The usual traditions of action movies get old pretty fast, especially when they involve the recapturing of a kidnapped loved one. All apologies to Liam Neeson aside, Hardcore Henry seeks to crush those traditions for good by giving audiences the unique POV experience of a determined super soldier on a quest to understand his own identity.
"Action cinema has always thrived on capturing the sensation of seeing someone participate in dangerous situations that most people would in real life rather avoid," director Ilya Naishuller says of the film, shot entirely on GoPro cameras using customized rigs. "My goal with Hardcore Henry was to go a step further and throw the audience right into the body of the hero, to have them experience the primal, exhilarating feeling that we usually view from a much safer distance and pull no punches while I'm at it."
Hardcore Henry thrusts viewers into the existential quandary of a man named (you guessed it!) Henry, just brought back from near-death thanks to his immediately kidnapped wife (Haley Bennett). As our fearless Henry works to save his significant other from the wrath of Akan (Danila Kozlovsky) in Moscow, he lands some unexpected support from some dude known simply as Jimmy (Sharlto Copley). Is Jimmy really out here with the assists though? No clue. However, as one might expect, plenty of stuff definitely explodes:
Hardcore Henry, which also stars Andrey Dementyev and Dasha Charusha, hits theaters nationwide on April 8. However, for anyone braving SXSW in Austin this year, the POV thriller will make its premiere at the Paramount Theatre on Mar. 13 at 9:30 p.m.
Related: Best Action Movies On Netflix
Related: Best Action Movies
