When the first The Raid came out in 2011 it became an instant cult classic, and for good reason. The film took place entirely inside a tenement building in Jakarta and followed a SWAT team who was tasked with the unfortunate job of rooting out the Indonesian gangsters who infested the building, including the infamous drug lord Tama who took safety in the building's top floor. The film was jam packed with breathtaking fight choreography that was hard not to appreciate even for those not usually taken with fight films. What is shocking about The Raid 2 is that not only are the expected fight sequences just as amazing as the first time, but the film's plot is also incredibly intriguing and well executed. The Raid 2 picks up literally minutes after the first film and follows Rama, the protagonist from the first film, as he goes undercover in order to bring down the criminals who are really running the show. At times, the film is reminiscent of The Departed in both its story and its stark and uncompromising portrayal of violence. In fact, the story is so captivating that as brilliant as the film's final fight scenes are, it's a bit disappointing the story stalls toward its end. Even so, the talent of Welsh director Gareth Evans is undeniable after this film, and whatever genre he decides to tackle, film fans should have confidence in the man's vision and talent.
A film fanatic at a very young age, starting with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movies and gradually moving up to more sophisticated fare, at around the age of ten he became inexplicably obsessed with all things Oscar. With the incredibly trivial power of being able to chronologically name every Best Picture winner from memory, his lifelong goal is to see every Oscar nominated film, in every major category, in the history of the Academy Awards.
