Your weekly break-down of a popular movie or television episode to see what a screenwriter—or any writer, for that matter—can take away from what’s on screen: what worked, what didn’t, and how you can use what’s popular to craft better stories.

It’s awards season, so we’re diving into nominated films over the next few weeks.  After all, there’s lots to take away from Hollywood’s best and brightest. First up, Tarantino’s sprawling opus to the entertainment industry, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood. As of this writing, the film already took home the Golden Globe® for Best Comedy and Best Screenplay, as well as a SAG award for Brad Pitt.

It breaks rules, pays homage, and—of course—gets bloody. Adore or despise him, there’s so much a writer can learn from an auteur like Tarantino.

So, pour yourself a Rick Dalton-sized margarita and let’s see what we can learn from Tarantino’s latest.

*WARNING: Spoilers Ahead!*

1. Setting is a character. The storefronts. The cars. The music. The commercials. Los Angeles in 1969 practically leaps off the screen. Even the extras in this film walk, smoke and dance their way into the very fiber of the film. It’s an intoxicating tableau Tarantino weaves for us, and it’s hard not to be drawn into his meticulously crafted world. It never “feels” like a set (except when they’re actually on a movie set!) and Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood goes to great lengths to bring the end of Hollywood’s Golden Age to life. As a result, the city itself becomes a character in the movie. The highways, palm trees, hills and billboards whip by us as Cliff and Rick tear up the town. As Tarantino proves, there’s no such thing as just “driving down the street” when you bring that street to life, making the time and place as important as any character.

2. The movie within the movie. Cutaways, film clips, narrator commentary, title cards, flashbacks and asides are everywhere in Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood. A whole quarter of the movie happens outside of the linear timeline. We see Rick Dalton’s career on celluloid—from bringing in bounties to burning Nazis to a crisp—through scenes and clips that jump us out of the main timeline. It’s a tool that’s popular in modern storytelling, and Tarantino uses it constantly. Whether it’s Rick Dalton’s television and film appearances, humorous asides from our elusive narrator, Cliff Booth’s flashbacks, or even Sharon Tate’s fond memories of training with Bruce Lee—all are great examples of this story device that’s perfect for avoiding long-winded expositions and unrealistic recaps of past events. For a more technical breakdown of how to actually write cutaway scenes like these in your script, check out John August’s take on the subject here.

3. Talk the same talk. Tarantino is often praised for his dialogue. Here’s the thing: characters in a Tarantino movie don’t sound anything like people in real life. They’re brash, witty, vulgar, idiosyncratic and clever. “Real” dialogue doesn’t sound like that. People say “umm,” “uhh” and “like” constantly. They repeat themselves, fumble their words, and talk over each other nonstop. But films like Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood aren’t reality, even when they’re based on real life. As such, Tarantino characters talk like they all belong in the same film. Even if you don’t like Tarantino’s dialogue, the words his characters speak feel like they’re part of the same world and sandbox. Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood isn’t the only story that does this. Every bit of great fiction has its own vibe, patterns and cadence: be it the elevated, hyper-real swagger of a Tarantino move, the snarky, punchline-driven patter of a Marvel film, or the educated, machine-gun rattle of an Aaron Sorkin show. Whatever style you choose, make sure everyone talks like they’re part of the same, singular universe.

4. Opposites don’t attract… But they do illuminate. The best way to show us a character’s world view, their habits, and their inner turmoil, is putting them in a scene with a character who showcases the opposite. No one wants to see a scene where everyone agrees. Put your characters next to someone nothing like them, and watch the conflict and character literally pop off the page and screen. This is the single most useful tool in Tarantino’s storytelling arsenal. Watch how many times in this nearly three-hour fairy tale that a character sits, drives and meets someone unlike themselves. For example: Rick Dalton and the child actor Marabella, which features a drunken, spiraling Rick and a child actor sporting a finely-honed sense of professionalism. Then there’s stuttering Rick and the cocksure producer Schwarz (not Schwartz). Or cynical Cliff Booth drive to Spahn Ranch with Manson acolyte Pussycat, giving us a front row seat to Cliff’s bitter and weary worldview. Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood is a film that uses these juxtapositions to reveal character. Using opposites to really illuminate character traits in your own writing is a great way to show, not tell.

5. A good theme runs through everyone. It’s often said that heroes and villains want the same things in stories, they just go about it differently. This same idea is at the heart of Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood. Put simply, this is a movie about fame and how people deal with it. Hollywood may be the backdrop, but it’s the hopes, dreams and nightmares that come from the chase for tinsel town fame and fortune that are the spine of this film. Rick Dalton is a man dealing with his own decline and relevance, while Cliff Booth has come to grips with his own “never happened” career—a fame that never materialized due to his own behavior and choices. Then there’s Sharon Tate. A beautiful ingénue just learning how to navigate her own rising star while keeping innocence intact. Even the barely seen villain of the film (Charlie Manson) is a man looking for a record producer and chasing his own rock and roll dreams when he and his followers cross paths with our protagonists on Cielo Drive. All of these characters—the foundations of the film—are battling for success, each tackling that quest in their own way. At its heart, it could be argued that Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood is simply a series of vignettes, all tied together by the fraying threads of Hollywood fame.

Final Takeaway:  He breaks rules, he meanders, and he doesn’t care about history. So what? There’s nobody like Tarantino to weave this violent fairy tale of the night Hollywood’s Golden Age died.