Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- bleak
- paranoid
- abrasive
- serious film night
- 1970s cinema marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly admired the film's morally serious ideas, vivid characters, and George C. Scott's performance, while some found its melodramatic climax and reconciliation less convincing.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Jake Van Dorn's Calvinist convictions collide with the pornography underworld he enters to find his daughter.
Jake changes tactics and persona while interviewing sex workers and navigating porn venues for information.
The investigation moves from a Michigan businessman’s church-centered life into California's commercial sex industry.
The daughter's disappearance and suspected appearance in an X-rated film organize Jake's investigation and escalating actions.
Films like Hardcore, and why
Taxi Driver
morally driven outsider entering a corrupt urban underworld, with bleak psychological intensity
The Searchers
father driven into violent vigilantism while confronting social decay and sexual threat
Gone Baby Gone
hard-edged crime drama centered on a missing person, obsession, and morally compromised investigation
The Last Temptation of Christ
provocative American character study about religious morality colliding with hidden sexual subcultures
Movie Details
- Director
- Paul Schrader
- Release Date
- 1979-02-09
- Runtime
- 108 min
- Rating
- 6.8 / 10 (338)
Cast
- George C. Scott
- Peter Boyle
- Season Hubley
- Dick Sargent
- Leonard Gaines
- Dave Nichols
- Gary Graham
- Larry Block
- Marc Alaimo
- Leslie Ackerman
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Hardcore about?
- A devout Michigan businessman descends into California’s pornographic underworld to recover his missing teenage daughter, forcing his moral certainties into collision with a brutal hidden America.
- What is Hardcore like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Hardcore as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Hardcore violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Hardcore as moderate.
- What did critics think of Hardcore?
- Critics broadly admired the film's morally serious ideas, vivid characters, and George C. Scott's performance, while some found its melodramatic climax and reconciliation less convincing.
- Which films are like Hardcore?
- Films with a similar feel include Taxi Driver, The Searchers, Gone Baby Gone, and The Last Temptation of Christ.
- How long is Hardcore?
- Hardcore runs 108 minutes.
- Where can I watch Hardcore?
- In United States, Hardcore is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
