The Raid - Cult Laboratories

“You Have Never Seen Anything This Awesome” - Twitch Film

Asian Action Vs The Hollywood Doldrums

8th Aug. 2012

In the late 60s, Hollywood hit an impasse. Its studio system crumbling, it's big productions failing to engage an increasing youthful audience, it turned the reins over to the film school kids who decided to make art for a while… Until Jaws and Star Wars kicked off the blockbuster era.

30 years later, Hollywood is awash with Franchise fever, sequelitus and an endless stream of will this do comedies, weak lemon squash vampires… Its stars who could formerly fill theatres by the sheer force of their personalities and its marketing armies are struggling.

Look East though and you'll see risky films doing great business. Take The Raid as an example. Here is a globe striding hit movie, made on a modest budget with a risky premise - Throw out virtually all exposition and focus in completely on the action. No star power, no romantic distractions, no complex back story, subplots or similar meanders… The film will live or die on the sheer quality of the action scenes and the near suicidal commitment to carnage that the actors display.

Meanwhile, Hollywood belongs to Marvel comics. This isn't to say that great movies like The Avengers don't have their spectacular place. It's a quality piece of entertainment but it's product pure and simple. A tasty fast food burger of a film, deliciously marketed and pushed unavoidably in front of our eyes. Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand and home of The Raid Indonesia are making movies not fairground rides. A film like The Raid has the same hairs-on-the-back-of-your-neck-standing-up feeling you get from 80s action classics like Escape From New York. It crackles with a streak of originality that Hollywood, with its risk averse behemoth budgets and vast PR empires cannot continence with causing the bank manager to have a coronary.


“THE MOST EXCITING ACTION MOVIE OF THE YEAR.” (FIVE STARS) – EMPIRE.

Following their hugely impressive collaboration on the universally acclaimed martial arts extravaganza “Merantau Warrior”, Welsh-born writer-director Gareth Evans and Indonesian martial arts sensation Iko Uwais have reunited and increased the energy even more (if you can believe it) for “the most incredible action and fighting movie in decades” (IGN), the award winning action-thriller The Raid.

Already being hailed by Aint It Cool News as “one of the greatest action movies ever made”, as “spectacular… incredible… exhilarating… amazing” by Variety and as “a non-stop action bonanza” by Twitch Film, The Raid was the winner of the Midnight Madness People’s Choice Award at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival in 2011 and the winner of both the coveted Audience Award for Best Film and the Dublin Film Critics Award for Best Film at the Dublin International Film Festival in February this year, marking the first time in history both awards have gone to the same film.

Deep in the heart of one of Jakarta’s most deprived slums stands an impenetrable high-rise apartment block. To most it is 30 floors of Hell to be avoided at all cost but for many of the city’s most dangerous killers and gangsters, including the area’s most notorious crime lord, it is a fortress-like safe house protecting them from the law. Even for the bravest and most experienced police officers it is considered a no-go area.

In a desperate bid to flush these violent criminals and their leader from their haven once and for all, an elite SWAT team is tasked with infiltrating the building and raiding the apartments floor by floor, taking out anyone who stands in their way. Cloaked under the cover of pre-dawn darkness, the SWAT members make their move and enter the block not realizing that this is the easier part of the mission. Once inside, it soon becomes terrifyingly apparent that the real problem at hand is surviving long enough to be able to get out again.

Featuring an electrifying kick-ass score by Linkin Park vocalist, keyboardist and rhythm guitarist Mike Shinoda, The Raid is a “hard-driving, butt-kicking, pulse-pounding, bone-crunching, skull-smashing, blood-curdling” (The Hollywood Reporter) action-thriller that reaffirms Gareth Evans’ reputation as a director to watch and further confirms Iko Uwais’ status as both an outstanding fight choreographer and as one of world’s most impressive new action movie stars.

THE RAID is on UK DVD and Blu-ray: 24.09.2012

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Distributor:
Momentum Pictures
Certificate:
18
In Cinemas:
18th May, 2012
Release date:
24th September, 2012
Extras:

DVD Directors commentary *Exclusive to UK Disc* The Raid feature – original language with English subs The Raid feature with English dub Trailers “Claycats: The Raid” The Raid Fan Films Featurettes Behind the Music with Mike Shinoda and Joe Trapanese An Evening with Gareth Evans and Iko Uwais BLU-RAY Directors commentary *Exclusive to UK Disc* The Raid feature – original language with English subs The Raid feature with English dub Featuring U.S. and original uncut version. Trailers Video Blogs “Claycats: The Raid” The Raid Fan Films Featurettes Behind the Music with Mike Shinoda and Joe Trapanese An Evening with Gareth Evans and Iko Uwais Play.com Exclusive Steelbook Blu-ray Based on designs by award winning comic book artist Mark Simpson AKA Jock first appearing in Empire magazine and now exclusive to this Steelboo

Director:
Gareth Evans
Stars:
  • Iko Uwais
  • Ananda George
  • Ray Sahetapy
  • Joe Taslim
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Credits

Distributor:
Momentum Pictures
Certificate:
18
In Cinemas from:
18th May, 2012
Release date:
24th September, 2012
Director:
Gareth Evans
Stars:

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