The Raid 2
Director: Gareth Evans
Cast: Iko Uwais, Arifin Putra, Oka Antara, Yayan Ruhian, Julie Estelle, and Tio Pakusodewo.
Rated R for sequences of strong bloody violence throughout, sexuality, and language.
The Raid 2 (along with its predecessor, The Raid) is an Indonesian action film that the majority of the general movie-going public has never heard of, and will likely never see. That is a shame, but this is a movie that only certain film fans will enjoy. Action and martial arts aficionados will eat these movies up. So, if you're a fan of brutal, bloody, and intense action, then The Raid 2 will knock you the eff out! It's been a couple days now since I saw it, and I cannot get it out of my head and that's a good thing; it blew me away!
The plot takes elements from crime classics like The Departed and Donnie Brasco by sticking our hero, Rama, undercover to expose corrupt cops within a powerful and dangerous crime ring. Rama has just survived a massacre when a SWAT team attempted to take out a crime lord who ran his illegal activities in a run-down apartment building. These are the events of the first Raid film. It is fairly basic and is mainly driven by the hard-hitting action. The Raid 2 adds a complex and intense story in which Rama must infiltrate the city's most powerful crime syndicate. From there, Rama gets caught in a war between two rival mobs families. Loyalties are tested and questioned, and it all leads to a thrilling and epic finale.
The Raid 2 is one of those special sequels that took everything great about the first film and completely blew it away by expanding the story and creating exciting new elements that were not present previously. The direction, by Welsh filmmaker Gareth Evans, is some of the finest you'll see in an action film. The cinematography is outstanding, the pacing is brilliant, and the action is out-of-this-world insane! I have never seen anything like it; it completely floored me! The only flaws in the film are when there are numerous criminals attacking each and not one of them has a gun. At the end of the film, Rama has to fight his way through a crazy amount of criminals, some wielding unlikely weapons like you've never seen. Realistically, they would have guns and blow him away. But that's not what you want to see. You want to see Rama take them all down one by one with his amazing fighting skills. The final showdown between Rama and a killer known only as "The Assassin" is the most exhilarating and breathtaking fight scene I have ever experienced.
I cannot wait to own this film and watch it numerous times. It has instantly become a classic to me. It's not for everyone, but if you find yourself reading this review and craving violent awesome action, then you MUST see this movie! Sadly, for my local followers, The Raid 2 has recently left our theaters. I'm just as sad, because I want to see it again asap. It's that awesome.
RATING: A+
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