"One of them fellas is not what he says he is..."

Rating: 7/10 (21 December 2015)

After a leaked script of Tarantino's next project, The Hateful Eight, he swore that he would not film it. Instead he did a live read and it got a lot of applause. This apparently gave him enough reason to shoot the film anyway...and in 70mm no less. With The Hateful Eight, Tarantino finally steps out of the revenge theme that has steered his career since Kill Bill. This is a welcomed change of pace, but he still succumbs to things that plague his recent output of films, mainly self indulgence and a lengthy running time.
A bounty hunter is travelling to Red Rock with his bounty, a woman by the name of Daisy. Along the way he encounters two men stuck in a blizzard and unenthusiastically gives them a lift. They reach shelter where there are other men shielding themselves from the freezing cold. Yet something seems odd, are these men really who they say they are? Is one of them lying? Will anyone make it out of this cabin alive? For the first time since Reservoir Dogs, Tarantino dives back into a little bit of mystery. In Reservoir Dogs, someone was a cop, here, we have no idea what it going on or who is who. This perfectly amps of the tension and in typical Tarantino fashion, he lets us stew in it for a really long time. It's not a Tarantino movie if there is not a long winded, yet well written and cool monologue that will undoubtedly end in blood shed. This film delivers that in spades as the blood does indeed shed and everyone has their chance to give a few quips here and there.
One thing Tarantino always seems to hit the nail on the head with is his casting. This film is no exception. Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michael Madsen, Walton Goggins, Tim Roth, Bruce Dern and Demian Bichir all play their roles perfectly well in this slow burner that feels more like a stage play than a film shot in 70mm. Tim Roth's character reminds me so much of a role that Christoph Waltz would play that it was hard NOT seeing Waltz in this film. Roth stands out in the crowd with a more exuberant character in line with Waltz's Dr. Schultz. Leigh is also on the bit eccentric side and deservedly should be recognized come awards season. Always being a fan of Kurt Russell it's nice to see him back in the Tarantino fold after Death Proof, which Russell was the best thing. Goggins is also a stand out, but if you've followed him enough than you'll know that this is not a surprise. He's always one of the best things about whatever he is in. Dern and Madsen aren't really given too much to do and Madsen in particular seems to be on auto-pilot. Not that the man gives great performances, but Tarantino usually gets a bit more out of his actors.
The opening shots of the winter landscape look glorious, of course. Then we are subjected to interior shots of people talking for almost the rest of the film. Which makes one wonder why bother shooting or even seeing this in 70mm. Tarantino has said that after he's done making movies he'd want to direct a stage play. So far, this is the closest he's gotten to it. Most of this film is merely interactions between people within a log cabin. The interactions are wonderful and show us the talent of Tarantino and those on the screen. Even at 2 hours and 47 minutes, the film never really feels like it drags in any parts. That was the biggest surprise to me. I felt engaged the entire time. Maybe on repeat viewings this will die down a bit, since most of the tension and suspense will be gone, but imagine the basement bar scene with Fassbender from Inglorious Basterds, only extended to a feature length film.
There are two sequences that took me out of the film and it's one thing that happens twice. Tarantino did the same thing with Inglorious Basterds, where random narration pops in to tell us exactly what we are seeing on the screen. Adding insult to injury...it's Tarantino himself narrating the events on the screen. I was confused more than anything. Why include this bit of storytelling randomly? If you want narration, give it at the start, not two random scenes, it makes no sense.
Tarantino falls back on his chapter storytelling element here. Much like Kill Bill and Inglorious Basterds, the film is split up into chapters with scene headings. Also, like his other films it also includes flashbacks, this has become a staple in his films and I feel like his uses the same font every damn time. Again, like Django Unchained, the film contains a lot of racist remarks from the characters casually throwing around the n-word. Something that has become too common in his films. Small quibbles aside, The Hateful Eight is exactly what one would expect from Tarantino. It's violent, it's talkative and packs one hell of a cast. Hateful Eight finds itself in the middle road in Tarantino's resume, it's nowhere near his best, nor his worst.