The Raid (2012)
Part of the fun of being a movie buff is the discovery of
independent movies that get great word-of-mouth from the festivals, and it’s
even more fun when those movies actually make it to theaters alongside the
blockbusters, even if it’s only for a short time. “The Raid,” an Indonesian
martial arts movie, is one of those movies I had been hearing about for months
but wasn’t able to see because it wasn’t playing near here…until now.
The plot is admirable in its simplicity, setting up the main
character, setting, and story with quick and efficient ease and getting to the
action almost immediately. During the police raid of an apartment building run
by a ruthless drug lord, the S.W.A.T. squad is ambushed by the drug lord’s
thugs, and they soon have to use their skills and wits fight their way out of
the building. Writer/director Gareth Evans is smart enough to set up the
situation and danger quickly and then drop little bits of plot and character
development along the way to keep the audience engaged with the nearly nonstop
action on display.
I have an affinity for martial arts movies of all kinds,
whether it is the lightning speed of Bruce Lee or the crazy stunt work of Jackie
Chan, and “The Raid” distinguishes itself amongst the pack in a number of ways.
The dynamic fusion of the gunplay and martial arts fighting keeps the action
fresh from beginning to end, and the brutality of it is pretty shocking. The
fighting is less balletic like Chan’s work and more along the lines of
hit-to-hurt type of brawls. There’s nothing outlandishly gory here (although
one scene with a fluorescent light was pushing it), but this is not an action
movie for the squeamish.
Usually I like to give credit to the actors of a movie in
reviews, and star Iko Uwais makes for a likable protagonist as we hope for his
survival, but the real star of the movie is really director Evans. The key to
why the movie works so well is the smoothness of its pacing and progression,
which last years “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” also had in spades. The
best action movies build in momentum and Evans understands this, giving the
audience bursts of thrilling action at the beginning and then building towards
the mayhem and longer fights near the end.
For this American release, Mike Shinoda of Linkin’ Park was
hired to compose a new music score. I was mildly skeptical of the choice, as
I’m not the biggest fan of Linkin’ Park, but the score fits the action just
fine and never felt like was forced in, ramping up the tension in the more
suspenseful parts. For the eventual DVD/Blu-Ray release, I hope that the
original Indonesian score will be included too for comparison.
I’m glad I was able to catch “The Raid” as soon as it
appeared in theaters. I’m not sure if it’s still around, given the niche
audience and subdued marketing for its release, but if you’re lucky enough to
find it playing in a theater near you and you’re a fan of hard-hitting action
movies, then this comes with a very high recommendation.
3.5/4 Rating Criteria
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