THE RAID REVIEW

Watching The Raid at this year's JDIFF, I recalled a quote from action-icon Sylvester Stallone, regarding his stance on the genre itself. He said that action films should have a physical effect on you. That you should leave the theater with a thumping heart, sweaty palms and a sky-rocketing energy level. Stallone succeeded in giving me that exact feeling with his 2008 sequel, Rambo; a film that's thrilling, crazy violent and yet smart and emotional. Gareth Evans may have read that exact same quote too, as The Raid is surely the most intense and physical action film since Stallone's Rambo.

The Raid begins slow and silent, with our hero Rama (Iko Uwais) preparing for his early-morning mission to the slums of Jakarta. With his calm preparation over, Rama kisses his pregnant wife goodbye and sets off. The film wastes no time in diving straight into the titular raid, as the next scene is Rama and his fellow team members hauling-ass to the tower where the cities crime-lord is living among dozens of addicts, thieves, murderers and other assorted low-lives. Splitting into groups to two, the team enter the building and are shortly confronted by the swarms of villains that stand between them and their goal. 

While The Raid is, at first glance, a little light on plot, don't be fooled. It's smart and well-written with a tight storyline that's kept moving at breakneck speed. Admittedly, I was surprised at how much care and attention was given to the film's characters and story as opposed to the often poorly-written-with-amazing-action films that plague the genre. Here we have a fully realized hero, villain, supporting characters and honest and realistic motivations...as well as amazing action. 

And speaking of amazing action, The Raid contains some of the greatest displays of martial arts to ever grace the silver screen. Using the martial arts style Silat, Rama destroys enemy after enemy in gloriously gruesome and incredibly choreographed ways. The team moves from guns to knives to their fists as the action gets better and better, building to new heights of Holy-Shit madness. The action is also technically flawless, as the editing, direction, stunt choreography and soundtrack all come together to create action-exquisiteness. It really has to be seen to be believed. 

I'd heard that director Gareth Evans' first film, Merantau, cemented him as a talented filmmaker on the way up, but with his work here, I'd be surprised if people don't hold him up against the likes of John Woo in the future. The Raid is a masterpiece of action cinema. You have never seen anything like it.