The Hateful Eight

I think what makes The Hateful Eight so satisfying to me is how well it plays into its themes of deception and dishonesty. The film frames honesty as a dubious trait, by the end we don't know the full extent of everyone's reality yet what they say about themselves still marks how we understand them as people. We have no idea whether or not Mannix was lying about being the sheriff, but this perception he creates about himself is what drives his character. There's a clear disdain he has for black people due to his past Confederate loyalties and the Civil War itself yet through his self-image he's still able to find ways to connect with Warren, who himself is running a possible lie. But I think the magic of this is that both could very well be telling the truth, it's just that the perception of lying is enough to shape our understanding of people. There are definitely various cases where the mask comes off but it often adds layers to the deception than remove it. For example, finding out the twist about the gang operation shows the true colors of the people we know about but there's still grand claims that are dubious in their honesty. The crooks could very well be telling the truth about how big their gang is, but the context they present this information in and the way they use it as a bargain gives everyone reason to not believe it. The narrative is smart to never confirm nor deny this, which gives so much weight to how the main characters perceive these statements. It's a film that puts the weight on how words and ideas are presented that provide a sense of characterization and legitimacy rather than assume the truth itself is what matters with how we perceive and interact with others. It makes the movie test the audiences perception of honesty, about how well we can read the character of people and it's so cool to see the many ways they play with this.

Not only is it good for characterization and theming, but it's also good for the thrill. The constant question of transparency makes the core mystery hold weight and keeps you on your toes as to what's next. No one trusts each other and the constant set of reveals gives it strong momentum throughout the plot. It's elevated further by how good the characterization is for everyone. There's an aspect of each character that makes them uniquely compelling, be it their mannerisms or their possibly fabricated standing in life. Every actor is really good in their role here, and a lot of the enjoyment from watching this stems by how tight the writing is between their interactions. So much of the movie is actually just characters interacting with each other and just on that alone there's so much to draw upon. You would lose so much context and value of the cast if the first hour establishing their chemistry and personality were cut, and it informs much of their actions when the core mystery is being played into.

Of course, the concept of lies is not something that exists in a vacuum. The most obvious feature is its commentary on racism, in which I think it works strongly. For Warren's character, a strong conceit is that he lies to get a desired response out of people. But he does so out of a sense of feeling endangered, that his macho tough guy act may very well be a pragmatic façade to survive the realities of racism. There is a sense that this evolves into extreme prejudice in general, considering he weaves a tale that may or may not be true for the sole purpose of being justified in killing a white man. It's easy to brush this off as a lame cathartic act against racism, but the film paints the victim as at least amicable. He was by no means a saint, but it does ask the uneasy question if people like him should be killed on manner of principle at odds against basic human dignity? I like this because it begs the question to what extent people deserve human dignity in spite of their horrid actions and values. It puts a mirror on Warren and plays into the framing that; yes, the people he kills are terrible people but perhaps the zeitgeist is affecting him in a horrid way too.

This is a movie that paints the world as horrifically ugly. Racial slurs are slugged out nonchalantly, criminal suspects are callously beaten which is seen as morally justified, everyone is out for each other in order to profit, etc. I feel it's a testament how provocative it is given that people found its grimier aspects to be repulsive. There's a line where being repulsive is excessive to the point of being uninteresting, I don't think this movie crosses it. The racial slurs and crass offensiveness is used to elevate the callousness of the story, that people are reducing each other's humanity for their own gain and out of complete disrespect for each other. It's why when Warren and Mannix find common ground at the ending the catharsis becomes stronger. That despite the callousness they feel towards each other, they felt a common ground to rally behind and prosper a genuine relation that neither expected.

I do feel there are certain setbacks, though. I wasn't fond of the flashback scene that explains the bandits scheme late in the movie. Having us construe the reality based on the word of other characters was a lot more fascinating, and it takes away the idea of Minnie and Sweet Dave when they're much depicted on screen rather than being defined on the words of others. There might be a case made that having them appear on screen creates an image of them that doesn't quite match what Warren's description which puts some questions on his character's sincerity, but I felt it was a lot more interesting when we had core characters that are defined entirely on the accounts of others. I feel Minnie got a lot of characterization but the extent of how much of that is real is what made her interesting. I also think it hits a better note for pacing to not feel like the scheme had to be explained and also lands on murking up what the crooks are saying that would make them more interesting.

A case can also be made about the film's pacing. I do think there could be cuts but I'd actually defend its length by pointing to how much of the talking is important to establish its personalities. At the same time I'd be more for obscuring certain details about characters because I find the deceitful context of the movie compelling. It could be a bit of slog to get to its final conceit but it's slow burn is justified enough to be as long as it is and I think it makes for smoother watching if it's watched on different chapters with the way it's structured.