The Raid: Redemption (Serbuan Maut)
“a real sucker punch”
Action movies have always had a long-lasting effect in popular culture with its high-octane pace that fills our adrenaline, the relentless combination of punches and kicks, and a superfluous amount of splattering blood coming out of the human body. There are plenty of reasons we enjoy the thrills of this specific genre.
The Raid: Redemption satisfies all those needs we’ve come to expect from an action flick whilst infusing new energy that changes the rhetoric in the best possible way.
The Raid: Redemption’s plot feels like it comes straight out of your favorite action video game where a team of police officers attempt to wash out the corruption that festers in each level of a housing project. As they ascend, one level at a time, the difficulty rises and the body count increases. A premise that can seem somewhat ludicrous at first, but Welsh director Gareth Evans teams up with Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhian to give you a fast, pulsating and kinetic story full of beautifully orchestrated sequences that will hold your breathe, drop your jaw and elevate your heartbeat. The fighting sequences are showcased in long and meticulously choreographed segments that almost feel like a dance, with complex combinations from both Uwais, Ruhian and the rest of the cast. The ensemble will throw a rave of combinations using their heads, elbows, fists, knees and feet until all that’s left is a large body count. This visually visceral experience might be too much for some, however, the loving fans of this genre may feel a gleaming smile pleasurably widened from beginning to end.
Gareth Evans offers inventive camera techniques that swerve in and out of the action, creating a pulsating intensity and making the camera just another actor dancing in the midst of this film. He is a visual storyteller, lending his style to these familiar tropes with fast and innovative shots that keep the adrenaline pumping whilst engineering incredible sounds that match the movements, elevates the suspense and cranks up the action. There’s a reason The Raid: Redemption became a vastly influential blueprint, paving the way for new ways to blend action with story but also reinvigorating this easily fatigued genre.
