FILM: The Hateful Eight
CAST: Samuel L Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh
DIRECTION: Quentin Tarantino


Quentin Tarantino has made enough films for us to reflect on his style. His latest film, The Hateful Eight, is a skillfully crafted and well-executed film. It is certainly not his feeblest effort, but it is certainly far from his best.
Essentially, a chamber drama, designed in his typical chapter format and narrated in a non-linear manner, it is closer in structure to his debut film than any other film he has done.
Set in Wyoming just after the civil war, on a wintry day, bounty hunter, John Ruth (Kurt Russell) also known as the “Hangman” is on his way to the town of Red Rock, escorting a fugitive Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh) whom he intends seeing hanging from the rope. They are travelling in a six-horse stagecoach driven by OB (James Parks).
Enroute, they encounter bounty hunter and ex-soldier, Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L Jackson) and Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins) who happens to be the newly-appointed Sheriff of Red Rock.
Before they get to their destination a blizzard forces them to take shelter at Minnie’s Haberdashery. Here, by happenstance they meet four more strangers — Bob “The Mexican” (Demian Bichir), Oswaldo Mobray (Tim Roth), Joe Gage (Michael Madsen) and ex-Confederate General Sanford Smithers (Bruce Dern).
With their lives inter-linked, these eight men realise that “one of the fellows is not the person, he says, he is”. Trust issues give rise to a bout of instigation and what follows is mayhem.
With a run time of two hours and 47 minutes, the journey is leisurely, as well as tedious. The first half sets the mood, which is generic and calm in nature, but it is in the second half, in which Tarantino’s expected trademarks and stylistic flourishes appear with a bang, amidst a literal haze of blood, bullets and brains.
The violence is bloody and is as compelling as the mystery that surrounds the neo-noir characters, albeit under-developed. The performances, for the most part, are fantastic. — IANS


A predictable end


By Rick Bentley




FILM: Victor Frankenstein 
CAST: James McAvoy, Daniel Radcliffe, Jessica Brown Findlay
DIRECTION: Paul McGuigan


Dr Frankenstein’s efforts to create life out of mismatched pieces ended in disaster. Efforts by director Paul McGuigan to create the movie Victor Frankenstein out of mismatched pieces results in the same disastrous ending.
The latest big-screen adaptation of the Mary Shelley novel looks at the familiar story through the eyes of Frankenstein’s assistant, Igor (Daniel Radcliffe). Why the movie is named for the monster maker and not his loyal assistant is just the first of a long line of miscues.
Igor has grown up in a circus where the hunchback has been the victim of constant inhuman treatment. Despite being treated with less respect than a mongrel dog, Igor has somehow educated himself to the point where he’s the circus doctor. He’s quite articulate and socially adept for someone who was locked in a cage.
When Lorelei (Jessica Brown Findlay), an aerialist with whom Igor is smitten, falls, he fixes her broken collarbone using only a pocket watch. Victor Frankenstein (James McAvoy) sees the potential in the hunchback and helps Igor escape.
In a transformation that is so absurd that it fringes on farce, Frankenstein cures Igor of his hunchback and stooped-over walk in a matter of minutes. A bath and haircut later and the social leper Igor has transformed himself into a man fit for high society.
Frankenstein has a grand plan to create life out of death, but it’s Igor who has the skill and knowledge — somehow garnered through mucking stalls and being beaten by fellow circus people — to make the experiment work.
As if the Igor story line wasn’t absurd enough, screenwriter Max Landis takes the life out of the rest of Shelley’s classic story by the transformation of Frankenstein. The point of the original story was that it wasn’t the creature Frankenstein created who was the real monster. Landis opts to make Frankenstein a sympathetic character and so all of the philosophical elements about good and evil are lost.
To create some sort of tension, the creature brought to life by Frankenstein must by default be the villain. That guts the original intent and leaves this latest take nothing more than a B-grade horror movie.
McGuigan has created a beautiful look, including a massive laboratory for Frankenstein. But, because the story is so lifeless, having all of the gorgeous sets is like putting a tuxedo on a corpse. 
McAvoy tries to breathe life into the story, but he never creates one distinct approach. There are moments when Frankenstein looks like a mad man; other times he is a heartbroken soul. The lack of consistency leaves the character without direction.
The idea of looking at the story from Igor’s point of view could have worked had Landis not taken so many shortcuts. Having Igor be a brilliant mind and doctor with no training takes a massive leap of faith. Then the quick physical transformation extends the leap beyond reason.
What pulls the plug on the film is Radcliffe. He never sells the character as either an abused circus worker or medical genius. And, the romantic angle fails miserably because Radcliffe looks so young that Findlay looks like she’s old enough to be his mother. 
Victor Frankenstein lumbers to its predictable end, carried by a bad script, off-the-mark casting and few signs of life. -The Fresno Bee/MCT


Sweet and endearing 



By Rick Bentley




FILM: The Peanuts Movie (animation) 
VOICES: Noah Schnapp, Hadley Belle Miller, Bill Melendez
DIRECTION: Steve Martino


When it comes to The Peanuts Movie, it’s all good and no grief.
The animated film from the company that produced Rio and Ice Age is a loving tribute to the characters first introduced through the creative talents of Charles Schulz. 
It has a colourfulness and energy that will introduce a new generation of fans to this gang, while adhering to the deep emotions that Schulz infused into his work.
What made this offbeat group of children so special was that they were a relatable vehicle for addressing life lessons. Schulz built his tales around a kid with a round head who brands himself a loser. But he emphasised that a person’s worth is not measured in public accomplishments but by the way they conduct themselves. That’s a point that is repeated in this film.
Director Steve Martino and writer Bryan Schulz use that central theme as the base for delivering all of the important characters from this comic strip world. They have laced the movie with all of the wonderful characters Schulz created to show the good in mankind. Linus continues to be the voice of reason. Sally represents the courage of youth. Pig-Pen exudes confidence despite his unkempt appearance.
The Peanuts Movie works as a sweet and endearing animated film that will keep youngsters entertained. It’s the depth that the filmmakers bring — coupled with a reverence for the source material — that will give it broader appeal. -The Fresno Bee/MCT


DVDs courtesy: 
Saqr Entertainment Stores, Doha