With Tarantino’s latest film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood finally being unleashed upon the world at large, it is bound to be a great many things to a great many people. Set in Hollywood circa 1969, the film sees Tarantino assembling a truly all-star cast to bring his nostalgic, glimmering ode to innocence lost to life in thrilling fashion.

From long-time Tarantino regulars such as Kurt Russell or Brad Pitt to newcomers such as Margaret Qualley or Austin Butler, this film is practically bursting at the seams with award-worthy star-power.

Even discounting characters and actors who make only minor appearances such as Damon Herriman as Charles Manson, Bruce Dern as George Spahn, or even Emile Hirsch as Jay Sebring, there’s still an unbelievable amount of huge stars playing major roles in this thing.

But which one of them steals the whole show?

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

Brad Pitt as Cliff Booth

While Margot Robbie achieves a greater thematic weight and cinematic synchrony through her performance, Leonardo DiCaprio gets more capital-A acting moments in his, and Butters and Sayuri are the film’s most effectively brilliant scene-stealers, it is in fact Pitt’s understated performance as Cliff Booth that ultimately takes the cake.

It’s been a decade since Pitt last appeared in a Tarantino film and even longer than that since he and long-time collaborator David Fincher worked together. In that intervening time, Pitt has given some interesting performances but they’ve rarely reached the euphoric heights he had previously.

In this way, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is a genuine return to form for Pitt. Looking even more like a reincarnated Robert Redford than ever before, Tarantino practically weaponizes Pitt’s persona, legacy, and physicality for the role of Cliff. The result is a performance that is endlessly compelling to watch.

Whether he’s speeding along the highway, eating Kraft’s mac and cheese at home with Brandy, engaging in backstage fist-fights with Bruce Lee, or beating members of the Manson ‘Family’ to a pulp, Pitt imbues each aspect of his performance with such understated power and weight.

Leonardo DiCaprio as Rick Dalton

Fresh off of his Academy Award-winning performance in The Revenant, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood sees DiCaprio returning to the big screen for the first time since and delivering an all-around astounding performance that is destined to go down as one of his all-time bests.

As Dalton, DiCaprio crafts an intricate portrait of a performer coming face-to-face with his own mortality and it’s kind of enthralling to witness. He’s anxiety-ridden, full of guilt, and ultimately just kind of a mess. We’re allowed to simply witness Dalton doing daily routines such as rehearsing his lines for the next day’s filming and DiCaprio turns these intimate moments into some of the film’s best.

His best sequence in the entire film though is the quietly revolutionary setpiece centering around the filming of his Lancer episode. The episode is shown to the audience as an edited, finished product, except for when Dalton makes a mistake. Then, the form itself will rewind or reset without ever removing us from the episode itself. It’s a brilliant stylistic choice, one that allows Tarantino and DiCaprio to essentially break down the bounds of the form by acknowledging it.

It sees them turning the artform into visual jazz and allowing DiCaprio to give a mesmerizingly affecting performance that is simultaneously funny, compelling, and emotionally poignant.

Kurt Russel as Randy

In the later phase of Tarantino’s career, Kurt Russell has become something of one of his regular players. After first appearing in Death Proof, Russell has gone on to have a starring role in The Hateful Eight and play a crucial role here in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

As the on-screen Randy, it’s a ton of fun to see Russell get to chew some scenery alongside actors like Pitt and DiCaprio. His confrontation with Rick Dalton about how he’s uncomfortable with using Cliff because of his checkered past is one of the film’s subtlest moments and it is so affecting because of Russell’s nuanced heel-turning performance.

Sadly, the film doesn’t have a ton of time to allot to Randy (or his cameoing scene-stealing wife, played by ludicrously talented and endearing real-life stunt legend Zoe Bell). Tarantino goes the extra mile to make up for this by having Russell as the on-again/off-again narrator of the fairy tale narrative, which Russell is clearly having a lot of fun delivering.

Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate

The movie’s handling of Sharon Tate has already been dominating a great deal of the conversation surrounding the film and with good reason; it is her film. And while each viewer’s mileage seems to be varying on just how effective they find the approach that Tarantino and Robbie took to bringing the real-life actress to life once more on the big screen, this writer found it boldly elegant and ultimately touching.

Sharon Tate doesn’t get the screen time or development that her fellow co-stars Rick Dalton or Cliff Booth get. Instead, both in the narrative of the film and in the form of the film, she is deified. In-narrative, characters like Rick and Cliff watch her from the house next door and view her as something of an icon, someone too famous for even them to interact with.

In the form of the film, Tarantino and cinematographer Robert Richardson treat us to extended sequences such as her trip to go see The Wrecking Crew at the Bruin Theatre, in which they allow us to simply sit with Robbie as Tate. To her immense credit, Robbie delivers an astounding performance that embraces this unique take on the character, working in synchrony with Tarantino and Richardson’s form to create a truly special ode to innocence lost in the form of a love letter to Sharon Tate.

Sayuri as Brandy

This award-winning dog is the real hero of the film and pretty much immediately ascends into the upper echelon of truly great dogs of cinema history.

In a film full of really satisfying setups and payoffs, written and directed by a filmmaker known for providing really satisfying setups and payoffs, Brandy becomes the most satisfying payoff in all of Tarantino’s history. After being introduced early on as Cliff’s sweet, loving, and loyally protective companion, Brandy gets to really sinker her teeth into juicy action beats when the third act comes around.

She gets to rip members of the Manson ‘Family’ limb-from-limb, all in the name of protecting those she loves. The sheer amount of extensive choreography and action that Sayuri, the real-life dog playing Brandy, as to do is beyond impressive and she does it all with utter conviction.

Brandy may eat dog food branded for ‘mean dogs’ but she is, in fact, the best dog. Ever.

- Courtesy www.whatculture.com