The Raid

A handful of cops, a billion Asian butchers and a building where even Chuck Norris would shit his pants. In other words, a manual for success. We can finally confirm that the aura of an exceptional film built around this Indonesian action sensation since its première at the Toronto Film Festival a few months ago is the real deal. The Raid: Redemption is the kind of film you really don’t see every day. A relentless action ride, brutal, intense and at times terrifying. It’s hard to talk in detail about this beauty, it has to be seen. It’s been long since a genre five-stars was this pure :) (28/05/2012)

I must say, I was surprised by how much is still possible to do in an action film. This is really a slaughterfest. One apartment building and a solid group of people who want to kick some ass. There's shooting going on, but primarily hands and feet are being used. These are scenes that will absolutely get you, and you'll be surprised by how gripping they are. You don't see this type of carnage every day. It's a brawl from start to finish, and moreover, it looks incredibly realistic. (04/07/2014)

That long-haired walking holocaust especially, who gives soda to the main characters even with a fluorescent light down his throat, is really growing on me, and the fact that the animals are really, really badly hurting each other and it looks so real that I'm still not sure there weren't people dying in the filming, gives truth to the claim that films kicked off with a convo like "Here’s a building and a million bucks, do what you want." "Okay." might be the real thing. (29/05/2012)

Unbelievable carnage that surpasses most of what has been filmed so far. Where most directors shy away from pushing the envelope and move the camera or cut the shot, Evans keeps it in the frame with maximum detail in every scene. Very bloody, very brutal, and incredibly explosive in terms of choreography and audiovisual aspects. Is it possible to shoot something like this on such a pitiful budget? Americans (and everyone else) should take note, this is how pure action is filmed. The plot is irrelevant. (14/08/2012)

This is by no means a perfect film, the fight choreography, although shot in an absolutely breathtaking way, starts to get a bit tiring towards the end and some scenes are awfully exaggerated and contrived. But in spite of that, or maybe because of it, this is, I dare say, the best and most honest action flick ever made (The Rock is just such a weak concoction in comparison). I believe that even Chuck Norris would have to take his hands out of his pockets this time to get it all done in 100 minutes :-D (26/03/2013)