This is not the documentary about “gabber” (hardcore techno) that I thought it would be. It is more or a Dutch crime film.
Michael lives with his parents. He prefers playing the piano over school and dropped out of school, doing some low-payed job, continiously hoping to be discovered as a pianist. Then his older brother who has left the parental house comes back into his life. Brother Danny discovered the “gabber” scene, but mostly, the drug scene surrounding it. He is a small dealer, thinking he is a big shot.
Michael discovers the escapism that the pounding beats offer and the experience is soon enhanced with XTC and cocaine. Soon he gets stuck in the web that his brother got caught in earlier on. Danny has debts to some people and every time thinks that a new loan will result in a profiting sale and the end of his financial problems. Needless to say that his problems only get bigger.
“Hardcore Never Dies” plays in a time when having a website was something special and when mobile phones still were only for making phonecalls. There are several scenes at hardcore parties, but the characters and their lives in general are mostly the focus.
