 Tagline: First they made him dangerous. Then they made him mad. Hardcore - The First Ever Action POV Feature Film. Henry, a newly resurrected cyborg who must save his wife/creator Estelle from the clutches of a psychotic tyrant with telekinetic powers, Akan, and his army of mercenaries. Fighting alongside Henry is Jimmy, who is Henry's only hope to make it through the day. Hardcore takes place over the course of one day, in Moscow, Russia. Strap in. Hardcore is one of the most unflinchingly original wild-rides to hit the big screen in a long time: You remember nothing. Mainly because you've just been brought back from the dead by your wife (Haley Bennett). She tells you that your name is Henry. Five minutes later, your being shot at, your wife has been kidnapped, and you should probably go get her back. Who's got her? His name's Akan (Danila Kozlovsky); he's a powerful warlord with an army of mercenaries, and a plan for world domination. You're also in an unfamiliar city of Moscow, and everyone wants you dead. Everyone except for a mysterious British fellow called Jimmy (Sharlto Copley). He may be on your side, but you aren't sure. If you can survive the insanity, and solve the mystery, you might just discover your purpose and the truth behind your identity. Good luck, Henry. You're likely going to need it. Storyline: Hardcore Henry is an action film told from a first person perspective: You remember nothing. Mainly because you've just been brought back from the dead by your wife (Haley Bennett). She tells you that your name is Henry. Five minutes later, you are being shot at, your wife has been kidnapped, and you should probably go get her back. Who's got her? His name's Akan; he's a powerful warlord with an army of mercenaries, and a plan for world domination. You're also in an unfamiliar city of Moscow, and everyone wants you dead. Everyone except for a mysterious British fellow called Jimmy. He may be on your side, but you aren't sure. If you can survive the insanity, and solve the mystery, you might just discover your purpose and the truth behind your identity. Good luck, Henry. You're likely going to need it... Written by STX Entertainment Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Martin Liebman, July 19, 2016 In the video game world, the first-person shooter genre is just about the hottest thing going, and pretty much has been since the likes of Wolfenstein and Doom splattered blood across PC screens two-plus decades ago. These are games in which the player controls a solider or some other sort of combatant from a first-person point of view, with the eye-level field of view and gun barrel usually the only things the player sees. The games span timeframes, genres, and styles, from classic warfare to modern warfare, from future warfare to otherworldly warfare, from warfare reimagined to cartoonish warfare, from survival warfare to Sci-Fi warfare. Such a perspective is usually not found in cinema, where traditional narrative structures demand a broader field of view limited only by the director's needs and the limitations of shot composition, not the viewpoint of a single character. Yet it seemed only a matter of time until the first-person POV made its way to the movies, and not only in select shots but rather as the only perspective to be seen in the entire film. Director Ilya Naishuller's debut feature Hardcore Henry offers a nonstop first-person perspective and structured around hyperkinetic, nonstop action and violence. The movie's novelty and impressive stunt and action choreography dominate, but are they enough to carry the picture to 90 minutes of unique shoot- and beat-em-up bliss? Henry awakens in a slick and clean lab, of sorts. He's missing his left arm under the elbow and his left leg under the knee. Apparently, his face was smashed beyond recognition, too. At his side is a woman named Estelle (Haley Bennett), who is not only his nurse, but his wife. Machines attach artificial limbs where he needs them and he gains mobility. As he's about to regain his speech, a team of heavily armed men crash into the room. Henry and Estelle barely escape. Unfortunately, she's kidnapped, and he's forced into a fight for his life, literally. He's told by a man named Jimmy (Sharlto Copley) that he needs to recharge, or die. And so begins his frenetic search for answers, his wife, and the next gun with which to shoot and kill anyone who stands in his way. Hardcore Henry's video game roots are easy to see, as are its inspirations from other, far greater, Sci-Fi films like RoboCop and Total Recall. Make no mistake that plot plays secondary in Hardcore Henry. Unlike its superior Sci-Fi brethren, and even some of the games from which it draws its inspiration, it has precious little to say about anything. The movie thrives on its visual acumen, its ability to seamlessly create chaos right in front of the camera as an individual jumps, runs, climbs, and shoots his way through impossible obstacles and a parade of bad guys. The film's driving force is its ability to maintain repetition -- not breaking the first-person perspective -- while keeping it as fresh as possible by throwing Henry onto increasingly challenging obstacles and through increasingly impossible odds. But the movie does start to fatigue when it becomes clear that plot plays completely secondary to the spectacle. Sure it's fun to watch, and try to figure out, how the filmmakers accomplish this or that and awe at the movie's daring stunts and seamless transitions, but the shaky-cam style and breathless, relentless pace begin to wear thin and threaten to wear the viewer down. The movie is more experience than it is emotional engagement, more entertainment than it is meaningful