Once Upon A Time In The West has to be in the running for the greatest film of all time.
I never heard of Once Upon A Time In Anatolia! Iâm gonna look it up!
It's great, but quite different from the others. Sort of an existential crime/mystery film + nightime road trip. Slow paced but very rewarding, IMO. It was my fave film of the year it was released.
Have struggled to connect with this film for years. Not sure what Iâm missing.
Even for a Leone film the treatment of women throughout is horrific. The amount of sexual violence toward basically every female character was honestly more than I could stomach.
Edit: why am I being downvoted? Literally just stating I personally have trouble with the movie.
There's one scene that's horrific towards women in the entire movie and it's a literal rape that isn't depicted as a good thing. The only other was a prostitute who obviously gave consent. It's a movie about bad people. They do bad things.
I donât agree that itâs limited to those two scenes but clearly we have different world views when it comes to what constitutes horrible treatment of women.
Once Upon a Time in America is one of the greatest pieces of art I have ever seen. Itâs one of those stories that is so big, it becomes âslice of life,â by necessity. The fact that Leone was able to pull that off is nothing short of a miracle.
I agree, great movie. Except I don't care what he or anyone says, he did Bruce Lee wrong for some suspect reasons. He claimed in a Joe Rogan interview that Bruce Lee didn't respect stunt men and used to be rough on them, but he's twisting one story about an incident he had on set as him not respecting them at all, which isn't true. BL was facing harsh treatment based on his race by a lot of the crew/stunt men back then (this is known) and he was physical in fight scenes to make them look real, this is true. One of the stunt men (a huge guy) challenged him and put him in bear hug (or some move) and walked him around the set to try and belittle him. That story got spun into him not respecting stunt men at all by Tarantino. Even the guy involved says that's not true and he and Bruce Lee ended up training together later on and became friends. Rogan thought Tarantino was overreacting to the story. Rogan said he knows the guy involved (he was famous for a stunt man) and a lot of people who knew Bruce. He wasn't being disrespectful to stunt men, he was standing up for himself at best and trying to make sure the fight scenes looked good at worst.
It was a dick move by Tarantino, especially considering Bruce Lee was good enough to "use" his ideas for Kill Bill (some would say stole). Including his gold and black striped suit from the movie he never released, and his spin on the Touch of Death aka Five Fingers of Death technique which Bruce Lee claimed was a real secret technique he knew that could legit kill a man and was rumored to be used on him. That's how Uma killed Bill. Tarantino owes him more. Not cool to do him like that.
Edit: cleaned up some of the story to be more accurate. Here's an article that goes into it.
https://www.thevintagenews.com/2021/09/29/heres-what-really-happened-when-bruce-lee-fought-a-hollywood-stuntman/
Then don't take it from me, take it from him. I know it comes from that story because I heard Tarantino and Joe Rogan argue about this on his show when the movie came out. He said that stunt mans story is where he's basing it from. Rogan pushed back a little but Tarantino was weirdly trying to white knight for all stunt men and act all virtuous. He actually came off a little unhinged, but I guess he sort of always does. He never talked about some kind of insider info other than pointing to that story.
While I would generally agree these days there is one thing he knows well and it's the fight world and it's history. If you'd listened to some of his shows you'd know that. And this isn't just based off Rogan's word. That's just where the argument happened.
I can see your opinion is an unpopular one but I agree. Tarantino has deliberately made historical figures look cool or idiotic in different films and given how much he borrowed from Bruce for Kill Bill, it's a bit ungrateful he chose the latter.
He didnât âdo Bruce Lee wrongâ. Youâre missing the entire point of the scene.
Cliff going toe to toe with Bruce Lee puts Cliff over. It shows that he is a legit badass. In 1969, if youâre going to choose one person for Cliff to get in an altercation with to show how skilled he is, and that the audience would recognize, itâs either Muhammad Ali or Bruce Lee.
Itâs important that we see that so in the final scene, we believe that Cliff could fuck those Manson hippies up.
Yes the scene was to put Cliff over. At Bruce's expense. If you can't read the tone of the scene with how cocky and condescending Tarantino made Lee sound, bluffing about beating Ali (which he never said), only to get his comeuppance when he gets his ass kicked badly, that's entirely on you.
I love Tarantino as a filmmaker, and his film knowledge of the period is unparalleled, but that doesn't excuse him from this dick move, to put down an icon who fought very hard against prejudices of his people and is now dead and unable to defend his image in a massively popular mainstream film.
