Despite how much I like Quentin Tarantino’s work, I haven’t seen all of his films. I waited roughly two years for The Hateful Eight because I wasn’t really sure what the film was about and I kind of forgot about it for awhile. This is considered his eighth film (written and directed) and features a lot actors from his previous films like Samuel L. Jackson, Tim Roth, Kurt Russell (though I haven’t seen Death Proof yet), and Michael Madsen. Noticeably absent was the amazing Christoph Waltz who hasn’t lost an Oscar in an Quentin Tarantino movie yet. It might be because it is lame when the same director uses the same people in EVERY movie of theirs, but I also don’t think Waltz really had a role that was good for him here.

The story starts in a snowy mountain area of Wyoming a few years after the end of the American Civil War. John Ruth is a bounty hunter who is notable for taking in prisoners alive just so he can see them hang personally. His prize today is Daisy Domergue who is a notable criminal who is worth an amazing bounty. Ruth has her tied to his wrist and is extremely paranoid. He offers (though not without resistance) a ride to another bounty hunter (and former military commander) named Major Marquis Warren. Before arriving to a remote lodge called Minnie’s Haberdashery to wait out the intense snow storm, they see another man. His name is Chris Mannix and he claims to be the newly elected sheriff of the nearby Red Rock, Wyoming. Mannix is a former Confederate and he becomes the ire of both men especially Warren as he not only fought in the Union army but is African-American as well.

When they get to the cabin, they meet several other folks. One of them is a feeble Confederate General named Sanford “Sandy” Smithers. Another is the British Oswaldo Mobray who claims to be the hangman of Redrock. A Mexican named Bob claims to be the newly hired-help for the lodge. And the one they trust least of all is Joe Gage, a very gruff looking man who claims he’s going to visit his mother for the holiday. John Ruth believes that at least one of the men in this cabin (including Warren and Mannix) is out to set Daisy Domergue free as a bird. Most of everyone claims he’s paranoid, but John Ruth is absolutely right. But who and how many against him are there in this awful lodge?

To be honest, The Hateful Eight while being a good movie is a big utter disappointment. I will say it’s my least favorite Tarantino so far. At over three hours long, there is a lot of dull moments and the twists aren’t really that shocking. The cast is awesome especially for the characters with key moments but I think Jennifer Jason Leigh was certainly deserving of being the only person who got an Oscar nomination (though she lost to Alicia Vikander) for the film for her role as the despicable Daisy Domergue. Besides a script that seems like it’s stuffed with filler, it also seems like a rip-off almost of Reservoir Dogs (also by Quentin Tarantino) but set in a different time and place except not nearly as wonderful and shocking.