The Raid: Redemption (R)

“The Raid: Redemption” by Writer/Director Gareth Huw Evans is violent, bloody, and unforgiving. That it ends in a logical, almost unexpected way does nothing to erase its fierce footprint. A tale of a squad of elite S.W.A.T., drug dealers, murderers, and police corruption in Jakarta’s ruthless underworld smashes headfirst into a narrative of action, intrigue, family ties, and harrowing survival. Rife with elaborate and technically impressive fight sequences, solid acting, and a equally harrowing soundtrack, “The Raid” immerses viewers headfirst into the nightmare 20 police officers suddenly find themselves in.

Evans’ film has been criticized for being heavy on violence and low on story. And while it’s hard to argue against the film’s violence (featuring a plethora of hand-to-hand, knife, machete, and gunfights), its immediacy overshadows whatever plot shortcomings it does have, presenting a stark, realistic story of survival. For instance, there’s the warnings lead cop Rama (Iko Uwais) issues on the dangerousness of the Crime Lord Tama they are up against (Ray Sahetapy), and the quick, almost imperceptible way his team finds its way into the Jakartan fortress. However, there’s never any misunderstanding – be it the cops’ hesitancy, the film’s doleful score, or the prison-like foreboding of the tenement complex that houses Jakarta’s underbelly – that it’s not a one-sided raid the cops are entering, but a war.

“The Raid” leaves much out in the way of exposition in the telling of its story, it’s violence imminent but slowly increasing in intensity throughout. Rama’s team’s presence is quickly discovered through a series of actions involving the tenement’s inhabitants alerting Tama to their arrival, unleashing a barrage of hostiles with one goal – to take them out. Mirroring 2012’s “Dredd” in this way, the victims become all too aware that they are targeted for annihilation, except lacking the bravado or gruffness of futuristic Judge Dredd. The fear is invoked through the massive causalities they take and the fact that given their unsanctioned mission, they have been left completely on their own.

The film has little in the way of dialogue to form its scenes, and this is made slightly more frustrating by the fact that the film’s original language of Indonesian is dubbed over in English, with no option for subtitles. The result is dialogue that never quite matches the actor’s lips, where leaving it in its native tongue might have been a better experience. However, the film has what probably amounts to five to ten minutes of actual dialogue, so the harm here is minimal. Plot points are unraveled in a similar fashion along the way as we realize one lieutenant may be playing both sides, and gangsters inside the building have their own agenda and secrets. It’s little bother; “The Raid” is not a cop actioner like “S.W.A.T.” but an un-moralizing survival tale that has more in common with “The Grey;” its heroes are mowed down in similar fashion by a force they are seemingly unable to withstand.

“The Raid” is suspenseful and fear inducing due to its wonderful score by Chino Marino and Get Busy Committee, and the cinematography brought by Matt Flannery and Dimas Imam Subhono. Shots of long, shadowed corridors, suspenseful shadows, and numerous gut-wrenching scenes of lone survivors seeking refuge in the tenement’s barren corners adds a level of terror that more resembles a horror flick than a fight-filled actioner. Evans isn’t afraid to let the camera linger on whatever it needs to, be it a hanging chain, an exploded room of bodies, or the protracted struggle of men feebly struggling in the face of inevitable death. Additionally, the immediacy the film presents through ferociously fast-paced gang attacks never once gives the impression that anyone besides Tama is in complete control of the fight.

Where “The Raid” excels more than anywhere else is its exhilarating and crowd pleasing fight sequences, especially as the film moves from its firepower-filled opening and toward close-quarter combat scenes featuring machetes, knives, police batons, and whatever objects lie nearby. Some scenes render a “Matrix”- like experience, while others, such as a thug who prefers to abandon pistols for hand-to-hand combat are somehow sinister in ways not commonly seen in action films. That said, the fight sequences and stunts in the film are extraordinary, and will doubtless please fans of Jackie Chan films, while the underlying terror that results should a member of Rama’s team lose will oddly appeal to fans of ‘80s slasher films. “The Raid” is not a horror film, yet somehow invokes the elemental terror of an outnumbered party fighting for their lives. The result is more suspense than action films are used to seeing.

“The Raid” is not wholly without fault, as some annoying plot twists (not to be revealed here) find their way into the film’s final scenes that take away somewhat from the immediacy of the rest of the film. Overall, however, the intensity the film brings to the table more than makes up for whatever slights Evans and company commit. At the end of the day, “The Raid” is a massively entertaining and suspenseful endeavor that will please lovers of action and suspense alike. The fact that its actors will be unknown to all but some, as well as the Jakartan city block that serves as its backdrop unfamiliar, the film will immerse viewers into its mysterious world with seemingly no way out. With solid stunts and direction, and without attempting to take sides, “The Raid” is a nothing if not a solid attempt.

– by Mark Ziobro