'Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood' Review

Nominated For: Best Picture, Best Director; Quentin Tarantino, Best Actor; Leonardo DiCaprio, Best Supporting Actor; Brad Pitt, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing.

Won: Best Supporting Actor; Brad Pitt and Best Production Design.

Synopsis: A faded television actor and his stunt double strive to achieve fame and success in the film industry during the final years of Hollywood's Golden Age in 1969 Los Angeles.

Runtime: 161 minutes

MPAA Rating: R (for language throughout, some strong graphic violence, drug use, and sexual references)

Who should see it? Adult fans of Tarantino's filmography.

Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood is the ninth film to be written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. Tarantino's been vocal about calling it quits after his tenth, so Once Upon A Time In Hollywood may perhaps be his penultimate feature. Regardless, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood is a unique entry in his robust filmography. Though distinctly Tarantino on account of extended dialogue and peculiar, prominent emphasis on feet, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood differs considerably from the rest of his work. Morally ambiguous protagonists are absent while brutality is reserved for choice moments. Instead, Tarantino reminisces on a bygone era of Hollywood with a lighthearted, sentimental love letter.

Contrary to most contemporary releases, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood takes the time to immerse the audience in a pseudo-1969 Hollywood and the routine lives of its fictional and factual subjects. Tarantino's careful approach will risk being labeled as tedious and inconsequential by many viewers. Patient audience members will no doubt be rewarded as lunacy ensues in the form of a gloriously insane third act. However, the meticulous journey is meant to expand our understanding of these characters and establish the geography and atmosphere of Los Angeles fifty years ago. There's painstaking attention to detail in Los Angeles' significant '60s landmark recreations as well as the ensemble's wardrobe and hairstyling. Not to mention, everything is magnificently captured by Tarantino's frequent cinematographer Robert Richardson, and the film features a groovy soundtrack of curated '60s hits. Nobody makes movies quite like Tarantino.

Though Tarantino's body of work is often tinged with dark humor, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood is the closest Tarantino's come to making a full-blown comedy... And it's hysterical, but also profound. The auteur remains wholeheartedly committed to crafting elaborate scenes depicting DiCaprio's Rick Dalton acting in television serials solely dedicated to underscoring a punch-line or emotional beat. As viewers are treated to a taste of Dalton's waning fictional film and television career, they also get a glimpse of real-life actress Sharon Tate on the rise. A bittersweet notion considering her actual fate, and one that lingers over the proceedings as audiences wonder whether Tarantino will rewrite history where the Manson Family is concerned ala Inglorious Basterds. A question I dare not answer here.

Leading Tarantino's star-studded cast, Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt share sacred chemistry that will surely go down as one of the best all-time onscreen bromances. In his first performance following his long-deserved Oscar win for The Revenant, DiCaprio lends a multifaceted portrayal of an insecure actor struggling with the bumpy road of stardom. This vulnerability is a side of DiCaprio audiences have hardly seen before, and he's tremendous in the role of course. On the other hand, Pitt exudes a cool bravado as Dalton's laidback stuntman, driver, and best friend, Cliff Booth. A pantheon of movie stars, crew members, and free-spirited hippies are brought to life by the likes of Al Pacino, Kurt Russell, Bruce Dern, Mike Moh, Timothy Olyphant, Margaret Qualley, Dakota Fanning, and Austin Butler. 

As Sharon Tate, Margot Robbie secured prominent billing in the marketing. However, the character's ultimately unrelated to the primary plot. Robbie imbues Tate with warmth, kindness, and a jubilant spirit that was a joy to watch, but she had less screen time and dialogue than I expected. When the film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, a journalist asked Robbie and Tarantino why Robbie didn't have more speaking lines. Though I understand the intent behind the question, I think the question was a bit inappropriate and presumptuous considering the story's not really about Sharon Tate and additional dialogue wasn't really necessary. It was evident to me that Tarantino was interested in honoring the lesser-known qualities of Sharon Tate that are overshadowed by the tragic circumstances of her death.

Unexpected scene-stealers included Cliff Booth's pit bull and the young Julia Butters. Portraying a precocious method actor (the character deems the word "actress" restrictive) named Trudi, Butters held her own sharing the screen with DiCaprio. A commendable feat in-of-itself and Butters' mature demeanor made the scene all the more amusing.

If the marquee names associated with Tarantino's latest flick weren't enough to tell you Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood is a must-see motion-picture, I'll happily oblige in further supporting that notion. It's entertaining, original, remarkably well-crafted, and harkens back to simpler times. How often does a film like that come around?

