In Taxi Driver, we never get to know what Iris thinks about Travis "saving" her. We get to hear from her parents who thanks Travis in a letter. But maybe Iris was happy with the pimps and the junkies. She was probably not fit for Middle-America. Anyway, we are never really told what Iris thinks about the whole shootout. We assume (with good enough reason) that Travis saved her and she is in safe hands. Hardcore is a film about the sort of background and family life that might have created a runaway teenage prostitute like Iris.
Jake Vandrom (played by George.C.Scott) could well be Iris' father. Jake is a straight laced furniture salesman who follows Calvinism. The adherents to Calvinism believe that god has already decided whether you're going to be saved or not. Nothing you do in this life can save you unless god deems it because the decision has already been made.
Jake's daughter disappears while attending a Christian summer camp. After he seeks the help of a private investigator (Peter Boyle), it is revealed that his daughter acted in a porn film and might be hanging out with all sorts of seedy folk. The rest of the movie is about Jake's search for his daughter. So an extremely conservative man from conservative America penetrates the Californian porn underworld to find his daughter.
Paul Schrader does portray Jake as the only decent man among a variety of pimps and prostitutes. But there is a scene where JAKE has a conversation about Calvinism with a prostitute who agrees to help him find his daughter. It gives clues to Jake's strict attitude towards life and why his daughter might have run away from home.
And in the end, when Jake finally finds his daughter, we get to hear her side of the story. She left him because she was fed up of life with him. And while she says she is loved among the pimps and prostitutes, she does agree to go back with Jake.
The ending was quite stupid. I read in the trivia section that Schrader had to change the original ending. I guess the film suffers from the lack of a firm directorial hand and vision. It is sort of a thriller and a mystery. Schrader does try to exhibit some directorial flourishes in the final action scenes. But i don't think he is a very good director. The film is flat. It does not have the stamp of the director. It could have been directed by Ron Howard for all I know.
There are a few gripping scenes here and there. There is a scene where Jake is in bed at his hotel after getting thrown out of a brothel. A group is singing a Christian song on TV and then the camera pans on to the window showing the concrete jungle that is California (the music changes from the soppy tune on the TV to a disturbing background score) and the camera finally rests on Jake thinking about what he ought to do next. In the next scene, he sheds his conservative demeanor, having decided to make some adjustments to fit into this brutal and alien world.
George.C.Scott has an imposing screen presence. I liked the way he uses his eyes. Peter Boyle's role was so ill conceived. I hated the way he changes his mind and becomes goody two shoes in the end. Season Hubley was adorable as the prostitute who helps JAKE.
Jake Vandrom (played by George.C.Scott) could well be Iris' father. Jake is a straight laced furniture salesman who follows Calvinism. The adherents to Calvinism believe that god has already decided whether you're going to be saved or not. Nothing you do in this life can save you unless god deems it because the decision has already been made.
Jake's daughter disappears while attending a Christian summer camp. After he seeks the help of a private investigator (Peter Boyle), it is revealed that his daughter acted in a porn film and might be hanging out with all sorts of seedy folk. The rest of the movie is about Jake's search for his daughter. So an extremely conservative man from conservative America penetrates the Californian porn underworld to find his daughter.
Paul Schrader does portray Jake as the only decent man among a variety of pimps and prostitutes. But there is a scene where JAKE has a conversation about Calvinism with a prostitute who agrees to help him find his daughter. It gives clues to Jake's strict attitude towards life and why his daughter might have run away from home.
And in the end, when Jake finally finds his daughter, we get to hear her side of the story. She left him because she was fed up of life with him. And while she says she is loved among the pimps and prostitutes, she does agree to go back with Jake.
The ending was quite stupid. I read in the trivia section that Schrader had to change the original ending. I guess the film suffers from the lack of a firm directorial hand and vision. It is sort of a thriller and a mystery. Schrader does try to exhibit some directorial flourishes in the final action scenes. But i don't think he is a very good director. The film is flat. It does not have the stamp of the director. It could have been directed by Ron Howard for all I know.
There are a few gripping scenes here and there. There is a scene where Jake is in bed at his hotel after getting thrown out of a brothel. A group is singing a Christian song on TV and then the camera pans on to the window showing the concrete jungle that is California (the music changes from the soppy tune on the TV to a disturbing background score) and the camera finally rests on Jake thinking about what he ought to do next. In the next scene, he sheds his conservative demeanor, having decided to make some adjustments to fit into this brutal and alien world.
George.C.Scott has an imposing screen presence. I liked the way he uses his eyes. Peter Boyle's role was so ill conceived. I hated the way he changes his mind and becomes goody two shoes in the end. Season Hubley was adorable as the prostitute who helps JAKE.