The Hateful Eight

In the middle of a Wyoming blizzard, Maj. Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson), a former Union officer turned bounty hunter, happens across a stagecoach hired by an acquaintance, John “The Hangman” Ruth (Kurt Russell), who is transporting Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh) to Red Rock so that he can collect $10,000 and she can hang for murder. The two are later joined by Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins), an ex-Confederate militiaman who claims to be the sheriff-elect of Red Rock. With the snow intensifying, the party holes up at Minnie’s Haberdashery where they encounter Bob, the Mexican caretaker (Demian Bichir), Oswaldo Mobray, Red Rock’s well-mannered hangman (Tim Roth), notorious Confederate Gen. Sandy Smithers (Bruce Dern), and stoic cowboy Joe Gage (Michael Madsen). The more time they spent snowed in, the more old tensions rise, and the more Ruth begins to suspect that one or more of the men is an imposter in league with Domergue.

More than two decades into his filmmaking career, and even the non-fan will likely know of Quentin Tarantino’s calling cards: stylized, unrepentant violence and profanity, dark comedy, elevated B-movie/genre film concepts, 60s-80s pop music (regardless of when the film is set), and clever nods to cinematic history. Suffice it to say, this isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but even Tarantino’s detractors shouldn’t mistake him for a one-trick pony. The past decade saw him break from a personal revenge tale (Kill Bill) to examine the larger societal implications of war (Inglourous Basterds) and slavery (Django Unchained) in his typically excessive fashion. His latest offering, The Hateful Eight, changes trajectory once again, ditching an “issue” focus (and its attendant controversy) in favor of telling a story on a smaller scale. That he is able to get so much mileage (nearly three hours’ worth, and none of it dull) from such a staggeringly simple premise – a bunch of shady characters are snowed in together – is a testament to how much he has honed his craft.

Part of the reason The Hateful Eight works as well as it does is the fluidity with which it changes gears. The first third of the film functions as part classic Western, part seriocomic stage play. Legendary composer Ennio Morricone contributes a chillingly dramatic score and a Russell, with an epic moustache, channels his inner John Wayne. Meanwhile, every entrance into the stagecoach – and later, the lodge – begets a recurring joke. It’s hard not to laugh at a room full of louts clamoring for the door to be nailed shut to keep the cold out. But then, as the film moves into its latter half, the tension ramps up dramatically, the long-expected violence finally commences, and another influence emerges: the paranoid terror of John Carpenter’s The Thing. Unlike many movies that try to juggle tonal shifts, this one gets it right: when it’s funny, it’s funny, and when it’s grisly, it’s grisly. One does not undermine the other.

The cast is comprised mostly of recurring Tarantino players (Jackson, Roth, Madsen, etc.) with a few new faces, and by and large, they are a great fit. Jackson gets one of his best roles in years as the ruthless, cunning Warren, made likeable only by the targets of his wrath. Goggins supplies hillbilly exuberance, Leigh is captivatingly vile, and even poor James Parks, as a put-upon stagecoach driver, handles his role well. If there is one weak link here, it’s Channing Tatum: though his character speaks multiple languages, his Southern accent is distractingly bad.

Even with all it has going for it, there are moments where Tarantino’s dedication to excess is a liability. Did he really need to repeat dialogue in exaggerated slow motion? Did he really need to insert himself as a previously-unheard narrator in the middle of the film? Did he really need that much vomiting? One might point to this as Tarantino being Tarantino, but one might also expect a 52-year-old to steer clear of antics that would earn him a high-five from a 15-year-old.

Despite this, The Hateful Eight is immensely watchable. The dialogue is sharp, the score and casting are inspired, and with nothing resembling a hero in sight, you’ll find yourself rooting for one or more of the bad guys.

8.25/10