Review: ‘The Hateful Eight’ isn’t Tarantino’s best, but it’s still lots of bloody fun

Posted on January 8, 2016

By MARK VIOLA

I’ve been reviewing movies for more than nine years now, so I have to be more careful about repeating myself with these little introductions. And that’s extra hard for “The Hateful Eight,” the latest film from director Quentin Tarantino (“Kill Bill,” “Django Unchained”). That’s because I want to talk about how Tarantino’s films don’t exist in the “real” world but instead a hyper-realized world just a side-step out of sync where people talk in an overly formal fashion and wild characters are the norm. But I used that observation for my review of “Django Unchained,” so I wanted to come up with something different.

So instead, I considered talking about how there are very few directors who have such a unique style to their filmmaking that their movies are immediately recognizable. Wes Anderson (“The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “Moonrise Kingdom”) is one and Tarantino is the other. Unfortunately, I used this observation for my review of “The Grand Budapest Hotel.”

So I guess I’m just going to have to skip right into the review. When you go into a Tarantino film, you need to know that you’re going to get memorable characters, line after line of witty dialogue and gallons upon gallons of blood. So if gory violence and foul language–including copious use of the n-word–are not your cup of tea, you might as well stop reading now because “The Hateful Eight” is not for you.

Now I am a fan of Tarantino’s films, so I did know what I was getting myself into when I sat down to watch. And that’s why I actually took a few moments to prepare myself for the forthcoming onslaught.

This is honestly a very simple review. If you’re a fan of Tarantino’s previous films, you’ll find plenty to enjoy here. If you didn’t like his earlier works, there is nothing here to change your mind.

That all being said, however, this isn’t a perfect film and there were several times when I felt the nearly three-hour runtime and extreme violence were not fully necessary. There were several scenes, especially in the film’s next-to-last chapter–like most of Tarantino’s films, this one is separated into chapters–that could have been trimmed without hurting the story or the movie’s overall effect. There is also very little in the way of action for the first hour or so, and your enjoyment of Tarantino’s dialogue will go a long way in determining how well the first few chapters hold up for you.

“The Hateful Eight” does feel gratuitous at times, but overall, there is plenty of enjoyment to be found here, as long as you know what you’re getting yourself into.

The film is rated R for strong bloody violence, a scene of violent sexual content, language and some graphic nudity.

(This is a abbreviated version of the full review available in our printed or e-edition papers.)

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