I like making lists.

1. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (July 26th)

A TV actor and his stunt double embark on an odyssey to make a name for themselves in the film industry during the Charles Manson murders in 1969 Los Angeles.

Let’s start with the cast – Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Burt Reynolds, Damian Lewis, Luke Perry, Emile Hirsch, Dakota Fanning, James Marsden, Timothy Olyphant, and Al Pacino… also plus the normal Tarantino staples in Kurt Russell, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, have to assume Sam Jackson will show up in some capacity, etc. Now, on paper I think that’s legitimately one of the best casts ever assembled. It’s a lot of pieces to juggle, but every Tarantino film has a big cast and I would argue that handling said casts is one of his biggest strengths as a director.

How about Tarantino himself for a second? Is he the best director working in the business today? Probably not. He’s been criticized his entire career for lifting shots, stories, other elements, practically everything from other films. Can you really call someone who does those things the best in their industry, regardless of what that industry is? Definitely not. But have I ever walked out of one of his films disappointed? Hell no. He may not be the best or the most original, but I think he’s arguably the most entertaining director in the business today and in my mind he honestly has not made a bad film. True, I’m not a big fan of Death Proof, but it has some merits and I think he was somewhat held back by the “Grindhouse” idea. Everything else though? Pure gold.

The plot itself also sounds very interesting, which does sometimes take a back seat to Tarantino’s interest in writing strong characters and witty dialogue. Struggling actors trying to figure their lives out against the backdrop of the Manson murders, with Robbie as Sharon Tate? Goddamn. It wouldn’t shock me if it’s more just hints here and there and the focus is really on the characters and dialogue like most other Tarantino films, but does it matter? Will be great either way.

Something worth considering is also the notion that he Quentin has said countless times that he really only wants to make ten films – counting both halves of Kill Bill as one film, this puts him at nine. He’s been talking about a Star Trek movie for eons, is that it? Are we about to see the second-to-last Tarantino film? I certainly hope not but time will tell.



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I'll probably start something new tomorrow, glad to be back.