In the moments leading up to one of my most anticipated South By Southwest screenings, part of me was horrifically afraid that Hardcore Henry would turn my stomach quicker than week-old dumpster chicken.
All the first-person shaking and non-stop choreography had me nervous, even without a history of motion sickness, but I’m here to say that never once did discomfort set in, and I left feeling like my ass had just been kicked six ways from Sunday. This Call Of Duty rollercoaster ride feels like The Raid meets first-person gaming, which will have tolerant gullets screaming for more.
On hand to talk Hardcore Henry at the film’s press day were writer/director Ilya Naishuller, star Sharlto Copley, and producer Timur Bekmambetov, none of whom (thankfully) looked ready for a fight. These guys were here to talk shop about their wild action collaboration, and what it felt like to break pre-existing genre boundaries.
I asked them about the hardest films to shoot, and how no one died on set, along with planting a bug in their ear about utilizing 4D theater technologies to elevate an already game-changing experience. Seriously, I expect some kickback money from those ticket sales Ilya – I’ve got the agreement on tape.
In addition, Sharlto opens up his ever-changing character’s iterations and which he had the most fun portraying, along with exploring classic action films each talent would love to give the first-person treatment to. This was a fun one.
I’d like to thank the guys behind Hardcore Henry for catching up with us at SXSW 2016, and be sure to catch the film when it opens April 8th!
