Take a closer look at Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood with our analysis of the 10 best shots from the teaser trailer.
If one thing Hollywood loves with an unadulterated passion, it’s itself. The home of American movies, an oasis for stars and celebrities in the midst of an enormous desert, is obsessed with self-mythologizing. So, it’s not surprising that one of Hollywood’s most acclaimed directors — good ole Quentin Tarantino — set his newest movie smack dab in the middle of some real Hollywood history.
First announced last year, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood takes place in Hollywood in the summer of 1969. During that summer, Charles Manson and his family of followers went on a killing spree that left several people dead, including infamously pregnant actress Sharon Tate.
The Manson murders will purportedly serve as the backdrop for a story about television star Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his stunt double (Brad Pitt) facing the changing Hollywood landscape. With Margot Robbie cast in the role of Sharon Tate, it remains unclear how the two stories will intertwine. However, with Tarantino behind the camera, the results will inevitably be messy to say the least.
While the teaser trailer does very little to establish of the film’s plot, it does give us a fantastic look at the look, feel, and attitude of the movie. We break down the 10 best shots from the trailer and discuss what it all means below. Check it out!
The best shots from the ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ trailer
The trailer for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood opens with a black and white shot of DiCaprio and Pitt’s characters in the midst of an interview with a television reporter. In the scene, they explain the dynamic between an actor and his stunt double. It’s an effective moment that both introduces the protagonists’ dynamic and allows Tarantino to play with style and form of the film right off the back. The shot also serves as a visual cue to the audience about the time and setting of the movie. It’s a playful and sharp introduction that fits the trailer perfectly.
One of the central components of the film, or so we have been led to believe, is that Charles Manson and his family will somehow play a hand in the plot. This shot in particular seems to be an indirect nod at Manson and his followers — many of which were girls aged anywhere from 16 to 30. Manson preyed upon the disaffected youth that roamed listlessly throughout the city and the country at that time, struggling with the effects of the generational divide and ongoing political unrest. This image in particular is evocative of that cultural moment and no doubt will play a role in the movie.
If you’re going to make a movie set in Los Angeles in 1969, you have to make it look like 1969. Right off the bat, we get this gorgeous shot that show offs an iconic Los Angeles theater: the Cinerama Dome. If you drive by the Cinerama today, it looks absolutely nothing like this (there’s a 24 Hour Fitness behind it!), but Tarantino and company did the work to take L.A. all the way back to 1969 and the results are sublime. This shot, along with a few others, do a fantastic job of establishing setting — both in location and style. Here’s to more of this!
The best shots in the teaser trailer are the ones like this that help give a greater sense of the visual palette and style of the film. This shot may not tell us very much about what the movie is about, but it does achieve a sense of place and attitude necessary for getting audiences excited about this movie.
Leonardo DiCaprio…having fun?! Please say it’s true! If you’ve been paying attention, you might’ve noticed that Leonardo DiCaprio hasn’t been in a movie since 2015. 2015 was the year Leo starred in The Revenant, a brutal slog of a movie that somehow convinced Academy voters to give Leo the Oscar. The Revenant is bad for plenty of reasons, but chief among them is that it actually totally misses what makes Leonardo DiCaprio such a compelling performer. Leo is actually a tremendously funny actor when he’s allowed to be and this shot — among others in the film — show that trait off.
Actor Mike Moh, known for his roles on Empire and Inhumans is set to appear in Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood as Bruce Lee. Lee, who was known for training several of the biggest stars in Hollywood, makes an appearance in the trailer as he works with Brad Pitt’s character Cliff. Aside from looking the part, Moh has the skills to back it up. We’re treated to a sneak peak of it in the trailer, but knowing Tarantino, there will be even more to enjoy in the movie. Not only is this shot a perfect introduction for Lee’s character in the film, but it also gives us another look at the stellar production design to be found in the film — this time they are on the backlot at a movie studio.
Here’s what we know about Margot Robbie in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: not much! We know she’s playing Sharon Tate, but how her story will intertwine with that of Rick Dalton and stunt double stunt double Cliff remains to be seen. However, we do get a few short glimpses at Margot’s portrayal of Sharon Tate. Given that we see so little of her in the trailer, it’s possible that her scenes would give away too much about the movie to show so soon before the film’s release. Regardless, this shot of her dancing against a back and white backdrop styled in perfect late-60s hair and costume, it’s hard not to get excited about the energy at the heart of this movie.
The teaser trailer may be notably light on divulging plot, but it still sneaks in a brief look at the man that will play Charles Manson. Here we get a look at Damon Herriman, an Australian actor making the jump across the Pacific Ocean to play one of the most notorious men in the history of popular culture. It’s one of the most important shots of the trailer, giving us a glimpse at the subtly charismatic but unsettlingly Manson.
This particular shot is one of the shortest in the trailer, a mere blip towards the end of the teaser that doesn’t even last a full second. However, it’s one of the best shots in the trailer. It gives us a look at the crew filming a scene for a movie (that looks to be a western). We can see Brad Pitt’s character watching from the sidelines, a director seated next to the camera, and an entire crew standing behind the camera watching. This feels like an especially telling shot, giving us a look at the way the movie will tell the behind the scenes story of movie-making and allow us to understand why Rick and Cliff feel so out of place in this new Hollywood.
The final shot of the teaser trailer for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood operates as a sort of punch line. Here we see Rick between takes while filming as his costar compliments him on his skill. His reaction is a mix of genuine appreciation and a peacock sense of self-gratification; it’s a perfect note for DiCaprio to play and helps cue the audience in to the really playful nature of the film. If Hollywood is going to keep making movies about itself, the least they can do is have fun with it and Tarantino seems intent on doing just that.
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