Hardcore Never Dies (2023)

Hardcore Never Dies (2023). 1h 55m

“The title and marketing would make it seem like this is a movie about hardcore gabber, but that is only partially the case. Despite that, if you lived through the 90s and went to gabber raves in Rotterdam like me, I think there is still enough to like.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eLetu0026#39;s start with my gripes. I did not find the u0026quot;troubled brotheru0026quot; very convincing as a real Rotterdam gabber. The main protogonist seemed inexplicably way more upper middle class than his parents. His affliction with gabber also seemed a bit superficial. If your first experience of raving in the early 90s as a teen was a gabber rave in the Energiehal with proper chemical stimulation, let me tell you: it would be extremely unusual for this not to be the beginning of an intense obsession. The ending also is a bit abrupt and superficial: after a little foray into the evil and criminal world of hardcore gabber, our young protogonist can put this all behind him to proceed with a serious life as a classical pianist? His hardcore seemed to have died quite quickly then.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOn the up side, I liked most of the supporting cast, including the u0026quot;villainsu0026quot;. Though the story wasnu0026#39;t incredibly original (in fact almost cliche), there was still enough depth for me not to be bored. Though not everything about the raves was u0026quot;period correctu0026quot;, much of it was done well enough to give me some goosebumpish flashbacks. You do get a sense of the intense energy of the music, the crowd, and the drugs. As a Rotterdam native it was fun to recognize locations.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIn summary, I was plenty entertained despite the flaws and false advertizing.”