Intelligent but a bit too long

Rating: 8/10 (7 January 2016)

The Hateful Eight is a good movie but probably a love-it-or-hate-it kind of deal. Personally I liked it a lot, but my better half found it awful and had to endure. Below is a brief summary of three main strengths and weaknesses without any plot spoilers.
The good:
Intricate dialogues throughout. Tarantino doesn't disappoint here and fans will appreciate the mix of intelligence, humour and provocative themes that are constantly present in the interaction between characters.
Tons of throwbacks. Tarantino pays homage to old westerns, and each character is almost a stereotype from different types of westerns. You have references to spaghetti westerns, wild west westerns, colonial westerns, etc. His inner movie geek is on display in full force.
Intimate atmosphere. 95% of the movie takes place at a single location. Many classic movies have done so with great success: 12 Angry Men, Rearview Mirror and Cube just to name a few. It is a very powerful setting if done right, and the raw quality of the acting makes sure it is done right here.
The bad:
Its too long. This is my biggest complaint by far. Quality acting, great directing and intricate dialogues can only keep you captured that long, and at almost 3 hours it pushes the limit. For me it went over by about half an hour.
The plot isn't spectacular. To avoid spoilers I won't provide any details, but lets just say its not the complexity of the plot that drives this movie home. The plot is sufficient to justify the setting, the dialogues and the character development... but nothing more. Don't come into this expecting a western version of Inglorious Basterds.
The references to contemporary issues are a complete miss. I feel Tarantino tries to force a connection to modern day racial and gender issues in his own quirky way. There's nothing wrong with the attempt I guess, but it doesn't work at all for me. Like most of the things that are wrong with The Hateful Eight it seems to stem from a need to stuff 3 hours in a single setting with enough filler content. Neither the filler content or the length of the movie is justified by this and both end up becoming annoying. Luckily it doesn't detract much from the overall qualities of the movie.
If like me you value the intimacy of Tarantino's previous movies you will likely also appreciate them here and look beyond the flaws.