ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD (2019) – My rating: 7/10

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is a comedy-drama written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. Produced by Columbia Pictures, Bona Film Group, Heyday Films, and Visiona Romantica and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing, it is an international co-production between the United States and the United Kingdom. I was really looking forward to seeing this movie — I am neutral as to the quality of the movie but I feel it is worth seeing.

****  SOME SPOILERS  ****

In February 1969, Los Angeles actor Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), star of 1950’s Western television series, Bounty Law is now a struggling has-been. Realizing he is no longer the young budding star he was in the 50s, Rick shares this revolution with his best friend and former stunt double, Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), that his career is over. Cliff, a war veteran, lives in a trailer behind a drive-in movie with his pit bull, Brandy.  He drives Rick (whose license is suspended) around town and relies on him for work because there have been rumors circulating that Cliff got away with killing his wife.

Meanwhile, actress Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie) and her husband director Roman Polanski (Rafał Zawierucha) have moved next door to Rick’s house, causing him to have dreams of befriending the couple in order to restore his failing status.  Charles Manson (Damon Herriman) stops by Polanski and Tate’s house looking for record producer, Terry Melcher, who used to live there but is turned away by Tate’s ex-boyfriend, Jay Sebring (Emile Hirsch). Cliff later picks up a young hitchhiker he’d seen around town, named Pussycat (Margaret Qualley) while driving Rick’s car. He drops her off at the Spahn Movie Ranch, where Cliff shot Bounty Law. She tries to persuade him to stay, but he is suspicious of the large number of hippies squatting on the property.  Worried that owner George Spahn (Bruce Dern) is being taken advantage of, Cliff insists checking on Spahn despite Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme’s (Dakota Fanning) objections; Spahn dismisses Cliff’s fears. Returning to his car, Cliff discovers that Steve Grogan (James Landry Hébert) has slashed his front tire; Cliff brutally beats Grogan and forces him to change the tire. Manson girl, Sundance (Cassidy Hice) goes to fetch Charles “Tex “Watson (Austin Butler) but Cliff is driving away by the time Watson arrives. Meanwhile, Rick lands the role of a villain in a new series called Lancer. He strikes up a conversation with his young co-star Trudi Fraser (Julia Butters), a method actress. During one of his scenes, Rick struggles with his lines due to his alcoholism and later has an emotional breakdown in his trailer. He returns and gives a powerful performance that impresses the director and Trudi, bolstering Rick’s confidence. After watching Rick’s performance as a guest star on an episode of The F.B.I., director Marvin Schwarz (Al Pacino) offers Rick the opportunity to shoot a Spaghetti Western in Rome.

I really didn’t dislike Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, I thought it was a bit slow at times and downright boring at times.  I wasn’t sure where this movie was trying to take me or what the moral of the story was until the end.  Tarantino rewrote a story everyone knew and made it the way he wished it had ended.  This twist was a big surprise that made the movie worth seeing.  The acting was absolutely brilliant. FYI: This was the last film to feature (Luke Perry who played Wayne Maunder) and died in March of 2019. This also became the first Tarantino film not to be associated with producer Harvey Weinstein, after Tarantino cut ties following sexual abuse allegations against Weinstein in October. The Hollywood Reporter wrote that critics had “an overall positive view” of the film, who called the film “Tarantino’s love letter to ’60s L.A.” and praised its casting choices and setting, though some were “divided on its ending.”  Bounty Law is based on Wanted Dead or Alive (1958–1961). Rick Dalton’s relationship with Cliff Booth is based on that of actor Burt Reynolds and his longtime stunt double Hal Needham. Once Upon A Time… isn’t for everyone however, I highly recommend it to those who like a good fantasy ending.  Check It Out!

OCEAN’S 8 (2018) – My rating: 7/10

Ocean’s 8 (stylized onscreen as Ocean’s Eight) is a comedy directed by Gary Ross and written by Ross and Olivia Milch. The film is a spin-off from Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s trilogy and features an ensemble cast.  Ocean’s 8 follows a group of women, led by Debbie Ocean, who plan on robbing a very expensive necklace, after serving time for a crime she actually didn’t commit.

 

**** THIS PLOT HAS SOME SPOILERS **** 

Debbie Ocean (Sandra Bullock), the younger sister of the late Danny Ocean (character from the previous Oceans 11 through 13), spends five years, eight months and twelve days in prison planning a heist. Debbie convinces her partner-in-crime and friend Lou (Cate Blanchett) to join forces with her while she proceeds to recruit a jewelry maker,  Amita (Mindy Kaling), a profiteer, Tammy (Sarah Paulson), a street hustler, Constance (Awkwafina), a computer cracker, Leslie a.k.a. Nine Ball (Rihanna), and a fashion designer, Rose Weil (Helena Bonham Carter). The film reveals in a flashback that Debbie’s ex-lover, Claude Becker (Richard Armitage), had involved her in a fraudulent scheme, then testified against her, which resulted in the 5+ years prison sentence she served. However, unbeknownst to Becker and as payback, Debbie chooses him to be the scapegoat for the plot to steal the Toussaint, a $150 million necklace to be worn by Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway), at New York City’s star-studded annual Met Gala.

Cast who appeared in a reprised, cameo role:
Dakota Fanning cameos as Penelope Stern
Elliott Gould reprises his role as Reuben Tishkoff
Shaobo Qin reprise his roles as  “The Amazing” Yen
Marlo Thomas, Dana Ivey, Mary Louise Wilson and Elizabeth Ashley cameos as actresses who help the crew shift their stolen gems.

These celebrities make cameo appearances as themselves:
Anna Wintour, Zayn Malik, Katie Holmes, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Kim Kardashian, Adriana Lima, Kylie Jenner, Alexander Wang, Nina Cuso, Kendall Jenner, Gigi Hadid, Lily Aldridge, Olivia Munn, Zac Posen, Hailey Baldwin, Derek Blasberg, Heidi Klum and Lauren Santo Domingo.

I didn’t know what to expect from this movie but I have now formed an opinion that Ocean’s 8 was somewhat entertaining and somewhat boring and very unbelievable.  While the premise was okay, the overall execution was ridiculous and sloppy.  I think this film could have been thought out better before presenting it, especially to the Ocean’s trilogy fans.  Speaking of presentation, I thought Cate Blanchett looked fabulously beautiful, I hardly recognized her.  That’s not to say she isn’t beautiful all the time, it’s just to say she was especially beautiful in Ocean’s 8.  My recommendation is to wait for the DVD.  It’ll be an enjoyable night of watching movies at best!