Press start to start the game. Review of ”Hardcore”
The USA film " Hardcore " was released, which premiered at a festival in Toronto, thrilled Western critics and instantly made its director Ilya Naishuller the most promising newcomer in Hollywood. Sounds too good to be true? Only partly. Still, the action movie produced by Timur Bekmambetov is a project of joint production between USA and the United States, and Shalto Copley and Hayley Bennett play secondary roles here. And the first-person approach, which has become the main attraction in all advertising materials, has been used in the industry before. But those were unsuccessful attempts. “ Hardcore ” is really the first large picture of this kind, and it will be remembered precisely as a USA brainchild.And this is a historically moment, given that the national cinema has certainly annoyed someone lately. Low-grade comedies and USA "blockbusters" are steadily grossing the box office and infuriate intellectuals and cinemaphiles. Art-house dramas that win prizes in Cannes infuriate officials and the mass audience, as they supposedly dishonor and vilify the country. " Hardcore " is no exception here: there will be disgruntled individuals who will definitely tell you why the film is bad. But more importantly, this movie surprises absolutely everyone. And surprise is one of the most pleasant experiences that can be taken out of the cinema.  Throughout the film, the viewer observes what is happening from the perspective of the main character Henry . The camera angle never changes: all the time your eyes are the eyes of Henry , even when they are ripped out of his skull. Despite the fact that for the director this is a full-length debut, and the film's budget is very small, visually and technically the picture is made just fine. Noticeable here and there, simple computer graphics do not spoil the impression at all, and the unusual method of shooting chosen by Ilya does not evoke unexpected natural urges in the public. The technical team came up with a special frame stabilization system, because the entire film was filmed with GoPro cameras mounted on the heads of the stuntmen who “played” the main character. By the way, there were more than ten of them, so to answer the question “Who exactly plays the role of Henry ?"is only possible like this:" You, dear viewer ".  And do not be confused by your torn eyes. Operational cinema? Not really. Yet Henry is a cyborg created from the body of a deceased. I immediately remember "Robocop", and there is a whole set of such references to popular culture and movie classics in the film. The picture is full of violence and blood, but due to the fact that the most cruel moments are associated with cyborgs, one cannot say that they are excessively cruel or disgusting. " Hardcore " is a great example of fun violence that is not at all disgusting, although sometimes you feel like squinting your eyes a little. Just to squint, and not close them with your hand, because it would be a crime to miss at least a second of enthusiasm and orgy happening on the screen.  The film is full of movement, but, of course, to drive it into the frame of a road movie, the brightest representative of which is "Mad Max", is difficult. The definition of"chase movie"would be more accurate. Half of the bustle falls on recognizable places in Moscow. Old Arbat, where the persecution and the sniper shooting took place, is just one of the locations that can be visited live without any problems. The scenes themselves, pumping up the incredible tempo of the film, change dynamically and completely wildly. The hero runs through the yards, climbs to a high-rise, fights in an elevator, jumps from a building, continues to run, run and run, sometimes jumping into premises like a brothel to catch his breath, communicate with minor characters and get a new plot goal. He communicates exclusively with gestures - it so happened that he did not have time to install a speech module. A simple and graceful move additionally immerses moviegoers in the film: every time you yourself can imagine what you would say in place of Henry . This approach with a mute central character has long been used in shooters to better identify the player with his hero and was even symbolically ridiculed in the first part of the game Bioshock . So, after five minutes of respite, Henry is already chasing the villains on a motorcycle, for another couple of minutes, and hangs on a cable under the helicopter, falls into a field, gets to the forest and runs into a direct fire from a tank. All the frenzy takes one day, packed into nearly two hours of screen time. The film just doesn't have time to get bored. This approach with a mute central character has long been used in shooters to better identify the player with his hero and was even symbolically ridiculed in the first part of the game Bioshock . So, after five minutes of respite, Henry is already chasing the villains on a motorcycle, for