What’s good, homies?! This week we’re starting our two-part series on Indonesian beatdowns by revisiting one of the best action films of the 2010s and a sleeper classic that will have you on the edge of your seat shouting “Oh my god! Did you see that?!”. It’s time to go on a clandestine mission into an apartment full of machete-wielding psychopaths and take down an evil crime lord and his Mad Dog… It’s “The Raid”, baby! This 2011 film directed by Welsh director Gareth Evans is WILD. The film stars Iko Uwais, Joe Taslim, Yayan Ruhian, Donny Alamsyah, Ray Sahetapy, and more. It’s got everything you need in an action flick and kinda not-so-subtly became a major influence on everything since. White knuckle action? Yep. Crazy fight choreography? Oh yeah. Someone making an impromptu explosive device out of a fridge? You got it. Y’all wanna see someone get killed by a shattered door? Machete fights? Someone getting their head bounced approximately six times off a wall in one fell swoop? Check. Yeah, this one rules.

We start the pod off by chatting a bit about secondhand joy and our experiences with “Hogwarts Legacy” so far. Spoiler alert… It’s really good. Then we dive straight into “The Raid” to discuss why this movie rules. We cover all the good stuff - the cinematography, the pacing, the action, the choreography, the film’s legacy, and what Evans did right. We also break down the editing and cinematography, the use of handycam and unique lighting setups, and how the editing tricks you into feeling immediacy and continuity in the many brutal fight scenes. We talk about the video game-like qualities of the movie and how they just add to the experience, praise the use of and focus on the Indonesia martial art Pencak Silat while not letting the film be defined by it, and the smart choice to include various other styles of material arts. We also break down some of our favourite (and most brutal) moments of the film and talk in-depth about Mad Dog. Man… that guy is evil.

Later in the episode, we talk a bit about Gareth Evans’ career and the pre-production, release, and reception of the film. We explore how Evans came to know Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhian, the stars of and fight choreographers for the film, and how a Welsh director came to create this franchise. We also discover why it was called “The Raid: Redemption” in North America, prepare you for the bonkers sequel that we’re going to talk about next week, and discuss the trend of remaking Asian films and why that doesn't really work anymore. Seriously, leave them alone. We also touch on the rise of Asian cinema outside of China and Japan and how it correlates to the coming of the internet and streaming services.

We’ll be back next week with “The Raid 2” which is an incredible sequel that takes everything you love about this movie and injects it with steroids.

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