Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is a 2021 novel based off the 2019 film of the same name written by the writer director and the film Quentin Tarantino. It follows the story of fading star Rick Dalton and his stuntman and friend Cliff Booth as they come to terms with the end of their careers and the end of the sixties as their life intertwine with Sharon Tate and the Manson family. I would like to start this review off by stating that I absolutely loved the film. Not only was it my favourite Tarantino film since Kill Bill but it is one of my favourite films of all time. So, it is saddening me to say that say the book is ok it is nowhere near as great as the film.
Firstly, I want to say that I don’t hate this book. I thought it was ok. The story and characters are still more or less in tacked and its was an interesting read. The fact that it went more in depth with the story and characters is something I liked and added more exploitation to the characters than the film. It is ultimately a book I can’t see myself re-reading any time soon.
I would like to start of this review positive by saying the thing I enjoyed about the book, being that it goes into much more detail. In the book the characters, world and plot of the film are all expanded upon exponentially which gives more detail and depth to the story and truly makes it feel like a real lived-in world. The book makes the world feel bigger and as if more things happened over the course of the story that the film did not have giving more depth to the narrative. The ending of the book is hit and miss but with the positives I would say that the ending is more conclusive and clearly states what happens after the films.
Now for the negatives I feel as if the book goes into too much detail. There are whole sections of the book that can be cut out that I feel don’t add much to the story the book is 400 pages long and 100 pages could easily be cut out. The book feels meandering at times and whole chapters can be cut out. Another big negative of the book is that cliff is a dick in the book. He seems a bit crazy as he has killed people and got away with it, used his stardom to bed women and used brandy for dog fighting competitions. He ultimately just comes across as a jerk in the book.
Another major problem with the book is all the subtly it stripped out. This is particularly apparent in the ending were not only is the climax might with the mason family other in a new sentence, but it explains what happens to the men after he events of the film. On one hand it’s good to have a bit closer on rick and cliffs story is told in the book. But it makes the ending feel anticlimactic and strips away some of its subtly.
Overall, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is an ok book. I liked the fact that it expanded upon the story but ultimately, I would recommend to just watch the film.