The Raid 2 : Berendal

 

THE RAID 2 : BERENDAL

Director : Gareth Evans

Year : 2014

Genre : Action

Rating : *****

 

'The Raid 2 : Berendal' has an awful lot to live up to. It's predecessor 'The Raid : Redemption' was named by many critics (including myself) as one of the absolute best movies of 2012 as well as the greatest action movie of the past 10 years. Telling the very simple story of an Indonesian SWAT team who invade a large tower block which is home to some of the country's most dangerous criminals, 'The Raid : Redemption' was a bold, vicious and brilliantly exciting action epic which showcased some of the most intricate and realistically painful fight scenes in the history of martial arts cinema. It's director Gareth Evans would gain critical acclaim and the film would go on to win a number of prestigious awards including the Best Film and Audience Award at the 2012 Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. 

Now, Evans returns to the big screen with his much anticipated sequel 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' and now having seen it, I can say that it not only surpasses its predecessor as the best action movie in 10 years but it is by quite a distance, the best action movie I have ever seen. It's characters are brilliantly written, it is directed with a ferocity and precision unmatched in the history of the genre and the numerous bloody and incredibly brutal fight scenes are choreographed beyond anything ever seen in the history of motion pictures, even surpassing it's unprecedented original. 'The Raid : Redemption' was brilliant. 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' is simply an absolute masterpiece.

Beginning six hours after the cataclysmic events of the 'The Raid : Redemption', 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' continues the story of the rookie cop Rama (played by Iko Awais) who must go undercover to enter the criminal world, to rise up through the ranks and eventually bring down the many corrupt politicians and law officials who are secretly running some of the most dangerous operations in Jakarta. When Rama left that dreaded tower block, he though that his troubles were over. He could not have been wrong.

Following his first film, the surprise cult hit 'Merantau', Welsh born Evans and his producers began to develop a project simply known as 'Berendal' (translated from Indonesian as ''thugs''), a large scale prison gang drama/thriller which would once again star Iko Awais. However, budget restraints and time restrictions meant that 'Berendal' was, for the moment, inconceivable so instead Evans and company wrote a smaller budgeted, simpler story once again starring Awais. That story would go on to become 'The Raid : Redemption'.

During filming, Evans had the idea of linking 'The Raid : Redemption' with his previous unmade work 'Berendal' and as a result, 'Berendal' was named as the movies official sequel. Hype and expectation mounted as 'The Raid : Redemption' would go on to become a modern action classic, earn $15m from it's $1m budget and be named as a landmark in the breaking of language barriers and the English speaking worlds resistance to subtitles. Now, Gareth Evans dream is finally here and I thiink it is fair to say that 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' was well worth the wait. 

With a budget that is four times higher than it's original, 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' takes it's time to expand it's characters, develop it's environments and really go to town in some of the most violent, bloody and horrific fight scenes ever to grace a cinema screen. At over two and a half hours, 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' is over twice the length of it's predecessor and because of this, we are given much more time to explore the psyches and motivations of both its protagonists and antagonists as well as the reasonings behind the many illegalities and deaths surrounding the narrative. This only makes 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' feel that little bit more real and as a result, the fight scenes that little bit more painful and brutal.

Before starring in 'Merantau' and 'The Raid' franchise, Iko Awais was a nobody working in a small Jakartan telecommunications company. It wasn't until Gareth Evans discovered his talents in the martial art of silat that Awais could quit his job and become a full time actor and stuntman. Bringing an innocent charisma and extremely likable personality to the role of Rama, Awais completely holds his own in both the intense action scenes and the more challenging, dialogue lead interrogation and conversational scenes. In 'The Raid : Redemption', Awais proved that he was a fantastic martial artist. In 'The Raid 2 : Berendal', Awais proves that he is also a fantastic actor. With skill levels and an astonishing agility unmatched in cinema today, Iko Awais is this cinematic generations Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan.  

With the always reliable Awais standing tall as the lead, Evans has made the very wise decision of casting unknowns and art house stars in the roles of secondary characters. Veteran Indonesian actor Kanjeng Raden Tumenggung brings a majestic malevolence to the screen as Bangun, a feared mob boss and lead antagonist, Arifin Putra is wonderfully slimy and vindictive as Bangun's needy and ungrateful son who is desperate to inherit his fathers crown and Roy Marten brings a magnificently memorable villain to the screen in the form of the hobbling, sunglasses wearing Reza. 

While it's characters are multi layered and nuanced, it's plot is not totally original. Telling the story of a cop who infiltrates the world of crime and gangland, 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' bears many resemblance to earlier gangster epics such as 'Donnie Brasco' and the Academy Award winning 'The Departed'  and because of this, 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' could be seen as somewhat predictable. We know who the bad guys are and we know who the obvious good guys are. However, this doesn't taken anything away from the plot, in fact far from it; I was still intensely gripped throughout. It just means that if you are looking for something completely new in the gangster genre, then 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' may not be what you are looking for. However, if you are a die hard action fan, then it most certainly will be.

Full of head smashing, throat slitting, ankle breaking, face crushing, eye gouging, bone crunching and everything in between, 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' really pushes the boat out when it comes to full blooded violence; violence that would put Quentin Tarantino, Sam Peckinpah, John Woo and Takashi Miike to shame. To say that I winced a number of times is a massive understatement because every single punch, kick and gouge really looks like they hurt and there was more than a few moments that I had to literally avert my eyes. This is due to the fact that it's actors actually learned how to strike someone without hurting them so when you see a fist going through someones nose, just think. That is a real persons fist going into a real persons nose. Ouch! Added to the onslaught of physical violence involving hands, feet, elbows and heads, Evans throws in for good measure claw hammers, baseball bats, scythes, guns, crowbars and dozens of other objects that are sure to invoke both gasps of terror and disgust from its audience.

I am very, very dismayed to learn that Hollywood is intending to make a remake of both 'The Raid : Redemption' and 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' but hey, what do you expect? They are low budget action films that make a ton of money, of course it's going to be remade. Oh well, no matter how bad the inevitable 're imagining' of 'The Raid' series is going to be, just be glad that Gareth Evans has made two films which are nothing short of genius, with a sequel soon to come. Proving himself to be the greatest living action director, Evans has shown that language is no barrier and that blood, violence and revenge are universal voices to be enjoyed by the whole world. Perfectly paced, beautifully directed, wonderfully acted and masterfully told, 'The Raid 2 : Berendal' is like Christmas, Birthdays, Easter and New Year all in one perfectly wrapped package. Just be sure to scrape the dried blood and bits of broken skull off it first.