A SWAT team becomes trapped in a tenement run by a ruthless mobster and his army of killers and thugs.
A surreal, gritty, ultra-violent treat sure to have kung fu movie fans salivating and high kicking in the aisles.
The Raid is short, tough, and offers exactly the kind of pumped-up kicks that die-hard action fans adore.
Like that clip of Tony Jaa terrorising an entire building in one take – but ramped up to 101 astonishing minutes – The Raid is so hardcore it would make badass blush.
The Raid has been absurdly overhyped as a game changer when it doesn’t come close to the technical accomplishment and creative flights of Tsui Hark, Johnnie To or John Woo.
Remember your first time with Hard Boiled? Die Hard? This is how it’s done — a clean, hard, constant hit of adrenalin. If it’s not the best action movie of the year, we’ll eat a fridge.
The action is very well staged but it’s no substitute for genuine suspense.
While its violence may not be for everyone, The Raid represents a new directon for martial arts action films that will be very important for everyone in the industry.
Gareth Evan's actioner kicks and punches far above its low-budget weight.
Fun of a kind: the kind liked by the brainless everywhere and by the intelligent in moments of elective brainlessness, such as a drunken Saturday night.
The Raid is completely deranged – and completely superb.
The Raid is a film for which the adjective “awesome” might have been invented, but it’s so awesomely awesome you might want to teach it some new words.
The result is a film that works like a great horror, with every cracked head, snapped limb and ripped jugular greeted with involuntary “Oofs”, “Ows” and cathartic laughter.
Brilliantly choreographed fight club.
It’s exhilarating to begin with, but after the first 100 or so deaths, fatigue sets in. For fanboys only.
Guaranteed to be a word-of-mouth hit. Expect to be introducing people to The Raid for years to come.
The danger is overkill: one fight seemed to go on for about ten minutes, by which point you'd prefer one of them just to drop dead.
Some sequences go on too long and feature unfeasible quantities of physical punishment. But Evans, who's clearly an admirer of Walter Hill, John Woo, John Carpenter and John McTiernan, maintains a fierce pace that never lets up.
The film has some of the most intricate, sustained and brutal martial arts sequences I've ever seen. But it's impressive even when the fists, feet and elbows aren't flying.
Interview: Gareth Evans brings The Raid to GFF 2012
Gareth Evans talks abou journey to The Raid, and discovering star Iko Uwais
How Gareth Evans and Iko Uwais make a movie like The Raid.
And now, enter the Welsh dragon
Film director Gareth Evans on his action masterpiece The Raid
The Raid brings high-kicking success for Welshman Evans
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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