Action cinema has evolved radically since the silent films ofBuster KeatonandCharlie Chaplin, but sometimes it can feel as if there’s nowhere left for the genre to go. Even though the past decade has seen the rise of many popular action films, it’s challenging to find projects that are wholly original. EvenMad Max: Fury Roadis working within the parameters of an established franchise, andJohn Wickis clearly inspired by the history of revenge films. However,Gareth Evans’ incredible Indonesian thrillerThe Raid: Redemptionfelt like a true breath of fresh air due to itsinventive mix of hand-to-hand combat, gunplay, and heist elements.The Raid: Redemptioncut out the “dull” parts of most action films, creating a wholly immersive experience.
Witha budget of just over $1 million, there was nothing on its face that distinguishedThe Raid: Redemptionfrom the various direct-to-video action films that were released in a given year. What did make a difference wasEvans’ commitment to authenticity. His actorstrained for over four months, attending military boot camp training, learning to use weapons, and developing tactical strategies. As a result,The Raid: Redemptionwas groundbreaking in its immersive filmmaking techniques, giving viewers no room to breathe once the action kicked in.
The Raid: Redemption
A S.W.A.T. team becomes trapped in a tenement run by a ruthless mobster and his army of killers and thugs.
What Is ‘The Raid: Redemption’ About?
The beauty ofThe Raid: Redemptionis that similar toaction classics likeDie HardorMad Max, the plot couldn’t be any more simple and straightforward.The Raid: Redemptionfollows an elite team of the Indonesian Tactical Police that infiltrate a high-level apartment complexto bring down the drug lord Tama Riyadi (Ray Sahetapy). The Sergeant Jaka (Joe Taslim) and the rookie team member Rama (Iko Uwais) expect a fairly straightforward extraction mission based on the information passed to them by their Lieutenant, Wahyu (Pierre Gruno). However, the mission becomes far more dangerous when the cops realize they’ve been lured into a trap, and that Tama has prepared to defend himself by gathering a ruthless set of gangsters. Jaka, Rama, and their men are forced to fight their way out to survive, all whilst trying to bring Tama and his illicit operation to justice.
The brilliance of Evans’ direction is thatThe Raid: Redemptionneverleaves the confines of the apartment complex itself. While this may have been a result of production constraints, there are no flashbacks that attempt to establish the backstories or cuts to different characters in a control room. The audience is only exposed to the same limited information that the characters are. This makes the film even more intense, as there’s a sense of confinement that comes with remaining in one location for such an extended amount of time. It’s hard not to see this as a shrewd bit of sociopolitical commentary on Evans’ part. While the apartment itself was once meant to house underrepresented families, it’s been taken advantage of by the most selfish and ruthless members of society.
The Raid: Redemptionalso benefits from its kinetic pacing.At just over 100 minutes, the film doesn’t pad its runtime with expository segments, as its opening sequence follows Rama and Jaka as they sweep the lower levels of the complex. The relatively short runtime allows Evans to gradually escalate the action mechanics as the stakes get higher. At first, Rama is simply fighting for his duty, however, being beaten down and caught in a deadly trap inspires a rage within him. Eventually, the stakes become personal; losing friends to Rama’s men means thathis mission is now one of revenge.
‘The Raid: Redemption’ Has Surprisingly Nuanced Characters
The depth of the action filmmaking would have been enough to make the film an instant cult classic, butThe Raid: Redemptiontakes the time to get the audience invested in its characters. Rama is a particularly interesting hero because he is an underdog. While he’s certainly got a wealth of experience in combat, he certainly never expected himself to be placed in a position of leadership. Similarly, Jaka is forced to cope with the responsibilities that come with putting his men in danger. While he’s bound by his own code of chivalry to bring the criminals to justice, he’s also fighting to ensure that he’s earned the position of authority that he’s been saddled with. The characters may not be particularly verbose, butEvans is able to identify the aspects of heroismthrough the physical movements alone.
Despite the initially straightforward narrative,The Raid: Redemptiontakes some surprising plot twists that complicate the film’s villains. It’s revealed that Wayhu had staged the operation toput an end to a conspiracybetween Tama and the city’s high-ranking police officers. Rama realizes that he’s being forced to do the “dirty work” within a gang rivalry that he wants no part in. The twist puts more pressure on the cops, as they realize that there are more insidious forces at play that want to see them defeated. It also gives Rama a strong resistance to authority, which became his defining character trait within the film’s sequel.
‘The Raid’ Led to an Even More Intense Sequel and More Gareth Evans Films
Hailed for its brilliant craftsmanship and shocking brutality,The Raid: Redemptiongrew so popular that Evans developed an even more ambitious sequel.In many ways,The Raid 2is the antithesis of the first film; the stark, isolated direction isdropped in favor of an epic gangster sagathat explores the relationship between fathers and sons. While it doesn’t have the same momentum as its predecessor,The Raid 2has some of the most impressively staged large-scale combat scenes of all time, including a brutal prison brawl that initiates the story.
Movement forward on a third entry in the series may have stalled, butEvans continues to make innovations in genre films. His 2017 Netflix cult horror filmApostletook the themes of classics likeThe Wicker Manand turned it into an epic odyssey of violence; his upcomingaction thrillerHavocwithTom Hardyseems like a return to the bare-knuckled action that he had perfected withThe Raid: Redemption.
The Raid: Redemptionis streaming on Pluto TV in the U.S.
Watch on Pluto TV
