The filmmaker’s latest outing, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie, which had its world premiere at the 72nd edition of Cannes Film Festival, drew a six-minute standing ovation.
Director Quentin Tarantino, who took Cannes by storm with Pulp Fiction twenty five years ago, unveiled Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, earlier this week and the result was nothing short of spectacular. Tarantino’s latest outing, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie, received a six-minute standing ovation at the premiere.
“Tarantino seemed to relish the attention, mouthing ‘I love you’ to his wife Daniella Pick and whispering in the ear of Margot Robbie, one of the film’s stars,” reported Variety. “As he stood atop the stairs of the Palais, gazing out at the scene below him, he yelled ‘vive le cinema’.”
Once Upon a Time marks the ninth feature from Tarantino and rode into Cannes with Beatlemania-like hype, given that it marks the first film for DiCaprio in four years since his Oscar-winning role in The Revenant.
After the screening, Tarantino said, “To my wonderful actors, producers and the studio that helped me make this movie. Thank you for being such a fantastic audience, for the first time we ever showed it to an audience. See you on the Croisette!”
On the eve of the premiere, the director released a statement asking audience members for ‘no spoilers’ when they wrote about the film, adding an extra layer of mystery to a project already filled with intrigue. Apart from this, Cannes head Thierry Fremaux made the same plea ahead of the screening so those who see the movie when it hits theaters in July can enjoy it spoiler-free.
“As for the film, it’s a panoramic look at the movie business at the end of the 1960s — one that encompasses real-life figures such as Sharon Tate and the Manson family. DiCaprio plays a washed-up TV-Western star and Pitt is his body double and majordomo. There are also cameos by everybody from Timothy Olyphant to Bruce Dern. Lena Dunham pops up as a Manson girl, although the star of Girls didn’t make the trip to Cannes,” noted Variety.
Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is all set to hit theaters on July 26. In addition to DiCaprio, Pitt and Robbie, the cast includes Kurt Russell, Al Pacino and the late Luke Perry, in one of his final big-screen roles.
– With information from The Hollywood Reporter and Variety.
