The great thing about the major film festivals is they don't just cater to the crowd looking for serious dramas or awards contenders. They also make room for some pretty bizarre genre films, and a couple of nights ago TIFF debuted one of the wildest; a first-person action flick titled Hardcore which looks like something you should be playing on a video game console at home.
That's meant in the best possible sense, by the way, because the trailer for Hardcore is insane. Russian filmmaker Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted) produces for Ilya Naishuller to direct, and the story puts you squarely in the shoes of a man who has just been brought back to life by his wife, which should be awesome except he's also a cyborg now. Oops. There's all kinds of craziness going on here; explosions, super powers, intense flashbacks, Sharlto Copley getting his head blown off then somehow coming back as someone else? He's not the only recognizable face in this, either, as Haley Bennett (The Equalizer) plays the cyborg's wife, who was supposed to be dead but isn't. It's like Robocop meets Portal or something. Here's the official synopsis:
You remember nothing. Mainly because you’ve just been brought back from the dead by your wife (Haley Bennett). She tells you that your name is Henry and congratulations, you’re now a cyborg. 5 minutes later, your wife has been kidnapped and you should probably go get her back. Who’s got her? His name’s Akan (Danila Kozlovsky), he’s just a psychotic megalomaniac with telekinetic powers, and a never-ending army of mercenaries. You’re also in an unfamiliar city of Moscow, Russia and everyone wants you dead. Everyone, except for a mysterious British fellow called Jimmy (Sharlto Copley). He might be on your side. Good luck Henry. You’re very much likely to need it…
Who knows if Hardcore will ever get a stateside release but if it does we'll let you know.
