Excellent video on one of my favorite movies of all time. Probably the most insightful analysis I’ve seen of this film’s story. This was the first analysis that mentions what I’ve been telling people is the film’s plot: Sharon Tate’s fictional neighbor Rick Dalton is one pool party away from his big break. Your theme spoke to me as someone in that transitioning stage to manhood (from being single to married with an upcoming child) despite being a fully grown adult. Onto the video, a few points which make your analysis more meta: That flamethrower scene is real. Leo actually asked for less heat. QT kept the scene in the film. In this case, Rick/Leo are one and the same person. In real life: Leo has no kids, has never been married. He has his wealth & social causes/interests. Leo lives in perpetual adolescence. Brad has a large family of kids and has been married several times. Brad is by all measures a grown up man. Just realized that Leo loses his stutter at the end of the film.

"Here put these on, don't cry in front of the Mexicans." I love this film!

OUaTiH has much happening with it & the “becoming a man” theory is interesting. I focused on the Actor (popular Celebrity) vs. Stuntman (unknown) dynamic that transferred in to Rick & Cliff’s personal lives. Cliff is confident, physically skilled, able-bodied, but isn’t ambitious in his career. Rick is an emotional wreck, timid & is professionally driven. Rick gets into make believe trouble on a current movie set, while Cliff gets into a real danger with ‘the Family’ at a former production set. Cliff lives like a celebrity, driving a bitchin’ Coupé DeVille & scooping up a chick, while Rick gets dropped off at work, has a nervous breakdown & threatens his own life. Cliff seems to live the glamorous life, while Rick struggles. I’m reminded of the show ‘The Fall Guy’ that I used to watch when I was a kid. the theme song says, “I’m the unknown stuntman that makes Eastwood look so fine.” this stayed in my mind throughout the 2nd viewing I made. Rick & Cliff are a great team, because they have different skills, talents & vulnerabilities. that’s what makes a team a great team. I don’t think that Rick’s plan to cut professional ties with Cliff actually transpired, after the Cielo Drive. I think that experience showed Rick how much he needs Cliff & meeting Sharon, Jay & houseguests plugged him in to a bigger network with the director of Rosemary’s f’n Baby. Brandy may find herself in a few features of her own, after saving All of Their Asses. the Cielo Dr. event will put Rick back into the spotlight & he’ll get Leading Man work & secure a future for Cliff…that’s how I Want to think the guys will proceed. maybe we’ll see the guys again, after Kill Bill 3.

Man, your channel is awesome. Seriously, continue do a great videos like this

Thank you for defining the difference between story and plot. That is the hardest thing for me to get people to understand. In the worst case scenario is they tell me the entire film.

As a recovering alcoholic and stutterer who used to live in LA. bravo.

Just found this channel and I’m stoked! You make some very good points here and I’m looking forward to binging the rest of your videos! Cheers

The harpoon incident couldnt have been an accident as there was no harpoon loaded in the gun during the scene

Great video Steve. Keep em coming!

I am not a Tarantino fan. Nor a fan of Pitt or DiCaprio but I LOVE this film. I stumbled upon it by accident on tv and was instantly hooked enough to hunt down the next broadcast. The details are incredible and every time I watch it I see something else. Hope Q puts out an edition with all the edits returned.

Nice work! Love how in depth this is.

In real life a stunt man named Shorty Shea went to the Manson clan compound and ended up murdered. Seeing Cliff drive off safe, a small "once upon a time" relief is experienced. This inside the bigger "once upon a time" relief with Sharon in the end. It's the same story inside the main story, an inclusio. The same can be said for Cliffs flashback has a flashback in a flashback. (The killing of his wife) Quinton is brilliant.

Great breakdown!

About the pushing of the chair. I saw it as a sales technique. An agent is to care for his/her client. The pat on the shoulder is known as the "personal touch" in gaining ones trust. By touching, even casually, the brain registers a common state. I will ease you into the table as I will ease you into the next phase of your career.

His name is Dalton...i learned to cry!

excellent video essay! great arguments, great eye for detail, great examples to set up your argument. 10/10

Great analysis man, you nailed a central aspect of the narrative...…..absolutely love this movie.

brilliant analysis, this video deserves way more attention

Wow great stuff man! Subbed

Thoroughly enjoyed your review. Thanks. Am a huge fan of Tarantino's work as well.

I very much love once upon a time in Hollywood.

You deserve more views and subscribers

It was a great video man, i really loved this movie, u should totally do more movie video essays, maybe even other tarantino films

I am very impressed in U responding to all comments. Cool

This is my absolute favorite movie. I've come to pretty much the same conclusions, maybe with a little different spin. I found it to be a story of typecasting. Rick Dalton was very successful as a certain type of character, and it got to the point where he was unable to see himself outside of that mold. Marvin Schwarz describes the problem very succinctly to him at the beginning, and his reaction is telling - if he can't remain within that comfort zone his only option is to take his ball and go home. What he doesn't realize is that he's done this to himself. Schwarz doesn't see him that way. Sam Wanamaker DEFINITELY doesn't see him that way. Jim Stacey doesn't, Marabelle doesn't, and we find at the end that Jay Sebring and Sharon Tate don't. While he was waiting to get invited to a pool party to try to get introduced around, he was already known to be a real talent in wide circles, he just didn't know it. It's a matter of confidence for sure, his unwillingness to hustle, just taking what came his way. I love your spin, as it ties the whole thing together just right.

