Review of The Raid 2 (2014) by Maksim B — 25 Aug 2014

Extremely violent, shockingly brutal, but yet beautiful in its own martial arts way, The Raid 2 is the more than welcome sequel to the original The Raid: Redemption. Almost unbearable for non martial arts or action lovers, this high-energy action delivers more of what made Redemption a cult movie within its sub-genre.

Once again the story follows the young and dedicated police officer Rama (Iko Uwais) whose past from the initial raid of the infamous mob building is still endangering his life and the life of his family. Challenged to go undercover and to capture the highest ranks of the Indonesian mob, Rama has to go through another, much longer hell. Facing a task that is more complicated more demanding and with slim chances for survival, he has to climb the underworld ladder amidst a mob war. This is probably the most important improvement of Gareth Evans' sequel. If the first movie was claustrophobic martial arts mayhem, The Raid 2 is actually a successful attempt to build up a credible, dark and engaging story. This could be considered a major step in making the movie a more accessible delivery for the non-martial arts/action movie fans. In addition to this, Evans keeps Rama's character simple and the fighting sequences brutally minimalistic. Add up the rock solid and focused performance of Iko Uwais (whom I would be pleased to see in a Hollywood production) and The Raid 2 could be considered to at least match the level of its predecessor.

If there is one flaw in The Raid 2, this would be the fact that the "originality" element. The first movie benefitted from a terrific concept and the obvious move towards a more conventional story has its minor negative effect. However, this was a logical move and made the sequel as interesting and captivating as the original delivery.

In conclusion, The Raid 2 provides what it promises: more of the same. The fans of the sub-genre would be absolutely delighted with it while neutral movie-goers would probably find a way to go through the 148 minutes of fighting mayhem due to the simple and engaging story!