Hardcore Henry

An interesting first-person combat film until about halfway through. Then it starts to get boring by repeating virtually the same plot over and over again. I kept wondering how many more enemies Henry would have to shoot, slash, beat or tear apart with his bare hands for the plot to move forward. I still don't know the answer. Even after the death of the last villain, I don't really know what it was all about, or why the main bad guy had telekinetic powers. The film just lacks a point. The plot goes from point A to who knows where or why. 3 stars are for the first 40 minutes and for all Sharlto Copley’s incarnations. (09/07/2016)

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. (03/06/2019)

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. (23/04/2016)

There was always something going on and there were so many ideas, but I still got bored, and quite a lot, unfortunately. It’s basically like the first or second Machete, nothing would have been lost if it had remained as a short. Regardless, the form is interesting and it was the only reason I stuck with it until the end. (25/06/2016)

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. (08/05/2016)