Hateful Eight Gets An 8

Rating: 8/10 (9 January 2016)

I know this film won't be for everybody. It can be excessive, sure. But, if you're a fan of Tarantino I think you'll really like this. It has the stylized violence, the witty dialogue, the stand out characters you've to come expect and enjoy from his films.
That being said, it wasn't my favourite Tarantino film. I didn't start really LOVING the film until almost half way through. It was hard for me to find a character that I truly liked and wanted to root for. Every one of them is truly awful. I guess that's to be expected though when the film is called The HATEFUL Eight. Tim Roth was a little too cartoon-y, Walter Goggins was a little too stereotypical hick. If I had to pick a MVP for the first half, I would go with Samuel L Jackson. He had the best performance out of the bunch especially his "pictures in your head" scene. Even though I instantly disliked his character at that point.
The second half though really picked up for me. I liked the "whodunnit" nature. And despite what I said about Walter Goggins before, this where I think he shined and actually became my favourite character overall. Not only did he have the comedic timing when necessary, but I especially loved the scene between him and Jennifer Jason Leigh when she's trying to bargain with him.
I also really loved the score for this film, and thought that deserves a shout out. The production design and costumes were pretty great as well. Make-up was good except I think they could have tried to make Jennifer Jason Leigh's black eye more realistic. It kind of looked like it was just make-up applied around her eye.
Overall, I really enjoyed watching the movie. Would recommend.