moviemaking. It knows its place, plays to its strengths, and doesn't overstay its welcome. It's not anything special beyond the surface, but it doesn't try to be, either. The movie's singular focus on style, which is essentially the combination of pace and perspective, dominates, and in a way that accentuates the focus and, while not de-emphasizing other storytelling attributes, overwhelms everything else. Technical workmanship is stellar. Even as the movie lacks traditional polish, its ability to dazzle at heights well beyond the capabilities of most traditionally structured Action films is reason enough to watch. Stunt work feels dangerous from start to finish. There's practically no place for the character, or the audience, to stop to breathe. The film's forward-moving kinetic energy is a sight to behold as people, places, and things flash in and out of frame, as it's all so perfectly timed and detailed to keep everything important right in front of the audience as Henry battles and moves through everything the movie throws his way. It's a rare breed motion picture where the behind-the-scenes insight might actually prove more interesting than the movie itself, but for a film that's all about the illusion, maybe it's best to leave that stuff for the archives and simply enjoy Hardcore Henry for what it is and completely surrender to this new breed of movie magic. Hardcore Henry is all about motion and perspective, kinetic energy and nonstop thrills. Stunts, not story, dominate. It's hardly a narrative winner, but the film satisfies its basic supporting, structural needs. Action is fine, though one cannot help but think that, even with all its mayhem, there was room to push the envelope further. Universal's Blu-ray isn't going to set the world afire with its video transfer, but audio is excellent and the supplements are fine, even if the two commentary tracks are overkill and repetitive. Recommended. [CSW] -3.3- Hardcore Henry, like 10 Cloverfield Lane, is a big 2016 sci-fi directorial debut. But where Cloverfield portrayed a confident greatness beyond its filmmaker's experience, Henry opts to obnoxiously rely on being "different" rather than being good. A largely nonsensical headache of a movie, it should've been called Loudcore Henry (loud volume, loud performances, loud plot, and loud twists). Dripping with relentless noise and chaotic combat, it's more of a sleeper-hold than a round-house kick, simulating white noise over thrilling filmmaking. As one of the first films told entirely from first-person perspective, we experience Henry's mysteriously bad and villain-filled day through his eyes. While the movie gets some credit for being unique, it's mostly just disorienting, both in form and in content. The plot is a slap-dash collection of twists, both cliché and confusing, covered in lazy attempts at humor and tonally unfocused music. Even the action, clearly the film's selling point, is so extremely violent and decadent that it misses its target of being bold and lands closer to being reckless. Nonetheless, many of those set-pieces are fairly propulsive, especially the marquee hotel scene. Unfortunately, with great movies like Dredd and The Raid covering this area, all that's left with Henry is that first-person POV, and eventually you wonder if that gimmick becomes more of a hindrance than an asset, confusing otherwise interesting action through a hectic lack of focus. Just because your movie looks and feels like a first-person shooter doesn't mean it should have the brain of a pre-teen gamer. Maybe I'm getting old, but watching someone else play a B-level video game for 90 minutes is not my idea of entertainment… --- but with that being said --- This is an over-the-top-intense action movie that takes off in the first few minutes and never slows down for the entire 90 minute experience. You're never really given a chance to nod off or get bored. Some may complain about the lack of story, but I think that's because the filmmakers know that a shallow storyline is all that is needed to give the protagonist their purpose. The camerawork is very shaky and sometimes it can be hard to keep focus on where the camera wants you to be looking at, but that's what peripherals are for. There are a few cringe worthy moments which felt perfectly fit for this wild ride. And a wild ride is exactly what this is. If you have ever gone to Motion Ride Theater sometimes called a Moving Theater Ride which have moving seats, that is exactly what this look like, and if you have a D-Box connected seat this film IS a motion ride. The D-Box choreographed seat movement makes this one heck of moving theater motion ride. So in the final analysis, with D-Box it is an absolutely great ride, without D-Box really is like watching someone else play a B-level video game for 90 minutes. Because I have D-Box I plan to add this rental to my permanent collection. Only 3D would make this a better thrill ride. [V4.0-A4.5] MPEG-4 AVC - D-Box. Cast Notes: Sharlto Copley (Jimmy), Danila Kozlovsky (Akan), Haley Bennett (Estelle), Tim Roth (Henry's Father), Andrei Dementiev (Slick Dimitry [as Andrey Dementyev]), Svetlana Ustinova (Olga the Dominatrix [as Sveta Ustinova]), Darya Charusha (Katya the Dominatrix [as Dasha Charusha]), Oleg Poddubnyy (Yuri [as Oleg Poddubniy]), Jack Hahn (Young Bully #1), Cyrus Arnold (Young Bully #2), Jake Karlen (Young Bully #3), Will Stewart (Robbie), Ilya Naishuller (Timothy / Higher-Self Merc), Martin Cooke (Marty [as Martin J. Cooke]), Sergey Chekrygin (Parking Lot Security [as Sergei Chikrigin]). IMDb Rating (08/29/16): 6.8/10 from 40,416 users IMDb Rating (07/19/16): 7.2/10 from 21,334 users
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
