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In the 2011 Indonesian crime thriller, The Raid: Redemption, writer/director Gareth Evans stunned audiences with mesmerizing martial arts choreography and gut-wrenching violence. Now, his hard-hitting young protagonist returns for more action, more violence, and more clashing kingpins in the long and gritty follow-up, The Raid 2.
The sequel picks up the story of rookie cop Rama (Iko Uwais) after he survives the bloody battle of the first film. The last thing he wants to do is battle even more of the city’s crime bosses, but he soon discovers that his young family is in danger. He’s offered protection by a small group that’s investigating corruption within the police force, but it will require him to go undercover to take down yet another one of the city’s biggest crime syndicates.
The Raid: Redemption was an action film unlike anything that audiences had seen before: a non-stop skirmish involving cops, crooks, and a shocking variety of weapons—and it all took place in one dimly-lit apartment building.
Obviously, the sequel couldn’t be yet another ultra-violent brawl through yet another dingy old building. In order to satisfy audiences, it would have to be something similar...but completely different. So instead of once again battling through a building full of thugs, the sequel finds Rama battling his way through a deadly organization.
This battle takes more than just brute force—though that’s definitely a part of it, since Rama works his way into the organization by saving the boss’s son in a massive prison fight. It also takes patience—for both Rama and viewers. The mission is a long and rather drawn-out one, requiring years of planning and preparation—not to mention a massive two-and-a-half-hour runtime. The extra length allows plenty of time for both breathtaking action and a detailed story, with a little more breathing room between brutal fight sequences (though, admittedly, you’ll be spending much of the time between battles trying to keep up with the rapid-fire subtitles). But it’s about 30 minutes more than most members of the audience will be able to sit through in relative comfort.
While a number of things have been changed for the sequel, though, one very important thing remains the same. The action is still as imaginative as before, with the characters’ weapons of choice ranging from hammers and baseballs to good, old-fashioned knives. The choreography is once again stunning, and the violence is so extreme that it might sometimes knock the wind right out of you.
Dark and edgy and stylishly violent, The Raid 2 is excessive in almost every way—but, in this case, that’s what makes it a satisfying sequel. In fact, it’s everything that fans could hope for from the follow-up—and about 30 minutes more.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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