Film Assessment: A

'The Fate of the Furious' Review

The Fate of the Furious flips the Fast & Furious franchise on its head when Dominic Toretto suddenly betrays his team in the midst of a non-sanctioned operation. The crew then are assembled by Mr. Nobody and must partner with an unexpected ally, former foe Deckard Shaw, if they have any hope of stopping Toretto and the cyberterrorist organization behind his shifted alliance. 

If you told me that Fate of the Furious was directed by Michael Bay, I'd probably buy it due to Straight Outta Compton filmmaker F. Gary Gray's decision to switch gears into full Transformers territory. The two franchises might as well cross over at this point because they've both got slo-mo, explosions, choppy editing, and shaky cam galore! 

Gray and his technical crew absolutely deliver on piecing together ridiculous action set pieces comprised of a standard street race in Havana harkening back to the roots of  The Fast and the Furious, an absurd chase through the Big Apple involving thousands of remotely controlled auto-driven cars, and the gang casually skidding over the frozen tundra and a nuclear submarine in efforts to stop World War III to name a couple. 

Despite Fate of the Furious' best intentions at delivering a commercialized blockbuster, the film feels devoid of the energy that bolstered previous entries (possibly due to Paul Walker's absence). Now I can suspend my disbelief of nonsensical action and overlook the bad dialogue provided I'm reasonably entertained, but Fate of the Furious never quite found that niche. I can't fault the film itself for this but Universal's marketing department plastered the coolest moments everywhere on the internet so Fate of the Furious never took me by surprise. I occasionally laughed at the senseless situations the crew found themselves in or the cheap one-liners but I was rarely invested in the insanity. 

Furious 7 tied up all the loose ends of the series nicely with a neat, little bow but veteran F&F screenwriter Chris Morgan returns to unravel that with his sixth consecutive F&F screenplay. Fate of the Furious can't help but feel like an extraneous extension of the saga because of how nicely Furious 7 wrapped things up, especially when minimal character growth occurs over the 136 minute runtime and the ending seemingly leaves little room for anywhere I could conceivably see the franchise headed. One thing that especially bothered me was that there were no lasting consequences or any aftermath from choices made by these characters. It doesn't help that the characters are virtually invulnerable either, these people are practically superheroes at this point. 

On top of that, the formulaic nature of these F&F movies is becoming more and more apparent with each new installment and I'm convinced the last four or so practically have the same ending. However, two things I can credit Morgan for are writing decent hamstrung one-liners and constructing a convincing motivation for Toretto to turn on his family (probably the only surprise in the movie). Aside from that I was awestruck at how easily entertained the people around me were, they audibly gasped and aw'ed at predictable clichés I saw coming from a mile away. 

For the most part, the cast fill out their prescribed duties but it's noticeable the material they're given is rather lackluster. Vin Diesel gets to tread new waters as Dominic Toretto explores the inherent internal conflict that accompanies betrayal. Diesel demonstrated more range in this film that I feel was missing from some of his previous performances in this franchise and lent itself well to the precarious position his character found himself in. Michelle Rodriguez's scenes opposite Diesel provides the soap opera-esque relationship drama for Letty and Dom, which is incredibly melodramatic and over-the-top but somehow works thanks to the chemistry between the two. 

Amongst the supporting roster, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson hams it up as Luke Hobbs and Jason Statham's Deckard surprisingly steals the show now that he's on the good guy's side (watch out for his plane sequence that's an absolute delight and demands a spin-off). Statham and Johnson's verbal sparring turned out to be a highlight as both get a few good insults while Ludacris and Tyrese Gibson serve as supporting comedic relief with their characters Tej and Roman competing for the affections of Nathalie Emmanuel's Ramsey. Emmanuel gets to spout technical know-how and hack plenty of databases in the same vein as her role in Furious 7 but sadly has little else to do. Kurt Russell returns as the franchise's Nick Fury, Mr. Nobody, and he's brought Scott Eastwood and accomplished actress Helen Mirren along with him because clearly the ensemble wasn't crowded enough already. 

In the antagonistic department, Charlize Theron enters the fray and you'd expect a certain level of gravitas to accompany an Academy Award winning actress like Theron in a villainous role. However, Theron absolutely phones it in as Cipher, making her the blandest foe the team have come across yet. Cipher doesn't ever trade blows with the crew, which is incredibly disappointing when you take her stint as Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road or the trailers for her upcoming action flick Atomic Blonde into account (both of which serving as sufficient evidence she can handle an action sequence). It's probably worth mentioning to keep an eagle eye out for cameos since there were a few familiar faces I didn't expect to see and there's no post credits scene so you can race out of the theater once it's over. 

