The Raid (2011)
“Pulling a trigger is like ordering a takeout.” – Mad Dog.
The Raid (2011)
Directed by: Gareth Evans
Written by: Gareth Evans
Starring: Iko Uwais, Ananda George, Ray Sahetapy
This is the best pure action movie I’ve ever seen. A precursor to the gun-toting, martial-arts heavy John Wick franchise, The Raid features beautifully choreographed hand-to-hand sequences and an astronomical body count in a streamlined, simple story.
When rookie riot officer Rama (Uwais) and his 20-man squad infiltrate an apartment block to arrest crime-lord Tama Riyada (Sahetapy), they soon find themselves outnumbered and outgunned and must fight their way out.
Whilst there are subtle nuances to the narrative, the film is essentially a 100-minute siege, with the spectacle of the action becoming the story. Writer-director Evans understands that his audience doesn’t need meaningless, artificial character development for every character. Instead, he blesses us with refreshing simplicity. For instance, there’s a character called Mad Dog. And guess what? He’s a bit Mad. And he’s a Dog in a fight. It’s beautiful.
Roger Ebert criticised the lack of character development in his withering review, but Evans knows that we’re here to watch a bunch of people kill a bunch of other people, so prioritises the beautiful martial artistry (the Indonesian Pencak Silat) instead. And boy-oh-boy can these actors fight. Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhain both used this film to become prominent Hollywood stuntmen, and the dynamic punches, kicks, and knife-work they inflict on their victims will have you reaching to protect your various limbs in empathetic pain.
A true action-lovers dream, this will have you shadow-boxing your way around the house for weeks.
Rating: 9/10