It’s an interesting perspective. But I believe you’re pretty off. The movie is a love letter to Hollywood, Quinn Tarantino has said that himself. It’s about three people at different stages of their acting career Sharon Tate being on the upward trajectory Rick Dalton floating and slowely sinking down and Cliff Booth really quite at the bottom and not really working. The story is about someone in a mid career crisis and they resolve it by getting introduced to the neighbor next-door. in the book this really catapults his career because everyone loves the idea about the cowboy actor actually killing these hippie weirdos. if you read the book it explains that Rick Dalton is bipolar. And drinks to help cope with it. That’s why he has these emotional swings. When the Sam shakes Rick‘s wet hand he doesn’t say I’m used to it with “you” he says I’m used to it with “Yule”. this is referring to an actual actor that Sam worked with at the time. It was common for actors to dunk their head and ice water as part of a beauty regimen. Paul Newman popularized it. The relationship between Cliff and Rick is really one of someone in Hollywood who doesn’t necessarily have any real friends, and befriends someone who actually works for them. That’s my Cliff does all the stuff. When Rick gets back from Hollywood. He’s no more confident, he just has an expensive hot wife and he blew his money on a fancy pad in Italy. And now instead of having Cliff as his pseudo-wife, now he has a real wife and he hast to choose.

Brilliant analysis!

The ending in this flick is Very satisfying. The ending of the Manson creeps. I am offended that the creeps are called Hippies. Hippies were about peace and love. Not about doing devil s##t 42:45

Excellent analysis,very interesting

Jackie Brown comes to mind as an interesting comparison. In both JB and this movie there's an ongoing external representation of an internal transformation.

SOTD is about Shawn growing up/ taking responsibility.

lovely video

Good points. I'm looking at this movie from a different perspective. I missed some shit when I watched this the first time.

Amazing

Fantastic analysis. I've actually been having a problem with a screenplay I've been working on and something you touched on here just made it all fall into place so thank you!

Please do more of these. My request: Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019, dir. Celine Sciamma)

I think the story is about Cliff. Right?

Seriously dude, back again to rewatch. Your video deserves 500K views. Hope it catches on. Some unsolicited advice: Perhaps a 15 minute edit would increase its traction? Most people avoid videos over 25 min. Ex: you make the point with Shaun of the Dead…no need for Gravity and Book Smart (the two I’ve never watched) or The Miller’s.

Really enjoyed the analysis - could have gone without the ten first minutes of talking about other movies Could also not play AS LONG of clips as evidence to your point. Useful for people who have never seen the movie - but through your analysis they shouldn’t have to

I like how you break this down but having just gotten to about 7:30 in, you say the last image of the Jason Sudakas film is the fake family surrounded by a white picket fence. But in reality, the very last shot shows what sure looks like pot growing along that white picket fence. Since they just moved in, who is growing it and what does that bode for people in witness protection from drug smugglers?

search for the grail

Outsiders..

No matter what status we are in life, when we don't need approval from anyone then we are truly like God, greater than any man or woman clinging on to new confidence.

I think Rick’s character was also written to inject some humanity into the western archetype. It can be easy to watch old John Wayne movies, etc. and forget that these people all had human drama, insecurities and tragedy in their lives just like anyone else

And fix it

Very elucidating. But (plot hole) who stands in a swimming pool while they are on fire? Water extinguishes fire, so the obvious thing would be to duck under the water. Ok, just sayin.

The concepts fabula and syuzhet, at the core of Russian Formalism, are much more useful and more precise terms than story and plot. Pulp fiction, I heard, was reedited for the Arab countries in chronological order. That must have been a mess! Using this video's conception of the terms, the story and plot of both versions would be exactly the same. However Tarantino's reordering of time is a part of the syuzhet (plot). Even using story and plot, I think in this video there's some confusion of story with interpretation. Story is independent of interpretation.

Man, I thought it was Steven Write the comic Radio voice from Reservoir Dogs The movie has no real story other than woman are good and men are bad

Cool movie, Tarantino's worst though imo.

Hi, I'm Dave and I'm not a fan of bloodbath revisionist Tarrantino. Far from a masterpiece, this movie is a regressive dishonest Trump era movie, with regressive anti hippy pro establishment themes, which no doubt Vincent Bugliosi, J Edgar Hoover, Richard Helms (then head of the CIA) and Richard Nixon would have loved. The exact movie they would have wanted on the 50th anniversary of the murders, taking up the oxygen, distracting from those people toiling away at getting at the truth of this cult, and it's connections. Then there is Sharon portrayed as a bimbo; Bruce Lee, portrayed as an upperty Asian guy who deserves to be roughed up by big tough Brad. And of course, it's the unusual excuse to portray hideous violence against women but hey it's a Tarrantino movie, so, what's new right? Does it tell you anything about any of the real people in the movie? No. Does it tell you anything about the Manson cult? No. Does it tell you anything about the transformational changes going on at that time in Hollywood, at corporate and director level? No. Does I reinforce stereotypes and prejudices, like conflating the Manson Cult with hippies, which they werent? Yes. Does it reinforce the Trump crowd's belief in big tough white guys kicking ass and solving tbings? Yes. It is my fervent hope that, as some movies do, this movie will be critically reassessed down in the future, as a Trump era film and biases, with regressive themes and bad history. Thank you.