{"id":13103,"date":"2016-01-25T15:03:20","date_gmt":"2016-01-25T13:03:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/responsive.jozikids.co.za\/zaparents\/?p=13103"},"modified":"2022-08-11T21:17:40","modified_gmt":"2022-08-11T19:17:40","slug":"the-hateful-eight-a-movie-review-by-daniel-janks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jozikids.co.za\/blog\/lifestyle\/movie-reviews\/the-hateful-eight-a-movie-review-by-daniel-janks\/","title":{"rendered":"The Hateful Eight : A movie review"},"content":{"rendered":"

Director\u00a0Quentin Tarantino
\nWriter\u00a0Quentin Tarantino
\nCast\u00a0Samuel L. Jackson,\u00a0Kurt Russell,\u00a0Jennifer Jason<\/p>\n

AGE RESTRICTION: [R]<\/h2>\n

There\u2019s not too much violence in the film, but what there is, is graphic and has a lot of blood and gore, a lot!<\/p>\n

Bottom Line<\/h2>\n

I loved this film. Yes, it\u2019s long. Yes, for a large chunk nothing really happens. Yes it\u2019s mostly just talking and drinking coffee. Yes, it feels more like a play than a film. But I\u2019ll watch a\u00a0Quentin Tarantino\u00a0play any day, wouldn\u2019t you?<\/p>\n

Story<\/h2>\n

The film starts with two bounty hunters hauling cargo (most dead, one alive – most men, one woman) to the town of Red Rock to collect their bounties. They travel by stagecoach through a terrible storm, with worse weather nipping\u00a0at\u00a0their heels. They take shelter in a rickety, sifting roadhouse and it’s here we meet the full Hateful Eight (or nine, or ten: there are more than eight characters and they’re all pretty hateful). Already at the roadhouse are a collection of fellas, dangerous men, cool characters – something is afoot. What ensues is a slow and wordy unfolding of events. Eakingly\u00a0we learn who’s who and what’s up in the roost. It’s sort of an Agatha Christie-esque\u00a0whodunit, except not only don’t we know who dun\u00a0it, we’re not even sure what they dun.<\/p>\n

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Credit: sobrosnetwork.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Character<\/h2>\n

Tarantino is famous for finding old, once A-list actors who’ve fallen by the wayside and resurrecting their careers. He did it for John Travolta, he did it for Uma Thurman. He tried to do it did it for Pam Grier but that didn’t work out so well. In\u00a0The Hateful Eight\u00a0he’s at it again, with a vengeance. This time it’s Kurt Russel and Michael Madsen on the resurrection block, and time will tell if they’re to reap the Travoltian rewards, or slip back into\u00a0Grierian oblivion.<\/p>\n

This is an all star cast, all be some of the stars a little faded.\u00a0Samuel L. Jackson\u00a0shines as brightly as ever.\u00a0Kurt Russell\u00a0and Jennifer Jason Leigh\u00a0return to A-list moviemaking after a noticeable absence. Walton Goggins continues to build a fantastic career.\u00a0Demi\u00e1n Bichir\u00a0pokes his head above the waters of C-list actordom.\u00a0Tim Roth\u00a0returns to the big screen after a few years mucking about on the little one.\u00a0Michael Madsen\u00a0proves that a little hair dye and sexy squint can help you recover an all-but-dead career (actually Mike is \u00a0one of the busiest actors in Hollywood, he made no less than 15 films in 2015, but what’s the last thing you saw him in?)\u00a0Bruce Dern\u00a0continues his re-emergence from the B-list that began in 2013 with\u00a0Nebraska. And\u00a0James Parks\u00a0… well … who the hell is\u00a0James Parks, right? And that’s the key cast, all nine of them. The Hateful Nine, no wait …<\/p>\n

In my eye the stand out performances are undoubtedly those delivered by\u00a0Walton Goggins,\u00a0Jennifer Jason Leigh\u00a0and\u00a0Tim Roth. They are perfectly positioned in that Tarantino-esque, quasi-reality of heightened almost-over-acting\u00a0and rich characterisation that lifts them off the screen and\u00a0makes watching them a magical experience. This is not to take anything away from the other performances.\u00a0Kurt Russell\u00a0is great, but he’s\u00a0Kurt Russell. His\u00a0John Ruth\u00a0could be\u00a0Snake Plissken\u00a0or\u00a0Jack Burton\u00a0gotten a little grey in the moustache. Similarly\u00a0Samuel L. Jackson’s\u00a0Major Marquis Warren\u00a0could be an ageing\u00a0Jules Winfield\u00a0or\u00a0Neville Flynn. The only performance that left me cold was\u00a0Michael Madsen’s. He coulda got his a lot earlier with upsetting me.<\/p>\n

All in all, almost everyone shines and it’s this richness of performance that more than makes up for the almost two hours of action in which, basically, nothing happens.<\/p>\n

Vision<\/h2>\n

It’s the vision of the piece which places this among Tarantino’s best films. He’s always said that he’s only making ten films, and that after that he plans to move on to other things. That’s his plan, ten films and that’s that.\u00a0The Hateful Eight\u00a0is his eighth. Of the eight I’d say only four are truly great and memorable films.\u00a0Reservoir Dogs,\u00a0Pulp Fiction, Inglorious<\/u> Basterds\u00a0and\u00a0The Hateful Eight. I can’t call\u00a0Jackie Brown,\u00a0Kill Bill: Vol. 1\u00a0&\u00a0\u00a02,\u00a0Death Proof\u00a0and\u00a0Django Unchained great.<\/p>\n

They’re awesome, fun, interesting works, but his greats are something to behold. Epic experiences, journeys down the rabbit-hole. A true experience of visionary filmmaking. And The Hateful Eight\u00a0is one of them, albeit one that kinda creeps up on you. On the surface it lacks the freneticism and manic pace of the most of his films. It harkens back to his first film,\u00a0Reservoir Dogs. One central location, a cast of interesting character. A slowly unfolding story told in wordy winding dialogue and monologue. At times one is almost bored, but then he reels you in a little more and the hook is reset and you’re gladly pulled back towards the net, and the air, and bishop waiting to beat out your brains.<\/p>\n

So<\/h2>\n

See it. Love it. But don’t expect\u00a0Pulp Fiction\u00a0or\u00a0Inglorious<\/u>\u00a0Basterds. This is a slow film. But a beautiful one.<\/p>\n

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