Hardcore (1979 film): Difference between revisions

In December 1977 Jake Van Dorn is a prosperous local businessman in [[Grand Rapids, Michigan]], who has strong [[Calvinism|Calvinist]] convictions. A single parent, Van Dorn is the father of a seemingly quiet, conservative teenaged girl, Kristen, who inexplicably disappears when she goes on a church-sponsored trip to [[Bellflower, California]]. With the help of his brother-in-law, Wes, Van Dorn hires Andy Mast, an eccentric [[private investigator]] in Los Angeles, to locate Kristen.

 

 

With no results from Mast's investigations, the [[Los Angeles Police Department]], or even from Los Angeles' sex shopkeepers and "rap parlor" women, a desperate Van Dorn posts an advertisement and disguises as a pornography producer in the ''[[Los Angeles Free Press]]'', hoping to find information about his daughter. After many porn actors visit Van Dorn's motel, a scraggly actor named "Jism Jim", who was in the 8 mm stag film with Kristen (who Jake then beats up), appears and knows where she might be. Jim directs Van Dorn to Niki, a [[prostitution|prostitute]] and occasional porn actress whom he claims may know Kristen's whereabouts. Upon meeting, Niki says she has seen Kristen before and may be able to find her through her connections. Van Dorn pays Niki to accompany him in his search. Chasing a rumor that Kristen was now filming porn in [[Mexico]], their uneasy alliance moves from Los Angeles to [[San Diego]], and the two gradually warm to each other; Niki feels protected by Van Dorn because he is a man who does not see her as merely a sex object, and he is able to speak openly to her about his deepest feelings, such as his wife leaving him. The two also discuss their wildly different views on [[religion]] and sex.