It took the unlikely figure of Welshman Gareth Evans to deliver an epic Indonesian action movie to a worldwide audience. 2011 saw The Raid smash its way through the box office, with its multi-floored urban setting playing a key role in the devastation. Showcasing a dazzling array of fists and firepower, the story was a feature-length assault on the senses, as a team of police pusher-pulverizers led by Iko Uwais stormed an apartment building in a seek-and-destroy mission targeting Jakarta slum drug lord Ray Sahetapy. Evans shot a sequel in 2014, which expanded the narrative to the streets. But for sheer, nerve-shredding, lifespan-shortening spectacle you can't beat several storeys of perilously crumbling architecture stuffed wth warm bodies.
I am a journalist and comedian who enjoys American movies of the 70s, Amicus horror compendiums, Doctor Who, Twin Peaks, Naomi Watts and sitting down. My short fiction has been published as part of the Iris Wildthyme range from Obverse Books.
