Once Upon a Time . . . in Hollywood

I saw this movie this afternoon.  It is Quentin Tartantino's homage to the Hollywood dream machine (well, he often bows his head to movies, but this is a complete homage, I think.)  The performances were terrific, especially Leonardo DiCaprio  (who I don't always think of as a great actor, but who really is one).  He was funny and fragile and hopeful and tough and vulnerable and did I say FUNNY (which is the hardest thing of all) and I really think he hit the ball out of the park.  The script was quite good and hit all these great marks with Hollywood and acting and friendship and loyalty and fear and getting older.  I think it caught the time period really well and built up the suspense.  Of course, it being a Quentin Tarantino movie means that it was very violent and I was dreading that, and it was very very violent, but most of the movie focused on other things that I find much more interesting.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Margot Robbie play two different ends of the Hollywood world.  He is an aging tv star who doubts himself and needs reassurance and even when he gets it, wonders if he has what it takes.  She is just at the beginning of her career and it is fun to watch her go into a movie theatre to see herself on screen and how she reacts to the audience members' reactions to her performance.  She's excited to just be there and is kind of amazed and in love with herself as an actor and as a character in the movies.  Leonardo DiCaprio has so many great scenes -- when he forgets his lines and then castigates himself for it when he's by himself and then later when he does well in a scene, you see the relief and the pride and the fear -- what if it never happens again?  How hard it is to put yourself out there and what if you fail?  You are rooting for him, but at the same time, he's very silly and egotistical and FUNNY.  I am so impressed with him.

Brad Pitt is very good looking, of course, and he was good in the thankless role of the regular guy, the sidekick to the famous actor.  Of course, he isn't just a regular guy because he has a mysterious past and is kind and resourceful and strong, in a complete contrast to Leonardo DiCaprio.  Julia Butters is good in the small role of a child actor in a tv show in which Rick Dalton (DiCaprio) plays a villain and Mike Moh is great as Bruce Lee.  Apparently, Bruce Lee's family doesn't like the part, but I think it's funny and I don't think you're supposed to think "Oh, Bruce Lee was actually like this".  I just thought it was an interesting and funny take on his image -- it shows him in a dispute with Cliff Booth (Pitt) and then shows him teaching Sharon Tate (Robbie) some moves.

Anyway, I recommend the movie highly.  I'm not a big fan of violence, but most of the movie is about actors and how you make a movie and Hollywood and so the violence isn't a deal breaker.  Leonardo DiCaprio's performance is worth the price of admission and there's other great stuff as well.