"Hardcore Henry" ADVANCE Review

We tout this word like candy, but Hardcore Henry is a game-changer, emphasis on "game."

Since 1993, the best video game movie is still Mortal Kombat. Doom and The House of the Dead fail to reach a 25 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, combined. Bioshock struggles to get green-lit, and the less we mention Super Mario Bros, the better.

Hardcore Henry, while not based on a game, takes what's great about gaming - its immersion and momentum - and adapts it to film. The result is a gleeful orchestra of cars, shotguns, grenades, knives, and relentless, pulse-pounding action.

Henry is a man-turned-cyborg whose scientist wife is kidnapped by a telekinetic madman (Danila Koslovsky behaving like a cross of Dante from Devil May Cry and Vaas from Far Cry 3). Helping Henry is tech wizard and master of disguise Jimmy (Sharlto Copley), who somehow has the uncanny ability to survive any explosion or flamethrower to the face. (Don't ask. It's funnier if you don't.)

Henry's body is occupied by a team of stuntmen, but for the purpose of this review, let's say Henry (Daniel Berrios) <--- is me. The movie's shot entirely in first-person, so when Henry ducks, I duck. He shoots, I shoot. If he jumps up ledges, Assassin's Creed style, I swallow my fear of heights and do it.

Immersion is the name of the game here, even to the point where Henry is a mute protagonist (his voice modulator's broken). The movie doesn't cheat; we're only privy to the information Henry is. The only "cheats" are in the editing, and if you enjoyed finding the cuts in Birdman, you'll have similar fun. This plays out like one of the virtual reality "roller coasters" at Chuck E. Cheese and I promise you, that's a compliment.

Before I continue, a disclaimer: those with epilepsy, sensitive eyesight, or migraines beware. With first-person view comes an abundance of shaky-cam and if that doesn't give you a headache, the flashes of gunfire and quick editing will.

If your reasons for avoiding shaky-cam aren't medical, fret not. It isn't a blight on the movie; after the first 30 minutes, my eyes adjusted surprisingly well. The action's clear among the tremors, never confusion as to what's going on.

Hardcore Henry is visceral, loose, and spontaneous - everything I wanted Deadpool to be. No off-screen headshots here: the blood splatters everywhere (often with chunks of brain), even onto the screen. Through Henry's eyes, we slice, shoot, crash, tear, and blow holes into everything, in ways that'll make Mortal Kombat fanatics drop their jaws.

While the movie isn’t about videogames, director Ilya Naishuller was inspired by first-person shooters, integrating some of that style in the film. The nods are everywhere, from Call of Duty and Gears of War, to Max Payne and Bioshock Infinite. A henchman will close a gate, and Henry, instead of opening it, will wall-jump over. Guns and ammo are littered about like cigarette butts. Henry jams two syringes of adrenaline in his thighs and goes berserk, like Mario touching a star.

Sharlto Copley is a comic tour-de-force. This is my favorite role of his, eclipsing District 9. Think if Jim Varney from Ernest Goes to Camp starred in Ichi the Killer. At times, Copley’s Jimmy is a mohawk-wearing punk, bouncing off the walls; a prim and proper WWII-era British officer; a coked-out party animal; and a guerrilla soldier camouflaged as a shrub (who happens to skulk around exclusively gray environments). Each disguise is funnier than the last, and Copley’s manic energy brings it to life.

All in all, it's a blast. My grin reached from ear to ear for most of the movie, and for a good hour after. If you're a gamer, if you're a fan of ballistic insanity, if you're a fan of ridiculous comedy, this hits all the right notes. This is the kind of movie that we should say "pushes the boundaries," because it pushes the genre forward. Hardcore Henry comes out on April 8th.

Thank you all for reading; I'm the Man Without a Plan, signing off.