Not Tarantino's Finest Work... But If You Like Tarantino, You Should Enjoy The Hateful Eight.

Rating: 8/10 (6 March 2016)

Well, the 'King of Cool' is back and once again he's created a slick, smart film, which excites all those little nerves that us blokes (and women - no sexism here) find so appealing! Yes there are slick lines, yes there's blood... and yes, as always, there is a shootout... my god, does Tarantino love a shootout!
I don't want to give any spoilers away, and given that we know so little about the film going into it, I fear that saying practically anything will give something away. So in short, The Hateful Eight is about two bounty hunters, heading to Red Rock, Wyoming, to claim their bounties. Not only do they pick up one interesting and suspicious character along the way, but due to a nasty blizzard they are forced to make a pit stop at 'Minnie's Haberdashery' where they run into several more of these types, all of whom may or may not be telling the truth about their identities or their reasons for being there. Our story then revolves around these eight (well nine if you include the driver) characters' stories and how they interact with one another. Think Cluedo/Clue but in a blizzard, in America, in the 1870s.
I know this film has very much split Tarantino fans but for me, if you like Tarantino, you should enjoy The Hateful Eight. The only reason I can think some may be put off, is that it does move significantly slower than much of Tarantino's work. It is much more of a slow burner and revolves more around the characters' actions and dialogue, than the actual scenes themselves. That being said, it had me gripped enough that I wasn't looking at my watch (despite the near 3 hours running time), so it can't be too drab!
So let's do some quick fire bullets to prevent this review getting too lengthy:

No this isn't Tarantino's best work. No it isn't close to my favourite of his work. That being said, it is once again a very well made piece of cinema from a director who continues to make films in a way no one else really can. Another engaging, funny, smart story from Mr Tarantino. I can fully understand why The Academy have failed to recognise it however, it may just be a little 'action-gory-type' film for them I expect. It certainly doesn't carry the distinction of say, a 'Revenant'. But I certainly preferred it to The Revenant, Big Short, Brooklyn, Room etc.

The acting across the board was excellent. One of the major strengths of the film were its characters, each having its own distinct personality and back story. This is not only testament to the actors themselves but also to Tarantino on the writing front. I thought Tim Roth in particular was superb and although no really considered from what I saw 'pre-awards season', can count himself unlucky not to get a Best Supporting Actor nod. I'd certainly place him higher than Christian Bale in The Big Short, that's for sure.

Jennifer Jason Leigh played her crazy, but calculated character very well and is definitely worthy of her Oscar nomination.

The film also provides a huge role for Walton Goggins, who I must confess I've not seen before, but will no doubt be cropping up in more feature films now I expect. He did a very good job in this, especially given the actors he was lining up alongside.

And finally, Ennio Morricone... He is very much deserving of the Oscar. And unlike Leo (who deserves it because of his body of work, rather than for his specific role this year), this score would more than be worthy of the win. Despite my love of Thomas Newman's Bridge of Spies score, I have to accept that it was relatively samey throughout whereas the variety of compositions that Morricone has had to put together for this is impressive... more so because each works so perfectly with the scene/s it's attached to. Very Hitchcock-esque... including one part having a hauntingly similar relation to Psycho... which would explain why I appreciated it so much. So yes, although Thomas Newman's Bridge of Spies score is my favourite so far this year, this is probably better in terms of achievement and quality. Besides... how can you deny the composer of The Mission & The Good, The Bad and The Ugly finally receiving an Academy Award?