1685 – Hardcore Henry (2015)

timespace coordinates: near-future Moscow

Hardcore Henry (Russian: Хардкор; also known simply as Hardcore in some countries)  is a 2015 Russian-American science fiction action film written and directed by Ilya Naishuller (in his feature directorial debut).

It stars Sharlto Copley, Danila Kozlovsky, Haley Bennett, and Tim Roth. Henry was played by 10 different stuntmen and cameramen including the director Ilya Naishuller, Darya Charusha, who plays a dominatrix biker, is also the film’s composer.

Max Nicholson of IGN rated the film 8.6/10 stating “Two parts FPS, one part platformer and a pinch of HowToBasic, director Ilya Naishuller’s Hardcore Henry is a recipe for non-stop, ludicrous fun. While the film’s actual story is nigh existent [sic], it’s sure to please gamers and action junkies alike with its inventive set pieces and mind-boggling action” and “Hardcore Henry lives up to the title with non-stop, off-the-wall action and a love for all things video games”. (wiki)

The video game “Payday 2“ had a cross-promotion before the movie’s release. It came with heists relating to the film’s plot, along with a new playable character (Jimmy) and new weapons. A poster for the game can be seen on wall of the one of the apartments where Slick Dimitri is found and Jimmy’s mask from the game can be seen in the drawer with the weapons in the strip club.

Before this film, writer and director Ilya Naishuller made several music videos for his Russian punk rock band “Biting Elbows”. The videos were shot in the same style: Fast paced, first person perspective action videos.

imdb   /  possible sequel

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1668 – Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

timespace coordinates: the crew of the USS Enterprise-E travel back in time from the 24th century to the mid-21st century (April 4, 2063, the day before humanity’s first encounter with alien life after Zefram Cochrane‘s historic warp drive flight some time after the Earth had been decimated by the nuclear holocaust of World War III)

Star Trek: First Contact is a 1996 American science fiction film directed by Jonathan Frakes (in his motion picture directorial debut) and based on the franchise Star Trek. It is the eighth film in the Star Trek film series, as well as the second to star the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation. (wiki)

imdb   /   rt

1638 – yesterday evening

1617 – Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets (2020)

A look at the final moments of a Las Vegas dive bar called ‘The Roaring 20s’. (fictional non-fiction)

Depicting the final day of a hangdog hangout called the Roaring 20’s, located well off of the plastic fantastic glitz of the Las Vegas strip, the film makes you wonder if gentrification is even the right term for whatever is going on here. Diving into this doco is a bit like hanging around in Star Wars’ Mos Eisley cantina long after Luke, Han and the gang have gone, leaving a slain bounty hunter and a severed arm behind them. (timeout)

“Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets” might have been inspired by 2016, but it embodies 2020. (indiewire)

“The perfect distillation of bar life.” (spectrumculture)

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imdb   /   rottentomatoes

1566 – Species (1995)

spacetime coordinates: 1990’s  Los Angeles, California

Species is a 1995 American science fiction horror film directed by Roger Donaldson and written by Dennis Feldman. It stars Natasha Henstridge (in her film debut role), Ben Kingsley, Michael Madsen, Alfred Molina, Forest Whitaker and Marg Helgenberger. The film’s plot concerns a motley crew of scientists and government agents who try to track down Sil (Henstridge), a seductive extraterrestrial-human hybrid, before she successfully mates with a human male.

The extraterrestrial aspect of Sil’s character was created by H. R. Giger, who was also responsible for the beings from the Alien franchise. The effects combined practical models designed by Giger collaborator Steve Johnson and XFX, with computer-generated imagery done by Richard Edlund‘s Boss Film Studios. (wiki)

Influence and themes   /   imdb

1559 – Now Apocalypse (TV Series 2019)

spacetime coordinates: 2010’s Los Angeles

Now Apocalypse is an American comedy television series that aired for one season of ten episodes from March 10 to May 12, 2019, on Starz. The series was written by Gregg Araki and Karley Sciortino. Araki also was director and executive producer alongside Steven Soderbergh and Gregory Jacobs. Starz canceled the series on July 26, 2019. Araki later stated that he was shopping the series to other networks.

Ulysses, his friends Carly and Ford, and Ford’s girlfriend Severine navigate love, sex, and fame in Los Angeles. Troubled by sinister, premonitory dreams, Ulysses wonders if the end of the world as we know it is coming, or if he is simply suffering some kind of marijuana-fueled delusions. (wiki)

This is all perfectly well-made, candy-coloured fun as well as being a bang up-to-date exploration of 21st-century sexual identities (co-written by Araki with sex columnist Karley Sciortino), albeit one in which everyone looks amazing all the time. Boyd Hilton / Empire Magazine / rottentomatoes

imdb

1558 – Class of 1999 (1990)

spacetime coordinates: In 1999, special areas known as “free fire zones” have discouraged police from entering out of fear. Seattle‘s Kennedy High School is in the middle of a free fire zone, thus the Department of Education Defense (D.E.D.), a pilot special government agency, has been notified. Working with MegaTech head Dr. Bob Forrest, an experiment begins where three former military robots have become android educators.

Class of 1999 is a 1990 American science fiction action thriller horror film directed by Mark L. Lester. It is the director’s follow-up to his 1982 film Class of 1984. (wiki)

imdb