Hardcore Henry

Harcore Henry is definitely not a film for everyone, no question about it, but it impressed me as a viewer. You could say it's a kind of PC version of Kill Bill, riding a huge action wave of violence, blood, swearing, but also jokes and black humour (mostly provided by Sharlto Copley) from beginning to end. On top of that, everything is seen in first person, which makes the cinema experience all the more intense. As a result, this is a brisk flick that really has balls (unlike the one sleazy cop in the film), isn't afraid to go for it and knows how to sell it properly. (05/08/2016)

Hardcore Henry, or how to use a shaky camera to create a stylish piece from the first person point of view, which draws you in and most importantly, and I feel obliged to say this, you see everything clearly, transparently and without any difficulties. Add in the fact that they did not bother at all with any age restrictions, which makes it a clear R rated film. The only thing that is missing to make this film perfect are some cool lines, as Henry during the whole film does not speak at all. Luckily, the acting is saved by Sharlto Copley, who has multiple roles here and moves between them in the blink of an eye. (06/03/2019)

I applaud the idea, admire the technical realization, and criticize the rest. Hardcore Henry is an unimaginably slick and stylish action flick, where some of the opening scenes (especially the free fall in the escape pod) spike the level of the viewer's experience to unprecedented, and you can really say revolutionary, heights, while the optimally set runtime and a lot of black humour, brilliantly provided by the film's best character(s), the outrageously loud Sharlto Copley, are also a hit. But that's where the good stuff ends, as the frantic, B-movie sci-fi story makes no sense, we know absolutely nothing about most of the characters, including the confused Henry, and the vast majority of motives remain unexplained and unfinished. It's simply too much chaos, which can still be excused for the adrenaline-fuelled action scenes, but even pure cinematic entertainment should strive for a more meaningful or at least more atmospheric plot – we can't even worry about Henry, as he's clearly a blend of every invulnerable Hollywood hero in history. And the last criticism is directed to the final long battle, which, instead of a climactic ending, is in my eyes the weakest action set-piece of the film. I did have fun and if I weren't such an opponent of computer games I might not have objected. 65% (04/29/2016)

A mainline adrenaline hit straight to a player’s heart. Memories of Far Cry, GTA, Crysis and other games and others come rushing at you with every minute of the movie. Sharlto Copley’s and his amazing antics drag this movie forward, but the real hero is Naishuller, who pieced the movie together. Great music. A feelgood movie. (03/05/2017)

The pure fire of an avid fan of decadence who pursues the ultimate physical experience with the vigor of a Soviet bulldozer. The creative stubbornness is admirable, but dramaturgically it's pretty bad because, around the 60th minute, it starts to chafe. The frantic ending, however, lifts up the video game concept (literally) into high gear (arcade jumps included) and revs into the red. It’s a progressive genre detour, but unfortunately into a dead end. (04/23/2016)