THE RAID 2: BERANDAL
Finally responding to all those complaints that Merantau and The Raid simply had too much human feeling, Gareth Evans has removed as much as he could from The Raid 2 without casting fighting robots. With that caveat, however major, this sequel is everything you could have hoped for, contributing powerfully to what is already shaping up to be a truly excellent year in film.
2014
Written and directed by Gareth Evans
With Iko Uwais (Rama), Cecep Arif Rahman (The Assassin), Very Tri Ulisman (Baseball Bat Man), Julie Estelle (Hammer Girl), Arifin Putra (Ucho), Oka Antara (Eka), Alex Abbad (Bejo), Tio Pakusodewo (Bangun), and Yayan Ruhian (Prakoso)
Spoiler alert: moderate—there is only one spoiler in this review, and oddly enough, it relates to the very first scene of the film. But still, it surprised as well as dismayed me, and The Raid 2 simply cannot be talked about in relation to its predecessor without describing it, so consider yourselves advised.
