The Raid 2 (2014)

The Raid 2 (2014)

6/10

Starring

Iko Uwais

Directed by Gareth Evans

I saw and enjoyed the first The Raid (2011). The writer and director, Gareth Evans, was very focused on delivering an exciting ride in the movie. The Raid franchise is different from what we were used to, placing our lead in impossible situations and making it seem like there’s no way for him to get out alive—only for him to always find a way.

The Raid 2 has a different setup, and that difference took a lot away from the movie’s title. Add to that, the movie is over two and a half hours long, as if the writer hasn’t heard of the phrase “to summarize.” The screen time could have been reduced in numerous places, but if you’re watching this movie, you’re in for a long ride to the end. The reason this movie doesn’t reach the same level as the first is that the first movie was linear and focused on a single task, while this one is not.

The Raid 2 starts where the first movie ends. Our lead, Rama, has escaped from the building only to find himself in the middle of a deep investigation into bribery and corruption within the police station. If you recall from the first movie, the culprit behind the fake raid was arrested and led to trial. Well, he and Rama’s brother didn’t make it past the first ten minutes of the movie, as both were killed.

Rama is recruited to go undercover in a prison where the son of the crime boss—who oversaw the man running the building raided in the first movie—is imprisoned. Rama goes undercover and becomes close friends with the young man, but what he expected to take months turns into years. He succeeds in winning the young man’s trust and infiltrates the group. Soon, he gets close to the man at the top, and after many betrayals, killings, and fights, the movie shifts from action to drama.

The movie isn’t that bad, but it’s too long. Gareth Evans may have always wanted to make a movie with a lot of angles rolled into one, but there are better ways to do it than this. The first movie was simple, short, and well done. The fight choreography and the fights themselves are worth seeing, and the movie’s delivery—along with well-placed acting—makes this Indonesian film one you must see, regardless of the different tone it takes compared to the first movie.