I’ve played video games my entire life. I was always a platform gamer, enjoying mostly Super Mario Galaxy and Portal. Most of my colleagues, though, played first-person shooters, such as Halo, Battlefield, and Call of Duty. Although I never played those types of video games, I had always understood the appeal. But I believed that that sort of fast-paced, nauseating genre had belonged only in the gaming medium. Did Hardcore Henry do anything to change my opinion? In some aspects, no. In most aspects, yes.

    “Hardcore Henry” is a science-fiction action film unlike any other. The movie is made in a first-person POV style, which means the movie is told through the protagonist’s eyes. It follows the adventures of Henry, a cyborg who wakes up and finds himself trying to escape from a billionaire (Danika Kovlovsky) trying to kill him. He gains the help of a man named Jimmy (Sharlto Copley), and together they try to find a way to keep Henry alive.

    The use of first-person narrative is not the only unique aspect of the film. Sharlto Copley’s character, Jimmy, actually plays multiple personalities through different robots, giving the character excellent comedic, charming, and emotional range. Copley’s performance is fantastic, carrying the comical and touching weight of the entire movie. While the other actor showed decent chops, it was not the actual acting skills that was the problem with most of the characters, but rather the characters themselves. The screenplay by Ilya Naishuller, who also directed the film, gave no substance to either the generic characters, pointless plot points, and deplorable dialogue. But there were small moments in the film that made me laugh and even warmed my heart.

    The direction of “Hardcore Henry” was where the real meat of the movie was. The use of first-person in such as film that was filled with explosions, violence, and car chases could have been a train wreck, but director Naishuller made it work. Through this point-of-view, the movie became immersive and thrilling in the huge action set pieces. The film was most effective when Henry climbed buildings, jumped on bridges, and free ran through the ghettos of Europe, satisfyingly making me feel as if I was actually doing the same. Problems arose when the film moved too fast, and instead of being captivating, the first person gimmick came off as dizzying and annoying. Close to the end of the movie, I was irritated, and I counted the minutes until I could leave the theatre. But when the pacing was not an issue, I actually found myself enjoying this new style of cinematography.

    So, did “Hardcore Henry” usher in a new era of first-person movies? Well, that will be answered in the future when audiences demand more of these films or not. The problems with Henry did not really come from the perspective the story was told in as much as it did from all the other aspects of the movie. In my opinion, I do not need to see movies made like this. But when I did, I was pleasantly entertained. 6/10

    • Shahmeer Hashmat is a senior at Lamar High School.