The Disappointing Eight

Rating: Null/10 (27 February 2016)

The Hateful Eight (2015)
** (out of 4)
Quentin Tarantino's latest has bounty hunter John Ruth (Kurt Russell) transporting his prisoner Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh) through a blizzard on the way to her hanging. Along the way they pick up Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson) and soon they're taking shelter in a small room with a number of colorful characters.
Tarantino is one of my favorite writer-directors but THE HATEFUL EIGHT did very little for me. I wish I could point my finger to anyone but Tarantino but sadly he's to blame for this film, which is shockingly boring. I never once thought I'd call a Tarantino picture boring but THE HATEFUL EIGHT clocks in at nearly three hours when it probably would have felt too long at even just ninety minutes. Obviously the biggest villain here is the screenplay, which contains non-stop dialogue that adds up to nothing.
Again, it's hard to believe that this here is a Tarantino screenplay because all of his wonderful talents just aren't on display here. If it wasn't for the "N" word constantly being thrown around then I'd be willing to bet the writer had nothing to do with this piece. What's so shocking is that we've got nearly three hours worth of talking going on and very little of it is interesting. I get what Tarantino was going for but I don't think it works on any level. The setting is mostly one room and I'm sure the film was supposed to build suspense throughout but it never does. Once the incredibly graphic violence happens towards the end you're just counting the bodies until the end credits start.
There are some good moments scattered throughout the film. I thought Russell and Jackson were both very good in their roles and they do what they can with the material. The Oscar-nominated Jennifer Jason Leigh easily steals the movie as the racist trash who is hiding a few secrets of her own. With such boring dialogue it really makes you feel that there are too many characters so Walton Goggins, Demian Bichir, Tim Roth, Bruce Dern and Michael Madsen just do what they can. Ennio Morricone's score is another plus the film has going for it and the 70mm cinematography is also extremely good but it also seems wasted being trapped inside a building.
THE HATEFUL EIGHT is really a disappointing movie on so many levels. It never really feels like the era that it takes place and I'd argue that it really comes across more of a stage play or, worse yet, a rehearsal for a stage play. While there are some good things scattered throughout the picture, at the end of the day this is a complete misfire.