The Hateful Eight

8 Angry Resevoir Dogs

Director: Quentin Tarantino

Realease Date: 2015

Rating: 18

Running Time: 165mins

Genre: Action/Western/Mystery

Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russel, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen

"If any of you move you're going to get a bullet, not a question, not a warning shot...a bullet"

So I've got to start by coming clean and saying, I am a "Tarantino Fan Boy". I think think his films are not only great stories but they're also great cinema. If you ever want to see a film where the bastards "really get it", you're going to want to find yourself a Tarantino collection. With memorable characters and quotable dialogue, his films are cool, slick and modern, delivering exactly what you'd expect from the director since he started, nearly 25 years ago.

Having said this, he is not a man who targets his films at the faint hearted, no he does not. In fact if you're not a fan of over the top bloody sword-fights, wrestling and shoot-outs he's a man you should certainly avoid. So when it comes to The Hateful Eight, there's no exception, this film bares all. All the blood, twisted Tarantino humour, dialogue heavy scenes, memorable quotes and in recent years excessive use of the N word and of course Sam Jackson bringing the perfect combination of cool and comedy and appearances from so many Tarantino regulars, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen and so many others. It features the whole shebang (albeit maybe lacking the soundtrack that could compete with Django Unchained, Pulp Fiction & Resevoir Dogs).

"So let's slow it way down", having read so many reviews and talking to fellow movie goers alike, it was a mixed bag. I wasn't surprised to see people say they didn't like it, it's not for everyone. Yet I was surprised at the high level of that responded so negatively. Many said that the violence and sodomy was too much, but some found the first act so boring they couldn't get into it. I'll give you dialogue may be slow, but it's going some where, everything the director has written is serving a purpose. The fact is that with this film he is introducing us to 8 complex characters, all of which require a bit of getting to know, and consequently we are spoon fed exposition for all of these enigmatic Cowboys, but stay with it. The Hateful Eights story is a great mystery, posing the question: can you trust a thing that's being said about anyone, and what's more if you know anything about Tarantino, who's getting out alive?

It is a complex story, and in a Hitchcockian fashion takes place in predominantly one room. The tension grows and grows, the mystery drags you in further and with a blizzard hammering on windows of Minnie's Haberdashery outside, it's not long before the paranoia kicks in and guns are loaded. It's a film of which the second and third acts cannot be discussed, but all I will say is remember it's a Tarantino film, and he hasn't missed a trick using all the devices that makes the man who he is, and I'm not just talking blood.

Like always there's the controversy of violence, anti-heroes and some things you wouldn't want to discuss with your grandparents. But the age old Tarantino debate of plagiarism will surely arise from all the walking walking anti-Hollywood film encyclopaedias claiming he's ripping off a Japanese film of some kind that many of the western world have never heard of. But that's not to say they're wrong, the man loves cinema and will so often choose therefore to quote, re-imagine and tribute the works he grew up with and marvelled at. However, I'll challenge anyone to find a film like The Hateful Eight, made in the same way and with the same outcome, sure the premise may be similar but this film is surely one of a kind, with its perfect combination of Suspense, mystery and most of all complete shock factor. There really isn't nothing like it or people wouldn't be writing reviews about how shocking it was.

Someone asked the question of "Would fanboys be so in love with this film if it wasn't by Tarantino?" But that question just cannot be considered. The film through and through is so absolutely without a doubt Tarantino-esc that if this film wasn't made by him it would be a completely different film with a completely different feel.

So I'll finish with this. It's not a film for everyone, it will disgust some, and bore others and maybe it is targeted at a younger audience or those with "certain tastes" in what they like their cinema to contain. But (and this is my final but), if you like Taranino and the film sounds like it ticks the boxes go and see it. If think it starts slow, stick with it, have faith that it's all there for a reason. Believe me, it will be all worth it approaching the third and final unforgettable act.

9/10