Quentin Tarantino's magnum opus oater gets the epic treatment with a 70 mm to-be-seen-to-be-appreciated for its vistas and villains.

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2016)

THE HATEFUL EIGHT (2015) *** Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Demian Bichir, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, James Parks, Dana Gourrier, Zoe Bell, Lee Horsley, Gene Jones, Keith Jefferson, Craig Stark, Belinda Owino, Channing Tatum. Quentin Tarantino's magnum opus oater gets the epic treatment with a 70 mm to-be-seen-to-be-appreciated for its vistas and villains. To wit: bounty hunter Russell (channeling Duke Wayne) is en route delivering dangerous damsel Jason Leigh for a necktie party in Post-Civil War Wyoming facing an oncoming blizzard and a storm of disparate characters including an officer of the Army (Jackson in full command) of the North with several bones to pick; a quartet of strangers of dubious demeanor (Roth as the intended hangman; Dern as an elderly Confederate general; Madsen as a still-waters-run-deep type; and shifty Mexican Bichir); and newly appointed sheriff (Goggins, stealing the show)who is up to his neck in being overwhelmed with newly appointed authority. Gorgeously shot by ace cinematographer Robert Richardson and running at full tilt with legendary Ennio Morricone's original score the film roars on all cylinders but only trips up with way too much chit-chat; copious amounts of bloody violence; and an intermission too boot (!) Give an A for effort for the filmmaker who loves film more than life itself; that counts in my book. Next time get an editor without compunction to get to the good stuff swiftly.