Fading Glories (Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood, 2019)

And so here we are at Quentin Tarantino’s ninth film (Apparently Death Proof does not count?). A pretty loving homage to the Hollywood of the 60’s, Tarantino weaves a tale of fading actor Rick Dalton and his best friend Cliff Booth and their place in it all. Cliff is less bothered, content to help out his friend and then spend the evening sitting in front the TV with his dog. But after a meeting with producer Marvin Schwarz, Rick is realizing he is becoming…well obsolete…and it scares him.

I suspect Dalton’s crisis is not uncommon in Hollywood…but does it make for a great story?

Yeah. It turns out that here? It sure does.

Now, of course, this is in part, due to the performances of both DiCaprio and Pitt as Dalton and Booth respectively. DeCaprio’s portrayal is both hilarious and endearing. Pitt gives Booth a real sense of casual cool.

The writing is both the cleverness we expect from Tarantino matched with compelling characters (there is a bit of a question if Cliff is maybe a darker guy, but the film leaves the door open on just how dark). I would say the weakest link in the main characters is Robbie’s Sharon Tate. Not because Robbie is a bad actress. She is charming and kind as Tate. There is a sequence where we see Robbie express insecurity turning to joy as she watches a movie she is in with an audience. Robbie sells this moment. But she feels so incidental to the story for much of the time.

The cast is just full of great talent… Kurt Russell, Timothy Olyphant and a pretty endless group bringing their A-game.

Visually, the film feels it is of another time, truly like a creature of the 60’s. And the soundtrack is darn near perfect.

My only real criticism is a somewhat lazy time jump that glosses over six months. But, admittedly, had they shown all of it, the film would be, like five hours long. And I do like listening to the Kurt Russell narration.

I found Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood great fun. Bear in mind, this is a Tarantino film…if you hate his previous work, I don’t think this will change your mind. But fans will appreciate this one for sure.

July 27, 2019 0

Fast and Furious (The Quick and the Dead, 1995)

Stop me if you’ve heard this one…a mysterious drifter comes to town with a purpose only known to her.

Ellen wanders into a small town ruled by Herod. Every year, Herod holds a quick draw competition. Gunfighters from all over come to show off their skills. He is a cruel and vindictive man. He has a former partner in crime, Cort, in chains. Cort walked away from his criminal ways and became a preacher. But Herod is trying to push Cort into cast away his faith.

Ellen is a hard drinking and tortured woman. She has arrived for the competition. But as she grows closer to her goal of fighting Herod, the weight of vengeance starts to wear her down. She takes some comfort with Herod’s young and cocky son, called the Kid.

The Kid is tired of living under his father’s shadow. This is one of the closest points to being human Herod has. He tries to force the Kid out of the contest when it is clear the kid aims to go against his father.

Meanwhile, Cort tries to convince Ellen to walk away…leading to Herod seeing an opportunity and set Ellen and Cort against each other a shootout to the death.

If this sounds like a mass of western cliches…well, it should. This is the point of Sam Raimi’s film. He is paying a very loving homage to the classic spaghetti western. At the same time, this is shot with the classic Raimi style. Weird angles, impossible visuals and over the top characters.

This is Gene Hackman at his scene chewing best. His performance as Herod is the classic “Evil Town Leader” mold, and a whole lot of fun. As the Kid, Leonardo DiCaprio is a lot of fun to watch. He is immensely over confident, but that is kind of his charm. Russell Crow’s performance as Cort is a bit more understated. And it serves the character well. Cort is a bit like Bill Munny from Unforgiven in that he turned from evil and seeks a more righteous path. But his past refuses to make this easy.

Raimi fills the background with a remarkable cast of character actors. Lance Henrickson is the fancy Gambler and gunfight Ace. Keith David is the bounty hunter hired by the town to kill Herod.

The Quick and the Dead is a great love letter to the westerns of Sergio Leone and entertaining as all git out.

March 23, 2018 0

Vengeance Is a Dish Best Served Cold (The Revenant, 2015)

Revenant: Definition one, a person who returns. Definition two, a person who returns as a spirit or ghost. The film works on both those levels. Going in, based on early word and promotions, this may have struck you as a revenge movie with Leonardo DiCaprio fighting a bear.

And those things are there. The bear attack is intense and brutal. It also leads to DiCaprio’s High Glass’ quest for revenge on Tom Hardy’s John Fitzgerald. After their fur trapping group is attacked by a group of Native Americans. They are seeking the Chief’s kidnapped daughter and believe Glass’s crew has her. The survivors escape due to Glass’s knowledge of the wilderness. His main goal is protecting his son.

While scouting ahead, Glass is attacked and has a fight with a large mother bear. His group tries to patch him up, but ultimately, they agree to go ahead while Fitzgerald, Bridger (Will Poulter) and Glass’ son Hawk (Forrest Goodluck) stay with the incapacitated Glass.

Things go south as Fitzgerald becomes impatient, wishing Glass would just die. As I said, the film is a revenge film. But it is not a revenge film like we might get starring Liam Neeson or Mel Gibson. Director Alejandro G. Iñárritu (2014’s Birdman) takes his time. Much of the film simply follows Glass struggling to survive a harsh winter, mostly alone, when he can barely walk. The actual seeking of revenge does not occur until near the end of the movie.

It is beautifully shot, capturing much of the beauty that can be found even in harsh winters. Iñárritu skillfully will focus on a sunrise as seen through frozen bare tree branches. And the performances are what one would expect from talent like DiCaprio and Hardy. There are long quiet stretches, that get broken up by harsh and brutal violence.

I don’t know that the Revenant is truly a film that invites repeat watches, it is not a film where you need to mine it for themes buried deep. Instead, it is laid bare on the table. It is a film that sticks with you well after leaving the theater.

January 28, 2016 0