When is a movie not a movie? How do you rate a movie like this anyway?

Hardcore Henry completely reinvents cinematic language. It's closer to a videogame in streamlined story and brutal, flinch-inducing violence. The sometimes low-res, often choppy POV is ballsy and cleverly conceived, gags and smart editing is commendable, the director's well-honed eye providing a true cinematic breath of fresh air.

It has superbly apt, moody music and good directional sound, it's not nearly as cheap as the marketing led me to believe even though it's clearly on a shoestring, its inventiveness and good blend of stunt performers and FX create a non-nauseous, toe-curling adrenaline rush.

There's admiration to be found in the lack of exposition in the 8-bit paper-thin plot and the gaudy, gonzo characters of a suitable Sharlto Copley. If you're in to videogames or appreciate something different, then Hardcore Henry is a revelatory, avant-garde, art-house action flick with its tongue in its cheek and its balls to the wall. It's also a sadistic, nihilistic over the top collection of video game levels. Insanely creative and in incredibly bad taste. It's a gory riot, blackly comic and tells you exactly what it is upfront and never lets up. Many parts of this film are stupid, ugly, dragging and plain insufferable and then there's equal parts hilarity and visual wit, true kineticism and sheer stuntman balls.

Very Russian. Not for everyone. And wears thin by the end, but very much a one of a kind and relentlessly intent on being it's own beast. And it helps that the ending is so absurdly laugh-out-loud OTT that it puts Crank to shame.

Not worth 18 certificate on the grounds of violence, I've seen more violent movies in my life for almost 58 years(I'm born in 1958 and I'm watching movies from when I was 3 years old). And I have seen thousands of films, almost all from 1961 onward and thousands of movies made before I was born. In terms of action, Hardcore Henry has the highest level of adrenaline, pure adrenaline, the highest quality. Now I believe that people, not all of them, only some people, can levitate. I'm kidding, of course. But everything is so well done in this film, that it almost seems truthful. The stunts are downright breathless. But not only. All actors, music, editing, everything. It makes you want to see it again and again, to understand it and feel better. An exceptional film, excellent. Ilya Naishuller, I want to work with you! And, to answer to a guy here on IMDb, concerning the problem he has with the stupid "dance routine" in the middle, I don't know Ilya Naishuller but, I'm almost sure that he wanted to pay homage to Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange (1971),a film in exactly the same kind, a masterpiece of the genre, a film about violence and how violence can be cured. Remember the dance scene of Alex DeLarge (Malcolm McDowell) to the tune Singin 'in the Rain? Maybe Ilya Naishuller will tell us... 10 out of 10.

HARDCORE HENRY started out as an Internet phenomenon before becoming a fully-fledged movie. The director, Ilya Naishuller, starting out making intense music videos which featured office locations, a first person perspective, and plenty of violent action. Later he released a five minute segment of a planned film called HARDCORE which was absolutely blistering in terms of fight action and intense choreography. That five minutes is included in HARDCORE HENRY, the full-length movie version of the Youtube shorts.

First off, a warning: this film will be divisive for many viewers. If you're not a fan of 'all action, no plot' type movies, then look elsewhere. The whole thing takes place from a first person perspective (via a Go Pro headset) which takes some getting used to, but as I'm a big fan of the found footage genre I didn't have a problem with it. Another warning is that one of the people I watched the film with suffered from motion sickness and had to abruptly leave after twenty minutes to empty the contents of their stomach in the nearest bathroom.

Otherwise, this film is great fun. It might be a one trick pony but it succeeds in what it sets out to do, which is to offer endless, well choreographed action. It's a chase movie in which the voiceless protagonist escapes from a mad scientist and his army of mindless automatons, all the while trying to rescue his kidnapped wife. Sharlo Copley has a fun supporting role as an ally who keeps coming back to help out no matter what. The free-running scenes are fun, the fight scenes are great, and there's all manner of vehicular mayhem involving motorbikes, vans, cars, and even a tank at one point. Things build up to a fantastic closing half hour which is basically one long action scene and I thought it was delightful.

Watching HARDCORE HENRY is very much like playing a first person shooter video game, albeit without the user control. It's undemanding viewing that gets straight into the action without bothering with much in the way of set up. The acting is quite poor and the humour is often in bad taste, with some truly dumb segments like the brothel scene. However, to make up for this, the special effects are excellent and the action is truly blistering. It's one of the freshest and most inventive action films I've seen since the two RAID movies.