John McClane, Ellen Ripley, Jason Bourne, James Bond.
Many of us have dreamed of what it would be like to be in their shoes.
Hardcore Henry is the first ever feature film to put the viewer directly in the shoes of the hero. Coming on the tail end of the found-footage explosion, it’s either a concept that’s too little, too late… or it’s way ahead of its time.
Ilya Naishuller breaks new ground with Hardcore Henry, his POV action film that just premiered at the Midnight Madness portion of the Toronto International Film Festival.
Beginning much like a POV-style video game, our hero, Henry (that’s you!), wakes up to have his robotic arm and leg attached, only to be interrupted before his voice module can be activated. The film announces itself within 5 minutes and tells the audience that Hardcore Henry can and will go anywhere it wants.
Naishuller introduces a colorful antagonist, Akan (Danila Kozlovsky), a telekinetic who uses psychic powers to throw people around in a room. The audience immediately gasps, and continues to have their collective minds blown as they learn this base is floating in the sky, and have to drop out of an escape pod straight to Earth. It’s the most visceral and intense experience I’ve had in quite some time.
After a harrowing escape, Henry has a run-in with Jimmy* (Sharlto Copley; pictured), who acts as the film’s device to move the character from set piece to set piece.
What’s even more intriguing about the film is that there’s no real race against time, as you would expect, and instead loads the audience’s shoulders with questions that keep it engaging throughout.
As a concept, it’s a bit gimmicky, but the mysterious plot and vibrant characterizations of both Jimmy and Akan keep you mentally checked in just long enough for the next “holy shit” moment.
With that said, here’s how Hardcore Henry is ahead of its time: it’s better off suited as a virtual reality movie. Technology isn’t quite there yet, but those who are into VR understand that it’s the future – and Hardcore Henry is the future of filmmaking. It’s groundbreaking stuff that just touches on what’s to come in cinema.
Outside of the concept, Naishuller keeps the action fresh by mixing up the weapons and scenery, and even pulls the rug out from the audience with an incredible dance number (yup) by Copley*.
And for a movie called Hardcore Henry, it delivers on its promise. Naishuller blasts the audience with one of the most bloody and violent movies in the history of cinema, but manages to keep it fun (even when heads are being ripped apart). The only major issue is that some of the action is hard to see, which happens even in the Bourne films (at least Naishuller has an excuse).
Hardcore Henry is both the past and future of filmmaking, and isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea**. Still, it’s filled to the brim with “holy shit” moments, and if that weren’t enough, Copley’s performance is so good that you won’t be able to stop talking about it. My only hope is that a major studio picks up the remake rights, and pops Naishuller into the world of VR to create the ultimate action experience. Frankly, Hardcore could just have easily been titled Beyond Hardcore…
*There’s a pretty dense story behind Jimmy and I don’t want to ruin it for you. I feel like the mystery behind his character helps with engagement.
**Those with motion sickness BEWARE.