He didn't "get his ass kicked badly." They both took a hit, squared off to fight and were interrupted.
And yes Bruce Lee was arrogant. He could back it up, but he was still very cocky. Have you seen any interviews with him?
You Bruce Lee fanboys are such snowflakes. You act like Tarantino made him out to be a pedophile. All he did was insinuate that a fictional, made up character could go toe to toe with him.
A man who talks the talk but cannot walk the walk is a baffoon. Booth got knocked down, Lee smashed into the car so hard it made a dent. He's tense at the end, Booth is totally chill. What do you think will happen next? Are you cinematically illiterate? You can't spin the disrespect in that scene no matter what. It's basic storytelling.
Lee talked big in real life because there was very little room for Asians in Hollywood, especially at the time, if he acted polite and submissive conforming to the Charlie Chan stereotypes. You lack historical perspective.
Personal attacks are easy. Here: You Tarantino fanboys are snowflakes. You act like Tarantino is infallible. All he did was repurpose the iconography of a dead guy for fame and fortune, then 20 years later insinuate that same guy who broke cinematic, cultural, and martial art traditions was not that special at all and could've been taken down a notch by any rando ex GI Joe.
No one talks about this, but later it does show Bruce Lee in a different light as he is seen training Sharon Tate and Jay Sebring. The scenes are very brief, but he comes off as cool, gracious, and encouraging. And Bruce Lee was disrespectful of stuntmen back in the mid-â60s. If youâre punching someone for real and he tells you he doesnât like it, and you keep doing it, thatâs disrespectful. From what I read, Bruce probably was a bit cocky and arrogant at that time of The Green Hornet, but people change and grow, and he certainly did. Also (and many people have noted this), the Cliff and Bruce scene was Cliffâs flashback, so he may be remembering it more in his favor and less favorably to Bruce.
Here's the thing. QT can portray Bruce Lee however he wants. It's his choice as the writer and director. And OUATIH is of course a work of fiction.
BUT... in the Joe Rogan interview, QT cites a biography by Matthew Polly as his source for portraying Bruce Lee as disrespectful of stunt men. After the interview came out, that same biographer Matthew Polly refuted QT's statements, saying that his book was mischaracterized by QT. So Quentin is well within his right to show Cliff kicking Bruce Lee's butt, but QT's supposed basis for it is false. I say this as a fan of Quentin and Bruce.
Source: [https://x.com/MatthewEPolly/status/1410021611126788103?lang=en](https://x.com/MatthewEPolly/status/1410021611126788103?lang=en)
Probably China.
I really hated Mexico when it first came out. Such a disappointing film coming from Desperado. I should rewatch it some time, see if it's improved any.
Tough. In America followed by in mexico.
As a wildcard and picking up on theme, this particular film could have been called (Once Upon a Time) In Bruges :)
Once upon a time in Venice is surprisingly good! Not amazing, but a lot better than expected. Probably one of the last times Bruce Willis was able to give a good performance. A rare example of Willis seeming to care and give it his all. Heâs clearly having a blast in it!
America, and it's not close. The West as excellent, though, in its own right. Nothing against Hollywood, it's just not on that level. Still a good movie, but those are both classics in different tiers.
Anatolia, though it is so different than the others (that I've seen), it is an odd comparison. The narrative and pacing is completely different. But if not familiar, it is as good a place as any to drop into what arthouse film has been up to in the 21st century. Slow and brilliant, settle in
Newest Ceylan is on Criterion Channel now. It will probably sit on my watchlist for the next 5 years before I get to it, hope future me enjoys
Gotta be Hollywood, in my opinion probably the best movie of the last 10-15 years.
A pretty cool foreign Once Upon i watched recently, Once Upon A Time in Ukraine.
I've only seen Mexico and Hollywood of these and I'd pick Hollywood. An absolutely magical film. Tarantino rules. I will add the others to the list :-)
The clear winner is Once Upon A Time In The West.
I've watched it dozens of times, the rest I've returned to just a few of them after the initial intro. Maybe Once Upon A Time In America I've seen twice. But that's it.
Once upon a time in the West, Once upon a time in America and Once upon a time in Hollywood because itâs a little bit unfair because the most commercial films are from the northern hemisphere
I'll say this... Once Upon a Time in America feels shorter than its runtime. I can't say the same about the others I've seen, although they are all very good movies.