When it's all said and done, I'm not really sure Fate of the Furious was a necessary addition to the franchise. It feels driven towards financial rewards rather than furthering the characters or story in a meaningful way. Legitimate fans and casual viewers of F&F who have loved each installment and are simply seeking a good time will be more than satisfied with Fate of the Furious, but anyone hoping for an interesting continuation of the F&F family story will probably be let down. The Fate of the Furious has just about everything longtime viewers of the series have come to expect; outrageous vehicular stunts, cheesy quips, and a strong focus on family, but it fails to deliver an engaging adventurous atmosphere for our characters.

Film Assessment: C-

'Deepwater Horizon' Review

Nominated For: Best Visual Effects and Best Sound Editing.

Deepwater Horizon offers personal insight into the true events of the April 2010 oil rig explosion that caused the largest oil spill in history by showing the horrific disaster through the eyes of the workers onboard. 

Peter Berg directs the disaster flick as his followup to Lone Survivor and Berg expertly captures the chaotic nature of the explosions onboard the Deepwater Horizon in the more action packed moments. However, the framework established in the screenplay penned by Matthew Michael Canahan and Matthew Sand doesn't quite set the stage properly. I found the first half to be rather mundane and generic and wished the characters had been further explored. I found it difficult to care for the supporting characters given how little character development and meaningful screen time they had received but I guess that's the nature of things when you have to dedicate a large portion of the film's running time to the catastrophe at hand. 

Deepwater Horizon does however succeed in effectively simplifying the concepts behind the disaster in addition to making the oil rig a tense environment from the get-go. I also feel it's worth commending all the effects, albeit practical or computer generated, that went into simulating the tragedy on film as the explosions weren't overdone and felt authentic. The performances on display for the most part were serviceable considering that the actors were essentially portraying ordinary oil workers and aren't exactly provided with plenty of depth or range to explore. 

Of the bunch, Mark Wahlberg demonstrates incredible display of acting ability with one of the film's closing scenes that seemingly shows the PTSD Mike Williams is suffering from as a result of these events. Wahlberg injects his typical charm into the role and makes Williams both a likable and relatable protagonist fulfilling the needs of the role. Kate Hudson impressed me, making for an interesting ancillary character in the role of Felicia Williams and sharing great chemistry opposite Wahlberg. 

In regards to the other supporting players, Kurt Russell musters up some Southern drawl in Jimmy Harrell, Dylan O'Brien sadly has little to do as Caleb Holloway but is great in his supporting capacity, Gina Rodriguez's Andrea Fleets barely registered to me when onscreen, and John Malkovich is about as slimy as it gets as the greedy corporate businessman Vidrine. 

In conclusion, Peter Berg manages to craft an intense disaster thriller that seeps into the viewers' mind and leaves a lasting impression thanks to some sufficient performances and appropriately terrifying sequences of destruction.

Film Assessment: C+

'The Hateful Eight' Review

Nominated For: Best Supporting Actress; Jennfer Jason Leigh, Best Original Score, and Best Cinematography.

Won: Best Original Score.

The Hateful Eight is the eighth film to be both written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. This film very unique in the fact that it was filmed in 70 mm and is actually being projected in the 70 mm format in some theaters. I didn't see The Hateful Eight in this format but I do intend on seeing the 70 mm version for my second viewing of the film. Another unique aspect of the 70 mm version of The Hateful Eight's that it has both an intermission and an overture. The digital version I viewed also featured the overture and I can say that the overture allows for some incredible awe-inspiring cinematography showcasing the beauty of a winter wasteland. Tarantino brings this Western Mystery to life through the witty dialogue and interesting vile characters that he crafts so well. Tarantino manages to do the impossible and make the audience care about these foul characters. All of the performances on display make every character quite engaging and help propel the mystery of the story. Samuel L. Jackson gives one of his best performances in film to date since Pulp Fiction. Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tim Roth, Michael Madon, and Bruce Dern along with the rest of the supporting cast all help bolster the film breathing life into each of their disgusting characters and proving great performances. Be forewarned that there is quite a bit of gore and some appalling vulgarities, which are a staple of Tarantino's, so just keep that in mind if you are planning on seeing the film or considering it. I quite enjoyed The Hateful Eight and certainly plan on viewing the 70 mm version of the film in the near future. The Hateful Eight is one of Tarantino's best and fans of Tarantino's work will love it.

Film Assessment: A-