Hardcore Henry

Hardcore Henry (Russian: Хардкор) is a 2015 Russian-American science fiction action film written and directed by Ilya Naishuller, and produced by Timur Bekmambetov, Naishuller, Inga Vainshtein Smith and Ekaterina Kononenko with Will Stewart provided additional writing for the film. The film was shot entirely from a first-person perspective and stars Sharlto Copley, Danila Kozlovsky, Haley Bennett and Tim Roth.

Plot
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.

Why It's Hardcore

 * 1) Hardcore is essentially a video game movie, with its first-person view, minor plot, and action.
 * 2) The main character, despite never appearing, is able to communicate a personality.
 * 3) Having the entire movie filmed with GoPros, along with the fantastic action sequences made this a very fun and enjoyable movie.
 * 4) It doesn't take itself seriously, as it knows exactly what it is; a crude, goofy action film.
 * 5) The parkour scenes are truly something else as well, with major respect to the stuntmen who did their job perfectly.
 * 6) Sharlto Copley (of District 9 fame, and other Neill Blomkamp projects) plays the main POV's assistant throughout the film. Copley definitely gives a range of character performances and is quality.
 * 7) Tim Roth plays Henry's father, who wants his son to grow up like a man in the future despite the short screentime.
 * 8) Its a superheroic parkour, fantastical fights, and video game gunplay all presented in first-person, meaning if it was seen from a regular angle, the action would likely be too cartoonish.
 * 9) Action aside, the movie has an unexpected sense of humor. Some driven by situations, some driven by characters, some thanks to the POV.
 * 10) Like another 2016 raunchy-action film, Deadpool, it plays around with its adult content rating and puts all effort into action, humour, and charisma.
 * 11) It contains a LOT of subtle elements from Counter-Strike, Modern Warfare, mh:awesomegames:Half-Life 2, mh:awesomegames:Portal and mh:awesomegames:Mirror's Edge, games inspiring the film's cinematic dynamic.
 * 12) Awesome songs like "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen.
 * 13) As a cross-promotion for the movie, Overkill Software made a DLC featuring the movie's setting as a level for the Payday Gang to break into. Successfully defeating the level nets you Jimmy, the movie's deuteragonist, as a playable character.
 * 14) Interestingly, the film is purposely a Cliché Storm to give some excuses for its first-person perspective and it uses video game clichés instead of film clichés.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) The film is extraordinarily violent, meaning it's not for the squeamish or weak-stomached.
 * 2) Estelle, revealed to be Akan's wife than Henry's was an unnecessary plot twist and out of nowhere.
 * 3) While most of the film's cuts are seamless, some are more obvious. The convoy chase scene in particular noticeably has Henry and the vehicles teleport to obviously different parts of the road as well as warp to different times of the day.
 * 4) The movie gives zero explanation for how Akan got his telekinetic abilities and his Akan Inc. company. However, his backstory is covered in the prequel tie-in comic Hardcore Akan.
 * 5) *Basically, Akan was born to a woman fleeing Pripyat, Ukraine on the morning of the Chernobyl reactor meltdown. The radiation burned the melanin out of his skin, eyes, and hair, which is why he’s albino. A scientist stopped and rescued him, to raise as his own child after the woman died to a poisoned anti-radiation pill given as part of a cover up. Flash forward to Akan’s college years, and his powers manifest, either due to the radiation itself, or the experimental treatments his adoptive father used to save him from cancer. After finding out the truth from his adoptive father, Akan brutally kills him with a ceiling fan, murders the board of directors of his father’s company, and takes over said company for himself as Akan Inc..

Reception
Hardcore Henry received mixed to positive reviews from critics but mostly positive reviews from the audience.

On Metacritic, the movie has a critic rating of 51/100 ("mixed or average reviews") and a user score of 7.8/10 ("generally favourable reviews").

Time Out gave the movie a full score of 5/5, praising its uniqueness, premise and action.

Observer gave the movie a 3/4, praising its action, cast, premise and campiness.

Trivia

 * 1) There was a comic prequel tie-in called Hardcore Akan that was published by Bliss On Tap Publishing. It focused how Akan rose to power after receiving his psychic powers, and how he created his Akan Inc. company.

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