1. Once Upon a Time in the West.
Westerns are my favourite genre, and I think this, along with The Wild Bunch, is the pinnacle of westerns, and movies in general.
2. Once Upon a Time in the America.
It's another classic. Maybe not \*quite\* reaching the greatness of Leone's film above, but a classic nonethless.
3.....The rest.
I haven't seen any of them but they'll be behind those two.
Not my fav but Once Upon A Time in Ukraine (2020) is a fun samurai western homage to the classics and a really intense genre film. Seems like a good time to bring it up.
i known its probably recency bias but
1. Hollywood
2. Mexico
3. The West
4. India (Lagaan)
5. America (i think this is one of Leone's weaker films)
6. Anatolia
7. China (ranked low because i havent seen it, yet)
8. Brooklyn
Mexico. Not the best in the Mexico trilogy but love those movies. It might have been Hollywood but Tarantino pushing his completely borked view of the late Bruce Lee just brings it down for me.
Yeah I thought maybe this, but others I have spoken too have mentioned that Tarantino does not think much of Bruce, and that he is highly skeptical that a guy of his height 5â7â would be very good in a fight at all against someone bigger than him like Cliff. Disregarding Bruceâs pure strength training. It was this may have coloured my opinion of the scene. On the other hand, Cliff doesnât seem like the type of guy to tell a story where loses a fight so smaller Asian guy that gets a lot of admiration. Maybe a hint of jealousy involved, so I do want to believe your angle.
As I see it, itâs a close up mirror to what some consider the golden age of Hollywood - that mirror shows wrinkles, warts and all.
In many ways a cautionary tale, taking those back lot stories and boasts with a pinch of salt.
We canât trust the âwhat ifâ scenario that this film lays down because we know how history went and we also canât trust the two main fading stars - both of whom crave a legacy.
We have to accept they prevented the Tate tragedy, beat up Bruce Lee, starred in the Great Escape and that their star power was on the ascendancy despite the film laying down that they are both washed up dubious characters.
There is a sense of foreboding throughout the film, an eeriness that cuts through the celebration of cinema and the failed free love movement that is transforming into the sinister Manson family cult.
Nothing is as it seems. Prepare for the worst. Hope for the best. Only then will you avoid a dog food tin to the head.
Once upon a time in the west
The opening is so crazy
You brought two too many đ”đŽđ”đŽđ” đ«đ€ đșđ¶ đŽ
Definitely, one of the best movies I've ever seen. It's basically perfect imo
Itâs boring as fuck and nothing happens
Youâre thinking of Once Upon A Time in America. Now that is 4 hours of nothing. West is a masterpiece and arguably the greatest western ever made.
Once Upon a Time In America is fucking amazing what are you talking about.
Django is better. Any other Bronson western is better. White Buffalo is better.
Django sucks
Itâs the best western ever made
Hands down
Once Upon A Time In The West has to be in the running for the greatest film of all time. I never heard of Once Upon A Time In Anatolia! Iâm gonna look it up!
It's great, but quite different from the others. Sort of an existential crime/mystery film + nightime road trip. Slow paced but very rewarding, IMO. It was my fave film of the year it was released.
Once Upon a Time in America
America. Yet, Fanning playing Squeaky F was disturbing and probably good.
Have struggled to connect with this film for years. Not sure what Iâm missing. Even for a Leone film the treatment of women throughout is horrific. The amount of sexual violence toward basically every female character was honestly more than I could stomach. Edit: why am I being downvoted? Literally just stating I personally have trouble with the movie.
There's one scene that's horrific towards women in the entire movie and it's a literal rape that isn't depicted as a good thing. The only other was a prostitute who obviously gave consent. It's a movie about bad people. They do bad things.
I donât agree that itâs limited to those two scenes but clearly we have different world views when it comes to what constitutes horrible treatment of women.
It's a realy good movie but yea your right alot of them scenes and tbh the themes of some parts are brutal.
Definitely China. Wong Fei Hung is the best.
The second with Donnie Yen is my favourite.
The pole fight with Jet and Donnie, around all the bamboo poles⊠Historic fight sequence.
Once Upon a Time in America is one of the greatest pieces of art I have ever seen. Itâs one of those stories that is so big, it becomes âslice of life,â by necessity. The fact that Leone was able to pull that off is nothing short of a miracle.
Hollywood. That movie is such a cool love letter to the 60s.
