Do not let the almost fifty-year-old age tag dissuade you from watching this movie. Hardcore is a thought-provoking and gripping neo-noir thriller taking us on a wild journey into the seedy world of pornography. It’s also one of the first movies to broach the subject of snuff films. A subject that we would later see explored in movies like 8MM, Red Rooms, and Thesis. We will be following Jake VanDorn, a conservative businessman from the Midwest as he relentlessly searches for his lost daughter in Los Angeles. His quest will force him to meet and hang out with various shady characters. And it will make him question not only his religion but also our society in general. Will Jake find his daughter and what will happen to him is up to you to find out.
The title of this movie, Hardcore, refers to hardcore pornography, a distinction made just a couple of years prior to its release. Softcore porn was not as explicit as hardcore porn and it mostly simulated sexual relations between actors. The distinction and the term itself sort of went away in the nineties with the advent of the Internet. I wonder if young people today even know that there is such a distinction. However, the title can also be interpreted as a clash of two hardcores, with the second one being our protagonist Jake VanDorn. Before we go any further I must tell you Hardcore has a clear structure and story and it’s not some artsy-fartsy movie questioning stuff.
It’s inspired by a real-life case of a girl who went missing from Grand Rapids. It also keeps its cards close to the chest, so we’ll learn what’s really going only at the very end of the movie. With that out of the way, we’ll move on to the writer and director of this movie, Paul Schrader. Yes, the same Paul Schrader who wrote Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Bringing Out The Dead. So, our homeboy knows how to make gritty, gut-punching neo-noir shit. The cinematography is excellent featuring that distinct gritty neon-lit vibe. First, however, you will have to weather the melodramatic festival of family values that are the first fifteen minutes. Seemingly, a veritable heaven on Earth. At least for some.
I implore you to keep watching this seemingly boring segment of the movie. Not just because the rest of it is drenched in an intense, thick, and dirty atmosphere but because the contrast is important. Hardcore touches upon many different topics. Our society, religion, family, and especially the father-daughter relationship are just some of them. However, at the center of all of this, we see one man who compacts all the moral, religious, and rational issues into a walking question mark. A highly conflicted walking question mark, to be more precise. He’s living a father’s worst nightmare and trying to find a way out. So, yes, this is technically a character study but it also presents the viewer with a choice.
A vital choice they have to make in their life. They can choose to live their lives oblivious to the stuff that is happening around them. A seemingly happy and uneventful life where all the difficult moral questions our society struggles with are already answered. You don’t have to think, you don’t have to assume responsibility for anything outside your immediate family and life just goes on for you. Or, on the other hand, you decide to look into the void. To be aware of the stuff that’s going on, to be willing to change your opinion based on the evidence you receive, and so forth. Our main character, Jake VanDorn doesn’t even meet the standards he seemingly upholds.
This is something we will learn later in the movie and I don’t consider this to be a spoiler. Mostly because I’ll stop here and let you form your own opinion about the matter. And I’ll add this is something I got from the movie and is not necessarily a theme being forced upon the viewer. I only mention this because I think this complete isolation approach not only doesn’t work but also creates a lot of problems. As you might’ve guessed, Hardcore features a fair amount of nudity, adult themes, and exceedingly shady places. I’m not just talking about the porn shops, brothels, and filthy hotel rooms but, well, I shouldn’t tell you really.
One of the best things about this movie is that long journey through the Los Angeles underground. George C. Scott gave one hell of a performance but I would also like to mention Peter Boyle as the sleazy private detective and Season Hubley as Niki, a streetwise sex worker. Speaking of which, actress Ilah Davis, who plays Jake’s runaway daughter was one in real life. She was a member of several cults as The Yippies and the Rainbow Family. As is the case with all masterpieces, there’s not a bad actor in sight here. Moreover, their characters feel authentic. You can instantly feel for them and want to see them work out their issues.
It seems odd that Scott and director Schrader didn’t get along too well on the set. Perhaps Schrader was trying to portray a very specific character. You see, he was born and grew up in Grand Rapids as a Calvinist, same as VanDorn. I can only imagine what kind of shitstorm did this movie cause back in 1979. It goes hand-in-hand with another controversial masterpiece released just one year later, in 1980. I’m talking about William Friedkin’s Cruising, a movie that takes us into an underground gay scene in New York.
Director: Paul Schrader
Writer: Paul Schrader
Cast: George C. Scott, Peter Boyle, Season Hubley, Dick Sargent, Leslie Ackerman, Ilah Davis
Fun Facts: All the sleazy shops, massage places, and porn shops are real. Location director Paul Pav had a lot of trouble trying to find owners who were willing to let their places be in the movie. He said they were usually lawyers and doctors while the workers there would outright chase him out.
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IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079271/
