The Raid (2012) Review

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