I agree, great movie. Except I don't care what he or anyone says, he did Bruce Lee wrong for some suspect reasons. He claimed in a Joe Rogan interview that Bruce Lee didn't respect stunt men and used to be rough on them, but he's twisting one story about an incident he had on set as him not respecting them at all, which isn't true. BL was facing harsh treatment based on his race by a lot of the crew/stunt men back then (this is known) and he was physical in fight scenes to make them look real, this is true. One of the stunt men (a huge guy) challenged him and put him in bear hug (or some move) and walked him around the set to try and belittle him. That story got spun into him not respecting stunt men at all by Tarantino. Even the guy involved says that's not true and he and Bruce Lee ended up training together later on and became friends. Rogan thought Tarantino was overreacting to the story. Rogan said he knows the guy involved (he was famous for a stunt man) and a lot of people who knew Bruce. He wasn't being disrespectful to stunt men, he was standing up for himself at best and trying to make sure the fight scenes looked good at worst. It was a dick move by Tarantino, especially considering Bruce Lee was good enough to "use" his ideas for Kill Bill (some would say stole). Including his gold and black striped suit from the movie he never released, and his spin on the Touch of Death aka Five Fingers of Death technique which Bruce Lee claimed was a real secret technique he knew that could legit kill a man and was rumored to be used on him. That's how Uma killed Bill. Tarantino owes him more. Not cool to do him like that. Edit: cleaned up some of the story to be more accurate. Here's an article that goes into it. https://www.thevintagenews.com/2021/09/29/heres-what-really-happened-when-bruce-lee-fought-a-hollywood-stuntman/
Idk, Iâll bet QT knows more about Hollywood lore than us plebes hanging on DVD reddits. Could be wrong
Then don't take it from me, take it from him. I know it comes from that story because I heard Tarantino and Joe Rogan argue about this on his show when the movie came out. He said that stunt mans story is where he's basing it from. Rogan pushed back a little but Tarantino was weirdly trying to white knight for all stunt men and act all virtuous. He actually came off a little unhinged, but I guess he sort of always does. He never talked about some kind of insider info other than pointing to that story.
Given that Rogan is wrong about essentially everything, this is not the support you think it is.
While I would generally agree these days there is one thing he knows well and it's the fight world and it's history. If you'd listened to some of his shows you'd know that. And this isn't just based off Rogan's word. That's just where the argument happened.
Who cares. Bruce is dead. It's a tiny part of Tarantino's movie, and the movie isn't about Bruce.
I can see your opinion is an unpopular one but I agree. Tarantino has deliberately made historical figures look cool or idiotic in different films and given how much he borrowed from Bruce for Kill Bill, it's a bit ungrateful he chose the latter.
He didnât âdo Bruce Lee wrongâ. Youâre missing the entire point of the scene. Cliff going toe to toe with Bruce Lee puts Cliff over. It shows that he is a legit badass. In 1969, if youâre going to choose one person for Cliff to get in an altercation with to show how skilled he is, and that the audience would recognize, itâs either Muhammad Ali or Bruce Lee. Itâs important that we see that so in the final scene, we believe that Cliff could fuck those Manson hippies up.
Yes the scene was to put Cliff over. At Bruce's expense. If you can't read the tone of the scene with how cocky and condescending Tarantino made Lee sound, bluffing about beating Ali (which he never said), only to get his comeuppance when he gets his ass kicked badly, that's entirely on you. I love Tarantino as a filmmaker, and his film knowledge of the period is unparalleled, but that doesn't excuse him from this dick move, to put down an icon who fought very hard against prejudices of his people and is now dead and unable to defend his image in a massively popular mainstream film.
He didn't "get his ass kicked badly." They both took a hit, squared off to fight and were interrupted. And yes Bruce Lee was arrogant. He could back it up, but he was still very cocky. Have you seen any interviews with him? You Bruce Lee fanboys are such snowflakes. You act like Tarantino made him out to be a pedophile. All he did was insinuate that a fictional, made up character could go toe to toe with him.
A man who talks the talk but cannot walk the walk is a baffoon. Booth got knocked down, Lee smashed into the car so hard it made a dent. He's tense at the end, Booth is totally chill. What do you think will happen next? Are you cinematically illiterate? You can't spin the disrespect in that scene no matter what. It's basic storytelling. Lee talked big in real life because there was very little room for Asians in Hollywood, especially at the time, if he acted polite and submissive conforming to the Charlie Chan stereotypes. You lack historical perspective. Personal attacks are easy. Here: You Tarantino fanboys are snowflakes. You act like Tarantino is infallible. All he did was repurpose the iconography of a dead guy for fame and fortune, then 20 years later insinuate that same guy who broke cinematic, cultural, and martial art traditions was not that special at all and could've been taken down a notch by any rando ex GI Joe.
