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Once Upon a Time in Hollywood ... A review of a fantasy

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood can best be described as a historical fiction, which is actually implied by the title of the film. The movie is a three-hour marathon, in true Tarantino fashion, but it is saved by two major factors that neatly divide the movie. The first part of the film that comprises a majority of the movie is in all honesty quite slow, which is a curious thing to say about a movie that is already 3 hours long. However, the film doesn’t feel boring because of its stylistic shooting, entertaining characters, and it's well crafted intriguing plot. The plot doesn’t seem intriguing on the surface yet the film gives the audience a desire to keep watching to find out what the movie is really about. The entire first part of the film essentially serves as a Chekhov’s gun for the approximately last 20 minutes of the film. The beauty of this set up is that nothing is wasted. These last 20 minutes are a completely wild and insane ride that calls upon every detail that was prepared throughout the duration of the film. It completely contrasts the primary portion of the film which only accentuates the joy, shock, and horror that is brought about by the final portion of the film. I would without a doubt see it again just to see how many details were actually carefully placed for the final great, big reveal. The true highlights of the film are found in the chemistry between Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt’s performance with each taking the spotlight when on their own as well as together. Additionally, even though Margot Robbie was as heavily advertised as the other two, I felt that she didn’t get enough screen time but the time she did have was used very well. In the end, you should see this movie if you want to say you appreciate movies that are original in what they do or just enjoy Quentin Tarantino's style. 



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