Review of The Hateful Eight (2015) by Patrick L — 07 May 2016

"The Hateful Eight is another bloody achievement from Quentin Tarantino, it maybe three hours long but it is exhilarating.

Movie Review: The Hateful Eight.

Date Viewed: January 3 2016.

Written and Directed By Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Jackie Brown,.

Inglourious Basterds and Django Unchained).

Starring: Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Demian Bichir, Michael Madsen, Tim Roth,.

Bruce Dern, James Parks, Zoe Bell, Dana Gourrier and Channing Tatum.

Quentin Tarantino has written-off every one of my expectations for "The Hateful Eight". It is exciting, well-written and well-acted. Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained) can write dialogue better than anybody in the business, remember this, he used to work at a video store so he must've watched a lot of movies. His love for film and sharp dialogue are the keys to his critical and commercial success. A few months ago, Tarantino faced epic backlash over his comments about police officers and their treatment against African-Americans. He publicly said at a Black Lives Matter rally, "When I see murders, I do not stand by... I have to call a murder a murder, and I have to call the murderers the murderers". Police unions across the United States were outraged at Tarantino for saying these comments and they demanded a boycott on "The Hateful Eight" and his other movies.

I know what he said was wrong but he was just trying to make a statement about the police and their use of force against African-American youths.

Controversy aside, "The Hateful Eight" is another bloody achievement from Tarantino. It maybe three hours long but it is exhilarating. Tarantino also shot the film in a 70mm film format, it uses Panavision anamorphic lenses with an aspect radio of 2:76:1. It's an interesting format to use because it was used in some films from the 50's and 60's. It makes Robert Richardson's cinematography much more delicate.

"The Hateful Eight" is set several years after the civil war and we first meet two bounty hunters and a prisoner. John Ruth (Kurt Russell) and his fugitive, Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh) are riding stagecoach to Red Rock, Why? Ruth wants to collect her substantial money and he'll stop anyone who gets in his way. Soon, they come across another bounty hunter, Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson), he wants to hitch a ride with Ruth and he happily agrees to give him a lift.

Then they meet a southern renegade named Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins), he claims to be Red Rock's new sheriff and he wants a ride on the stagecoach as well. When he gets on board, Mannix cannot get over Warren's personal letter from Abraham Lincoln. He wants to know what Lincoln wrote in that letter but Warren says the letter will remain secret until the time is right.

When a powerful blizzard hits their way, Ruth and Warren seek refuge at a big cabin named Minnie's Haberdashery which is a big stagecoach lodge. When they get inside, the four travelers meet four strangers, Bob the Mexican (Demian Bichir), Red Rock's hangman Oswaldo Mobray (Tim Roth), Joe Gage the cow puncher (Michael Madsen) and a confederate, General Sanford (Bruce Dern).

With the blizzard hitting hard for another few days, things will not be cozy for these folks because some of these strangers may have plans of their own with the female prisoner and her bounty. Some of my fellow critics will probably point out that Tarantino has done the same narrative and story structure in his other movies but "The Hateful Eight" felt different to me even though it is Tarantino's second western. With an amazing ensemble cast, a great musical score by the legendary Ennio Morricone and a brilliant screenplay, "The Hateful Eight" manages to be smashing entertainment and it is mostly set in one giant room.

The acting is simply terrific, Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Bruce Dern, Michael Madsen, Demian Bichir and Tim Roth are all incredible in this bloody western. Some of you will probably be exhausted by the movie's running time but I wasn't bored for a second. I didn't predict what was going to happen and I was glued to the screen all the way through. Tarantino's winter western is one of the best movies of 2015.