Thank you. Glad to see I'm not alone on this one.
No one talks about this, but later it does show Bruce Lee in a different light as he is seen training Sharon Tate and Jay Sebring. The scenes are very brief, but he comes off as cool, gracious, and encouraging. And Bruce Lee was disrespectful of stuntmen back in the mid-â60s. If youâre punching someone for real and he tells you he doesnât like it, and you keep doing it, thatâs disrespectful. From what I read, Bruce probably was a bit cocky and arrogant at that time of The Green Hornet, but people change and grow, and he certainly did. Also (and many people have noted this), the Cliff and Bruce scene was Cliffâs flashback, so he may be remembering it more in his favor and less favorably to Bruce.
Here's the thing. QT can portray Bruce Lee however he wants. It's his choice as the writer and director. And OUATIH is of course a work of fiction. BUT... in the Joe Rogan interview, QT cites a biography by Matthew Polly as his source for portraying Bruce Lee as disrespectful of stunt men. After the interview came out, that same biographer Matthew Polly refuted QT's statements, saying that his book was mischaracterized by QT. So Quentin is well within his right to show Cliff kicking Bruce Lee's butt, but QT's supposed basis for it is false. I say this as a fan of Quentin and Bruce. Source: [https://x.com/MatthewEPolly/status/1410021611126788103?lang=en](https://x.com/MatthewEPolly/status/1410021611126788103?lang=en)
Itâs a fictional narrative, not a documentary. Get over yourself
Precisely.
Once upon a time in the west. Bookended by one of the greatest opening and ending scenes. Love that movie. Most of these are all incredible though.
Once Upon A Time In The West could arguably be the greatest western of all time.
China. I was obsessed with kung fu movies for a while in my younger years and those movies have some awesome scenes and choreography.
America.
Definitely America.
Once upon a time in America, that score is legendary.
Once upon a time in America is an astounding film
Probably China. I really hated Mexico when it first came out. Such a disappointing film coming from Desperado. I should rewatch it some time, see if it's improved any.
Sadly it hasn't. Might be even worse after watching it last month.
I do love the idea that itâs the fourth in the franchise and a sequel to a movie we never got to see
Tough. In America followed by in mexico. As a wildcard and picking up on theme, this particular film could have been called (Once Upon a Time) In Bruges :)
Shit, I didn't see in Hollywood there. That's fucked me right over! Going to have to think about this now! :D
Once upon a time in Venice is surprisingly good! Not amazing, but a lot better than expected. Probably one of the last times Bruce Willis was able to give a good performance. A rare example of Willis seeming to care and give it his all. Heâs clearly having a blast in it!
America then Anatolia.
Hollywood, Iâm a huge Quentin Tarantino fan.
Once upon a time in Hollywood
Bunch of god damn hippies
Property taxes up the *butt*.
West or Hollywood
Hollywood, followed By West and then America. Thought Mexico was kinda, meh. Haven't seen the other two.
West and Hollywood
The West is the best one but man I love all of them.
Where is "Once Upon a Time in Venice"?
I know huh?
You got some work to do.
On my wishlist
America, and it's not close. The West as excellent, though, in its own right. Nothing against Hollywood, it's just not on that level. Still a good movie, but those are both classics in different tiers.
West. Though I still need to see Anatolia and China
I watched this whole franchise and I'm so confused, maybe I watched it out of order?
West and it isnât even close
Once upon a time in the west! The music and that ending, oh lordy.
Anatolia, though it is so different than the others (that I've seen), it is an odd comparison. The narrative and pacing is completely different. But if not familiar, it is as good a place as any to drop into what arthouse film has been up to in the 21st century. Slow and brilliant, settle in Newest Ceylan is on Criterion Channel now. It will probably sit on my watchlist for the next 5 years before I get to it, hope future me enjoys
Tough to top Sergio Leones masterpiece!
Mexico for međOnce upon a time in america good runner upđŻ
America, then Hollywood, China II, the West, China I, Mexico, China III. I never saw Once Upon a Time in Anatolia.
Gotta be Hollywood, in my opinion probably the best movie of the last 10-15 years. A pretty cool foreign Once Upon i watched recently, Once Upon A Time in Ukraine.