another couple of minutes, and hangs on a cable under the helicopter, falls into a field, gets to the forest and runs into a direct fire from a tank. All the frenzy takes one day, packed into nearly two hours of screen time. The film just doesn't have time to get bored. This approach with a mute central character has long been used in shooters to better identify the player with his hero and was even symbolically ridiculed in the first part of the game Bioshock . So, after five minutes of respite, Henry is already chasing the villains on a motorcycle, for another couple of minutes, and hangs on a cable under the helicopter, falls into a field, gets to the forest and runs into a direct fire from a tank. All the frenzy takes one day, packed into nearly two hours of screen time. The film just doesn't have time to get bored. and hangs on a cable under a helicopter, falls into a field, gets to the forest and runs into a direct fire from a tank. All the frenzy takes one day, packed into nearly two hours of screen time. The film just doesn't have time to get bored. and hangs on a cable under a helicopter, falls into a field, reaches the forest and runs into a direct fire from a tank. All the frenzy takes one day, packed into nearly two hours of screen time. The film just doesn't have time to get bored.  The impact of video games on Hardcore is clear. Those who play them will immediately notice not only easy borrowing, but also parodies of famous game mechanics. For example, Henry , like a player in most shooters, receives tasks like “You have to go there, questions later”. In principle, dynamic gunfights and sophisticated stunts could be enjoyed without a plot at all. But the film has a simple and decent story, which again refers to pop culture, namely to science fiction films of the end of the last century. Assembled in parts, Henry recognizes the resurrected engineer as his wife. Suddenly, the laboratory will be attacked by the villain Akan , played by Danila Kozlovsky , which has not yet been seen on the screen, and kidnaps the hero's wife. A simple tie is exactly what is needed for this type of tape. Along the way Henry meets several minor characters, the most colorful of which is Jimmy ( Sharlto Copley ). He accompanies the hero throughout the film and brings him to a rendezvous with the villain in his villainous skyscraper. Of course, the plot involves a decisive battle, a sharp turn and a beautiful ending. In general, everything is simple, in its place and does not distract from the crazy fun on the screen. the plot assumes a decisive battle, a sharp turn and a beautiful ending. In general, everything is simple, in its place and does not distract from the crazy fun on the screen. the plot assumes a decisive battle, a sharp turn and a beautiful ending. In general, everything is simple, in its place and does not distract from the crazy fun on the screen.  Naishuller said that he does not like it when films with a "12+" rating are presented as serious, rough and adult films. He did everything to make his picture really rough. Blood here literally gushes in the face of the viewer, the characters do not hesitate to swear provocatively (in the rental version the mate is "squeaked", but it does not become less funny), plunge into the mountains of cocaine with their faces and paw beauties for naked charms. Hearing such a description, especially moral citizens will christen what they see trash and vulgarity, unworthy of viewing. However, the point is to evaluate such a project, there is, and there is no "garbage" (the original meaning of trash cinema) in the film at all.  Since about the late 90s, video games have consistently strived for cinematography, and have achieved amazing success in this. Previously, filmmakers looked at games as material for dubious and incomprehensible filmed adaptations. Now this industry has gone towards the gaming industry, and their paths have crossed on something new and fresh. First-person shots and camera shake provide a different perspective on standard action scenes previously seen only from a carefully chosen camera angle. The abundance of references to video games and science fiction will delight young people, for whom, by and large, this movie is made. And I'm not talking about high school students, but about those who remember "Universal Soldier" and "Total Recall" as well as the popular computer games five years ago. Just like a director who draws inspiration from them remembers.<  Well, we are witnessing the emergence of a trend. Today's boom in virtual and augmented reality can radically change the entire leisure industry, and the experiment of Ilya Naishuller makes it clear what entire directions and genres of entertainment may look like in the near future. In addition, this is just a good action movie, which is quite capable of fighting off smartly from their overseas counterparts. The Topic of Article: Press start to start the game. Review of ”Hardcore”. |
