anything either. It's certainly not a plot-driven movie, and that's fine except I think that really doesn't mesh well with Tarantino's signature style, and he really can't go away from his style. 

Speaking of Tarantino, it's very hard to seperate him from my opinion of this movie. He's about as cancelled as someone can be without actually being found guilty of something, and all the yucky hallmarks were super present here. Lots of women being hot and over-sexualized, lots of gratuitous violence, lots of gratuitous violence towards over-sexualized women. I don't think I would have enjoyed all the icky stuff in this movie under any circumstances, but after the recent news cycle, I felt like this movie was playing out all of his weird fetishes and I felt uneasy throughout. 

Obviously there is still plenty to enjoy here. The movie creates 1950-60s Hollywood better than maybe any movie I've seen, and it's a sweet era to spend a few hours in. It's hazy, dreamy, glitzy - kinda everything you've heard about Hollywood but not really seen come to life quite like this. There are also some terrific moments of suspense, again utilizing that signature style - moments like Brad invading the hippie compound, or Leo on set of an old western. I can never deny that Tarantino is gifted, and obviously he's working with the best in the business here. 

But for the most part, I was often bored during much of this movie, and then I found the ending to be truly repulsive - a stupid setup that leads to a disgusting fight scene. Usually we can stomach the classic Tarantino fight scene because it's against Nazis or slave owners, but in this case I didn't love watching Brad Pitt cave in the head of some misguided, young hippies who's motive didn't exist until 5 minutes before the scene began. I am honestly shocked that anyone enjoyed a movie with this ending. 

So yeah, don't recommend at all. This movie has an audience of smart people that like it, but I have kinda never been more shocked that this movie recieved that level of acclaim. 

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