The Hateful Eight

Movie review by Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media
The Hateful Eight Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 18+

Extreme violence, language in Tarantino's clever western.

R 2015 182 minutes
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Parents say

age 17+

Based on 28 reviews

Kids say

age 15+

Based on 36 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight is a Western that promises -- and delivers -- extremely strong violence and language. Characters use guns, and tons of blood splatters, sprays, and oozes everywhere. A female character is punched in the face several times, knives and poison are used (victims of the latter vomit blood), and there are many dead bodies. In a flashback, a man who's shown full-frontally naked is forced to perform oral sex on another man. Language includes countless uses of the "N" word, "f--k," and "motherf----r," plus plenty of other words. Characters smoke cigarettes and pipes (accurate for the era) and drink whisky and brandy.

Community Reviews

RichManGold
RichManGold Adult
December 20, 2020
age 16+

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
James Hedrick
James Hedrick Adult
August 8, 2020
age 18+

Hateful is Right. Briliant Story!

The Hateful Eight is artistically brilliant and visually beautiful but certainly lives up to it's name in its story and characters. There are no good or admirable people in this story. They are all cruel, ignorant or sadistic in their own ways. The cinematography is amazing and the writing is the usual quality you can expect from Tarantino, which is to say phenomenal. This is very much a film for an adult audience. The violence is extreme and gory and there is a male on male rape scene told in flashback, which is none the less intense. With a small cast and simple sets, this film is unique and often feels almost like watching a play, the stage set being the haberdashery. It tells a story that is really an in depth character study of the eight, their pasts, motivations, and the ways in which their lives intersect. For these reasons it may appeal less to the usual western or action audience as it is slow paced and more focused on the characters than the action. However, if you have the patience the payoff is well worth it and the story is so well told I was never bored for a moment. This movie comes with my full endorsement as high quality well made and acted cinema worthy of the highest awards. However, based on the content, keep it to eighteen and above.

This title has:

Too much violence
See all 28 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Bounty hunter John Ruth (Kurt Russell) transports his prisoner, Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh), via stagecoach to Red Rock, just ahead of a brutal snowstorm. Along the way, they encounter two stranded travelers: fellow bounty hunter Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson) and the soon-to-be-appointed sheriff of Red Rock, Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins). When the storm overtakes them, the group shelters in Minnie's Haberdashery, where four more strangers await. Some of them seem to have a mysterious, perhaps deadly agenda, and not everyone is telling the truth. When one of them poisons the coffee, things take a turn for the worse, and a showdown is imminent.

Is It Any Good?

Tarantino's eighth movie is long, moving inevitably toward an expected, brutally violent climax -- but along the way the colorful characters and playful dialogue provide a twisted good time. The one-room pressure-cooker setting, plus the presence of Michael Madsen and Tim Roth, may remind viewers of Reservoir Dogs, which can be both good and bad. That film's clever, sinister structure left audiences wanting more, whereas the lengthy, bonkers THE HATEFUL EIGHT gives up everything (and the kitchen sink).

Which isn't to say that it's not a lot of fun; it has surprises up its sleeve, and, as simple as the premise/set-up all seems, the characters' motivations are often deliberately deceptive. Long dialogue sequences exist for the sheer joy of their sound and rhythm but are also sometimes used as sleight-of-hand. Tarantino also uses music (by Ennio Morricone) and silence to brilliant effect; that, plus the infectious character performances makes this truly killer entertainment.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about The Hateful Eight's extreme violence. What effect does it have? Is it exciting? Gruesome? Do different types of violence have a different impact on viewers?

  • Why do you think the movie has such a pervasive use of the "N" word? What effect does hearing it so often have? Do you think Tarantino is trying to say something by having the characters use it so much?

  • Are any of these characters likable? How can such despicable people be interesting? How do they compare to characters in other Tarantino movies?

  • What's the appeal of the Western genre? Why do you think it's less popular today than it once was? Could it make a comeback?

Movie Details

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