The Manson murders will remain the most gruesome and vengeful act of violence. Of all the crimes that Charles Manson and his followers committed in 1969, the most publicized were the murders of prodigious actress Sharon Tate (who was 8 and a half months pregnant) and the remaining members present at her mansion, who were stabbed/shot to death. Brutal, isn’t it? The murders were committed by Charles “Tex” Watson, Susan “Sadie” Atkins, Patricia “Katie” Krenwinkel and Linda “Flowerchild” Kasabian (Although she was extraneous to the violence caused and later appeared as a witness for the trials of the killers).

Charles Manson, died at 83, after serving four decades in jail.  

• Watching the happenings (With Popcorn)

There have been documentaries and films about the ‘Helter Skelter’, the attempted race war that Charles Manson declared, to which Sharon Tate fell prey. However, I got really jaunty when director Quentin Tarantino had announced his take on 1969 Hollywood, the epicenter of the murders. Furthermore, the ensemble cast featured Leonardo DiCaprio, who played fictional TV actor Rick Dalton, Brad Pitt(who later bagged the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this film), who portrayed Dalton’s stunt double Cliff Booth, and Margot Robbie, who was cast to play Sharon Tate. I was flabbergasted with excitement of course, but also confusion. The latter because Tarantino is known to have denigrated biopics. He’s gone on-record to call them “excuses to win Oscars”. The film was uncanny with its representation of 1969 Los Angeles without intertwining VFX/CGI. No wonder it managed to bag the Oscar for Best Production Design! Moving on, as I sat anxiously watching and gearing up for a possible bloodshed climax, the end hit me like a ton of bricks. WHY? THEY CHANGED THE ENDING? SURPRISE SURPRISE!!! 

The ending did show its proclivity towards violence (Classic Tarantino). Rather than Tate dying, the killers had altered their plan of just gatecrashing into her house but also to barge into Rick’s house (after he shunned them off for being too loud) and kill him off as well. However, Tex, Sadie, and Katie died after altercations with Booth and Dalton. Flowerchild abandoned the remaining 3 just before they entered the house. Most people in that hall, like me, were left with their heads scratching. Although it was fathomable that Quentin Tarantino didn’t recant his stance on biopics, what did he even intend to show? Then, after a tad bit of research, I saw a glint of perspective.

Sharon Tate, was eight-and-a-half months pregnant when she was murdered. Once Upon a time in Hollywood, 2019.

Tarantino moved to LA at the age of 4(1967-68). That’s when he started watching films. He’s known to be extremely voracious about films. He worked at an adult film parlor and also took acting classes before contemplating his own ideas. He has only been encompassed within Hollywood. His early exposure to films was not solely in the era of Tate’s demise, but it was the era that marked the beginning of ‘New Hollywood’. 

Back in the late 60s, the Hollywood industry had made an impactful transition to itself. In the early 60s, it experienced a putrid downfall, as it was straddled between production moguls who had reached financial abjection and monotonous film narratives that failed to captivate audiences. Instead, foreign films, predominantly European and Japanese films, were garnering box-office success. European films had developed new genres and techniques such as the ‘French New Wave’, which focused on realistic cinema, and Spaghetti Westerns, inspired by Japanese films, that were a lot more theatrical than the former. This is the moment when Hollywood abrasively eradicated its recalcitrance to evolve and drew immense inspiration from the new styles of Cinema. Hence, ‘New Hollywood’. Some of the pioneers of this era were Akira Kurosawa, Sergio Leone, Clint Eastwood, and Martin Scorcese. That’s why film enthusiasts will realize that Tarantino’s acumen and dexterously ornate violence have been inspired by this era. All his films are an amalgamation of these various film genres. 

Quentin Tarantino Coincidentally, he has been quite vocal about his love of the era by using songs of bands from that period and also defenestrating the use of present necessities, like a cellphone. During the promotions of the movie, Tarantino, Pitt, and DiCaprio were interviewed by Michael Hainey. During the course of the interview, Tarantino used phrases such as “love letter” and “fairy-tale” to describe the movie and also stated that 1969 was the year that “formed him”. Furthermore, when he was describing the writing process of the film, he gave a cryptic statement, “For a long time, I didn’t want to accept it, but then I did”.