I love 'The Raid' - it was the hard-hitting kick-in-the-guts the action genre needed. I'm a little less in love with 'The Raid 2' - when it's good, it's very good, but it stalls a little bit too much to be a classic. Still, it is a very entertaining watch for action and martial arts junkies.
The good bits: the fight scenes and action set pieces are majorly ramped up from the first film. More than likely, this is what most of us came to this film for and they do not disappoint. The fight choreography is great, and the sights, sounds and overall feeling of impact during the action is amazing. The camera whirs around at a frenetic pace in places which may be a deal breaker for some, but it suits the action perfectly. There is also some impressive technical shenanigans going on for some of the close quarters stuff. In fact, the film looks brilliant overall: vibrant and stylish in places, gritty and decaying in others but always nice to look at.
The not-so-good bit: for me, the story didn't fit so well within the film. There were just too many strands to the narrative and consequently this killed the pacing for me. I can see what director/writer Gareth Evans was going for but I think there were just too many ideas for one film - it was begging for a shorter, sharper narrative. The police corruption and international underworld crime elements seemed more suited to a Kang Woo-suk, Johnnie To or Martin Scorsese film than here. Having said that, I would be interested to see Evans tackle something in this vein in the future as there is an inkling here that he could handle such a story.
Overall, 'The Raid 2' was a little bit less than what I was hoping for but not to the point of disappointment and I still had a good time. If you enjoyed 'The Raid' you will enjoy 'The Raid 2' - it's bigger and louder than its predecessor which both helps and hinders it as an action film.
The good bits: the fight scenes and action set pieces are majorly ramped up from the first film. More than likely, this is what most of us came to this film for and they do not disappoint. The fight choreography is great, and the sights, sounds and overall feeling of impact during the action is amazing. The camera whirs around at a frenetic pace in places which may be a deal breaker for some, but it suits the action perfectly. There is also some impressive technical shenanigans going on for some of the close quarters stuff. In fact, the film looks brilliant overall: vibrant and stylish in places, gritty and decaying in others but always nice to look at.
The not-so-good bit: for me, the story didn't fit so well within the film. There were just too many strands to the narrative and consequently this killed the pacing for me. I can see what director/writer Gareth Evans was going for but I think there were just too many ideas for one film - it was begging for a shorter, sharper narrative. The police corruption and international underworld crime elements seemed more suited to a Kang Woo-suk, Johnnie To or Martin Scorsese film than here. Having said that, I would be interested to see Evans tackle something in this vein in the future as there is an inkling here that he could handle such a story.
Overall, 'The Raid 2' was a little bit less than what I was hoping for but not to the point of disappointment and I still had a good time. If you enjoyed 'The Raid' you will enjoy 'The Raid 2' - it's bigger and louder than its predecessor which both helps and hinders it as an action film.