Over winter break, about once a week, my family and I would rent a fairly new movie and watch it from the comfort of our living room. This ritual is an annual thing––we try to watch as many award-winning and nominated movies as possible, especially before I have to go back to school.
One of the best movies we watched over break was Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Since it was my first time ever seeing a Quentin Tarantino film, the experience of watching it was quite a wild ride, to say the least. Overall, I thought that the movie was very entertaining (admittedly maybe not for the whole 2 hours and 40 minutes, though) and that dramatic, history-bending ending just can’t be beat.
But, I’m not here to write a review, but rather, point out a part of the movie that most others probably missed, but that I personally appreciate. And that fact is that Leonardo DiCaprio’s character, Rick Dalton, has a slight stutter in the movie.
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood not only has a lead character who stutters, but it also gives an accurate portrayal of what being a person who stutters is like. Rick Dalton has secondary behaviors, like facial contortions, he stutters more when he’s nervous, and he religiously practices his lines so he won’t stutter when he says them on set.
As a person who stutters, I really appreciate this character and watching Leonardo DiCaprio play him in this major award-winning film truly means the world to me. People with speech impediments are seldom portrayed in film and TV, especially seriously.
The best part of Rick Dalton is that his stutter is not the main focus of his character or storyline. My parents and I noticed his stutter while watching the movie, but my sister didn’t even realize until I pointed it out to her at the end. This is the exact kind of representation that I want in the entertainment industry. A person who stutters can be a main character but not have their speech impediment guide the entire plot.
When movies have representative characters like Rick Dalton, the whole story feels more normal and realistic (even if it is a Quentin Tarantino film). I feel seen but in a good way. Growing up, my biggest fear in regards to my stutter was that people thought I was a weird and awkward freak. I hope that with examples like Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, the world will continue to be more accepting toward people with speech impediments and understand that their speech struggles don’t define them, they are just part of them.
Thank you, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, for not only being an entertaining movie to watch but also making me feel represented.
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