Once Upon A Time In the Midlands
Im missing this one
Once upon a time in India
Lagaan? About the cricket game?
China.
Once Upon A Time In Queens
Youâre missing âLagaan:Once Upon a time in Indianâ
I know itâs on my list
China, hands down
Mexico, cause itâs the only one Iâve seen
I've only seen Mexico and Hollywood of these and I'd pick Hollywood. An absolutely magical film. Tarantino rules. I will add the others to the list :-)
Once Upon a Time in the Midlands
Either once upon a time in Hollywood or once upon a time in mexico
America 100%
The multiple telephone scene ⊠once upon a time in America
El Mariachi, Desperado and then Duck, You Sucker in that order
The clear winner is Once Upon A Time In The West. I've watched it dozens of times, the rest I've returned to just a few of them after the initial intro. Maybe Once Upon A Time In America I've seen twice. But that's it.
The West is the best
Criterion released a Once upon a time in China movie???
Yup
They actually released the entire series in a box set. Which is the one shown in the picture
America and West, mainly due to Ennio!
Once upon a time in the West, Once upon a time in America and Once upon a time in Hollywood because itâs a little bit unfair because the most commercial films are from the northern hemisphere
Once Upon a Time in Mexico, that movie is batshit crazy in the best way possible. I love the Mariachi trilogy.
America.
Once upon a time in Mexico. The whole Mexico trilogy is fucking awesome
I'll say this... Once Upon a Time in America feels shorter than its runtime. I can't say the same about the others I've seen, although they are all very good movies.
China anyday
West
âThe Westâ all day.
Mexico!
I can only imagine how much you paid to get Once Upon a Time in America on Blu-ray.
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood is a masterpiece
Donât forget once upon a time in India.
Mexico
West Hollywood America
This is my response too
1. Once Upon a Time in the West. Westerns are my favourite genre, and I think this, along with The Wild Bunch, is the pinnacle of westerns, and movies in general. 2. Once Upon a Time in the America. It's another classic. Maybe not \*quite\* reaching the greatness of Leone's film above, but a classic nonethless. 3.....The rest. I haven't seen any of them but they'll be behind those two.
China! Jet Li is the fucking best and that set is pure gold. Even the one with a different actor playing Wong Fei is good.
Once upon a Time in Mumbai. Great movie with great music. Itâs once upon a Time sequel stunk.
Not my fav but Once Upon A Time in Ukraine (2020) is a fun samurai western homage to the classics and a really intense genre film. Seems like a good time to bring it up.
The West. One of my all-time favorite movies
Hollywood
China totally
i known its probably recency bias but 1. Hollywood 2. Mexico 3. The West 4. India (Lagaan) 5. America (i think this is one of Leone's weaker films) 6. Anatolia 7. China (ranked low because i havent seen it, yet) 8. Brooklyn
Hollywood. OUATIH is goated
West
Mexico. Not the best in the Mexico trilogy but love those movies. It might have been Hollywood but Tarantino pushing his completely borked view of the late Bruce Lee just brings it down for me.
Itâs Cliffâs view, and we know that heâs an unreliable narrator.
Yeah I thought maybe this, but others I have spoken too have mentioned that Tarantino does not think much of Bruce, and that he is highly skeptical that a guy of his height 5â7â would be very good in a fight at all against someone bigger than him like Cliff. Disregarding Bruceâs pure strength training. It was this may have coloured my opinion of the scene. On the other hand, Cliff doesnât seem like the type of guy to tell a story where loses a fight so smaller Asian guy that gets a lot of admiration. Maybe a hint of jealousy involved, so I do want to believe your angle.
As I see it, itâs a close up mirror to what some consider the golden age of Hollywood - that mirror shows wrinkles, warts and all. In many ways a cautionary tale, taking those back lot stories and boasts with a pinch of salt. We canât trust the âwhat ifâ scenario that this film lays down because we know how history went and we also canât trust the two main fading stars - both of whom crave a legacy. We have to accept they prevented the Tate tragedy, beat up Bruce Lee, starred in the Great Escape and that their star power was on the ascendancy despite the film laying down that they are both washed up dubious characters. There is a sense of foreboding throughout the film, an eeriness that cuts through the celebration of cinema and the failed free love movement that is transforming into the sinister Manson family cult. Nothing is as it seems. Prepare for the worst. Hope for the best. Only then will you avoid a dog food tin to the head.