Every filmmaker is faced with decisions that put a personal stamp onto a period piece. For Casino, Scorsese did his damndest to create that specific time and place, but the needs of that script and Scorsese’s own visual ideas meant small details were altered so that the chips and dice might not be an exact match for that gaming table and a song cue might not be specific to the year. Tarantino has been overt and unapologetic about his 1960s Hollywood.
He starts with reality, but increases the number of billboards and movie marquees until the entire town is an endless parade of Art Direction, all advertising the films, products and pop culture Tarantino would like to see in his personal playground. This extends to the television shows everyone watches and the music everyone listens to. The film is 20% plot and 80% Art Direction, more interested in driving than in getting anywhere. This is actually quite a thrill. Tarantino unleashed a Wes Anderson level of detail, so this comes off as his most personal production.
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