Actualités

To fully appreciate some of the allusions and inspirations that propel Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” you should consider doing some homework — or streaming some other movies.

Of course, you don’t have to be familiar with any of the following titles to enjoy Tarantino’s 1969-set fact-and-fiction mashup about Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), an actor flailing in professional limbo after the cancellation of his TV Western “Bounty Law”; Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), Dalton’s long-time stunt double and close confidant; and Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie), a rising star and Dalton’s next-door neighbor. But you can enhance your enjoyment by having some knowledge of the stories behind the story.

“The Bandit” (2016)

Jesse Moss’ entertaining and insightful documentary is putatively about the making of 1977’s “Smokey and the Bandit,” but more interestingly concerned with the personal and professional bonds between superstar Burt Reynolds and stuntman-turned-filmmaker Hal Needham.

Jeffman from Head Full Of Snow recommends five Spaghetti Westerns not directed by Sergio Leone.

A bruised and battered stalwart of the late night cinema circuit, the Spaghetti Western held a bastardised, custom-job revolver to the head of its inferior American cousin and relieved it of both its basic premise and last shred of decency; joyously blurring the line between right and wrong and leaving morality swinging from a ragged noose in the hot, desert sun.

The Spaghetti Western was an Italian phenomenon, mostly financed by Rome's famous Cinecitta Studios, although there were plenty of co-productions with other Euro countries like Spain and Germany, even stretching as far afield as Israel if you count the soul-sapping awfulness that is God's Gun. One man is responsible for popularising the Spaghetti Western, Sergio Leone. If you're a follower of LateMag's frequent forays into the weird and wonderful worlds of cult cinema you'll probably know his films already.