Hardcore Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

Hardcore Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 28, 2017

Nominated for Golden Bear Award at the Berlin International Film Festival, Paul Schrader's "Hardcore" (1979) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British label Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the disc include an original restored trailer for the film; archival interview with Paul Schrader; archival interview with cinematographer Michael Chapman; featurette about composer Jack Nitzsche; original promotional materials; and more. The release also arrives with a 32-page illustrated booklet featuring writer and critic Brad Stevens' essay "Biting Into Hardcore" and archival interview with Paul Schrader. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The reluctant detective

Hardcore feels like an adult adaptation of Alice in Wonderland but with two major flaws. One is directly related to Paul Schrader’s decision to replace the famous character from the classic novel with an aging businessman from Michigan who has the imagination of a dead ox. The second has to do with the fact that the film also heads down a different rabbit hole -- a much bigger, darker, and dangerous hole.

The journey begins in Grand Rapids, where divorced small-time businessman Jake VanDorn (George C.Scott, The New Centurions) and relatives gather to celebrate Christmas. When the festivities end, Jake sends his teenage daughter Kristen (Ilan Davis) on a convention trip to California and then goes back to overseeing the preparation work for an upcoming trade show. Then someone phones him from California to tell him that Kristen has disappeared. Jake immediately abandons everything and takes the first plane to LA, where he promptly hires a veteran private detective (Peter Boyle, The Friends of Eddie Coyle) who is supposedly really good at finding missing young girls.

The buildup to the meeting is quite interesting, as it leaves one anticipating that the film would either evolve into a serious family drama or a conventional crime thriller. However, it becomes something entirely different.

The detective returns to Jake with news that abruptly forces him to begin seeing the world around him from an entirely different angle. He reveals to him that he has ‘found’ Kristen, but in a low-budget pornographic film whose creators would be impossible to track down. When Jake eventually recovers from the shock, he releases the detective, and then decides to go searching for Kristen deep into the labyrinth of a murky industry ruled by all sorts of creepy characters.

The film is deeply unsettling at times, but also fascinating to behold because it really does offer an authentic trip through a world that prior to it was essentially ignored by American directors. There is a massive amount of footage that was shot on-location at real sleazy clubs and adult theaters, where the types of activities that Scott’s character observes were in fact part of the daily routines there.

There is a short but very interesting archival interview on this release with cinematographer Michael Chapman in which he reveals that the film’s visual style quickly evolved after Scott committed to it. Apparently, the initial plan was to shoot it on 16mm so that it looks like a raw anthropological documentary feature, but Scott’s arrival basically elevated the value of the production and the film retained a more traditional cinematic appearance. Chapman then confesses that even years later he remained convinced that the initial plan for the film was the right one. It is an interesting opinion, but it is a flawed one because one of the main reasons the film remains strikingly effective is the fact that it accurately preserves the colorful kitsch that quickly became an essential element of the adult industry.

The ultra-atmospheric visuals are frequently brilliantly synchronized with some very trippy tunes that were composed by Jack Nitzsche (William Friedkin’s Cruising, The Exorcist).

Hardcore Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Paul Schrader's Hardcore arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films.

The release is sourced from a new 4K master that was prepared by Sony Pictures in the United States. Quite predictably, the film has a very strong and healthy appearance. Some minor fluctuations in terms of depth and density are present, but they are part of the film's evolving cinematography. (The action moves from Grand Rapids to multiple locations in California, and because there is plenty of on-location shooting portions of the footage does have a borderline documentary appearance). Fluidity is also terrific, and the larger your screen is, the more you will appreciate the very strong 'cinematic qualities' of the new transfer. Grain is very nicely exposed and resolved, and there are no traces of problematic sharpening adjustments. Colors are stable, very healthy, and wonderfully balanced. There are no stability issues or other minor transition issues. Finally, it is extremely easy to see that all traces of age-related imperfections have been carefully removed. Outstanding restoration. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Hardcore Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The audio has been fully remastered and rebalanced, and all age-related imperfections have been removed as best as possible. This becomes very obvious immediately after the opening credits appear and Susan Raye is heard singing "Precious Memories". Later in the film Jack Nitzsche's original music also sounds great, with the sound effects really making an impression in all the right places. (See the segment where George C. Scott drives through the neon-lit streets and observes the night clubs and adult bookstores). The dialog is always clean, stable, and easy to follow.

Hardcore Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

NOTE: All of the supplemental features on this Blu-ray release are perfectly playable on North American Blu-ray players, including the PS3.

• Trailer - restored original U.S. trailer for Hardcore. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Hardcore Nitzsche - presented here is an edited excerpt from an upcoming feature documentary film titled Stringman, which should be outstanding. The material examines the diverse work and working methods of the prolific Hollywood composer Jack Nitzsche, who scored such classic and cult films as Hardcore, Cruising, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Exorcist, An Officer and a Gentleman, Starman, and 9½ Weeks. Included in it are clips from new interviews with director William Friedkin, producer Paul Gurian (Cutter's Way). director Milos Forman, musicians Tony Berg and Russ Titelman, and director Robert Downey (Greaser's Palace), amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (23 min).

• Shooting Hardcore - presented here is a short archival piece in which cinematographer Michael Chapman recalls his work with director Paul Schrader on Hardcore, and explains how the film's visual style quickly evolved after George C. Scott was cast to play Jake VanDorn. (Apparently, the initial plan was to shoot the film on 16mm so that it looks like a raw anthropological documentary feature). In English, not subtitled. (10 min).

• The Guardian Interview with Paul Schrader - presented here is an archival interview with writer/director Paul Schrader that essentially covers his entire career, from his early work with Martin Scorsese on Taxi Driver and Raging Bull to the controversy surrounding Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters in Japan to the difficult production history of Affliction. There are also some rather interesting observations about popular culture in America, violence in cinema, the historical value of older films, and the strange reality (at least according to Paul Schrader at the time when the interview was conducted) that in America there isn't genuine American cinema because Hollywood has been producing international films. The interview was conducted by Derek Malcolm at the National Film Theatre in London on June 20, 1993. In English, not subtitled. (85 min).

• Image Gallery - an excellent selection of original promotional materials for Hardcore (production stills, promo stills, posters, and lobby stills).

• Isolated Score - presented as an LPCM 2.0 track.

• Booklet - 32-page illustrated booklet featuring writer and critic Brad Stevens' essay "Biting Into Hardcore", an archival interview with Paul Schrader, and technical credits.

Hardcore Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It almost feels like at times Paul Schrader went too far with this film, but kept shooting because he had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do something very different. I cannot say that I enjoy watching it, but I have always thought of it as a tremendous time capsule with that tough and uncompromising attitude that the last great American films from the '70s had. This brand new release from Indicator/Powerhouse Films is sourced from an outstanding recent 4K master that was prepared by Sony Pictures in the United States. Unsurprisingly, it also comes with a very good selection of new and archival supplemental features. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.