Quentin Tarantino makes me want to be better. Y’know, I try not to binge his films because I cannot help but find them overwhelming. They’re just so… good. Yeah, yeah, yeah, thanks Captain Obvious! But really. I don’t know what I did in a past life to deserve such a marvellous fate as to be alive and well while this maestro is pumping out cinematic masterpieces, but I am thankful. Now that this sickly sweet fluff is outta the way, let’s get down to the nitty gritty.

I’m here to talk to y’all about Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (2019). I’m telling you right now that this will contain a hefty dose of spoilers, so if you haven’t seen the movie yet please go watch it before reading this. Y’all should’ve watched it twelve times by now, but hey, that’s none of my business… Anyway! Carrying on!

I’m not here to tell you that this movie is good – Of course it is, I knew it was long before watching it myself. I’m not here to tell you why it is so good, either. I want to talk about something very specific – Sharon Tate. As y’all know, Margot Robbie plays her in this rewriting of Hollywood history. I’ve seen complaints that she wasn’t given enough lines, that she isn’t in the movie enough… Man, this is her movie, ain’t no doubt about it. If you’re the type that is already rollin’ their eyes at my take, stick with me and I’ll explain why I feel this way.

On the surface, OUATIH is totally a hangout movie following actor Rick Dalton (Leo DiCaprio) and his stunt double, Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), sure. But y’all know who ol’ Rick lives next to? The Polanski’s. I’ll be honest and tell y’all that the moment I was first introduced to Sharon, my heart sank into my damn stomach. If you’re familiar with the crimes of the Manson family, you know why.

Now, we grow with these characters throughout the extensive runtime, and it truly is a vision to behold. For those of y’all complaining about Sharon’s lack of presence in the film, I feel so terribly bad that you seemed to have missed the entire purpose. It wasn’t just a subplot, she is literally the glue that keeps this story together. Don’t believe me? Imagine the film without her. What meat is left on the bone? Not a whole hell of a lot, I tell you.

Perhaps this lack of understanding comes from unfamiliarity. I’ll have you know that Sharon Tate was one of the few folks emerging in Hollywood that was known for being kind, warm, caring… Not to get all real on you, but what happened on August 9^th, 1969 in our real world was all the more heart wrenching upon realizing that she was gruesomely plucked from our universe before having her chance to blossom into the star that she deserved to be. Near the unfortunate end of her life, her entire focus became her fast approaching life as a mother. Words cannot express how much I adore Quentin for showcasing how sweet of a person she was, and humanizing her. You see, with all the abhorrent details fabricated by the press surrounding the crimes that occurred, many seem to forget that it was real people that lost their lives. Names on paper become so easy to write off and exploit for profit, and I just thought this was an incredible punch back at all that bullshit. The importance of Margot Robbie’s performance in this film cannot be understated.

Perhaps I’m just off on an emotional rant here, but I just find the timing of this to be of great importance. More recently, we’ve had an incessant influx of crime documentaries/biographical dramas being thrust at us constantly. We’ve got a docu-series that allows us to listen to Ted Bundy speak for over four hours – Hell, we even get to see Zac Efron play him. When one really analyzes all of this, the morality behind it becomes questionable. Don’t get me wrong, I am interested in true crime. I’ve clearly read Helter Skelter, hence my familiarity. I don’t think there is anything wrong with finding it interesting, I mean most of us are incapable of hurting someone’s feelings let alone murdering ’em, y’know? But a part of me can’t help but wonder if all the notoriety is morphing into some sort of glorified fame… I’ve met a woman that calls Ted Bundy ‘daddy’; A man that thinks Charles Manson was a good dude… The latter wasn’t too keen on this movie.

“That didn’t happen!”

No, it unfortunately did not, but it should have. Those crazed hippies should’ve been the ones to go, and preferably by flamethrower. Words cannot express how satisfying it was to watch justice being served, which is my point entirely – This is the only film we need that deals with the Manson Family. This is a story that respects the legacy of the folks who had their lives violently taken away from them rather than exploit it for entertainment.

I was in tears by the end of this movie, and I don’t care if that makes me sound weak as shit. I applaud Quentin for (once again) rewriting history from a place of love and respect, and for those of you that didn’t get it the first time around… Put your phone down, and pay attention this time.