The popular Indonesian frantic gruesome martial arts saga is back with a bang with Rama again in the middle promising more of what made the original so effective. With no expectations whatsoever, The Raid Redemption became a sleeper hit both with the audience as well as the critics with none having a clue of what hit them. The dynamics have changed now and people tend to expect and compare from which very few attempts hit the mark.
This story starts from where its predecessor has left off with Rama (Iko Uwais) is getting debriefed at an unconventional location. A police chief coerces Rama into going undercover to both unearth another corrupt cop and also to take heat off from him and protect his family. Rama infiltrates the syndicate run by Bangun (Tio Pakusadewo) a wise patriarch through his hot blooded son Uco (Arifin Putra). He has to struggle to keep his identity a secret, discover the secrets, collect evidence and miss his wife and newly born son. When Uco comes up with his own agenda, can Rama survive?
Since this story is out in the open world and not constrained within an apartment building - it is both good and bad. The innovation to excel within its limitations is where the original made its mark but in the open world - it is just as any other movie. The director tries to squeeze everything into it like the prison riots, car chases, modern gadgets along with its famous punches and kicks. He even brought back his Mad Dog Yahan Ruhian in different role with a completely different look. Everything looks like they should from a technical stand point but many things doesn't add up from dramatic and emotional point of view.
The original had the relentless pace, even before the previous action set piece is concluded a new one is already midway. The same cannot be said here as it invests in a bigger story, more characters and their development which doesn't seem to be the director's strengths - leading to a bloated runtime. Its plot drivers are riddled with holes like what happens to the injured guy who will be taken away for treatment in the beginning, Rama is seen extremely struggling with an injury and a moment later he is fighting off dozens of bad guys without a sign of the injury and many such continuity issues. Bringing the story to the open world also introduces us to a long list of characters like the 'Hammer Girl' who is similar to Gogo from Kill Bill, the baseball bat guy, Uco and his father, his Japanese friend/rival and his son etc. where most characters get uninteresting in a short-while.
With the element of surprise gone, the sequel struggles to compete as a regular action movie.
This story starts from where its predecessor has left off with Rama (Iko Uwais) is getting debriefed at an unconventional location. A police chief coerces Rama into going undercover to both unearth another corrupt cop and also to take heat off from him and protect his family. Rama infiltrates the syndicate run by Bangun (Tio Pakusadewo) a wise patriarch through his hot blooded son Uco (Arifin Putra). He has to struggle to keep his identity a secret, discover the secrets, collect evidence and miss his wife and newly born son. When Uco comes up with his own agenda, can Rama survive?
Since this story is out in the open world and not constrained within an apartment building - it is both good and bad. The innovation to excel within its limitations is where the original made its mark but in the open world - it is just as any other movie. The director tries to squeeze everything into it like the prison riots, car chases, modern gadgets along with its famous punches and kicks. He even brought back his Mad Dog Yahan Ruhian in different role with a completely different look. Everything looks like they should from a technical stand point but many things doesn't add up from dramatic and emotional point of view.
The original had the relentless pace, even before the previous action set piece is concluded a new one is already midway. The same cannot be said here as it invests in a bigger story, more characters and their development which doesn't seem to be the director's strengths - leading to a bloated runtime. Its plot drivers are riddled with holes like what happens to the injured guy who will be taken away for treatment in the beginning, Rama is seen extremely struggling with an injury and a moment later he is fighting off dozens of bad guys without a sign of the injury and many such continuity issues. Bringing the story to the open world also introduces us to a long list of characters like the 'Hammer Girl' who is similar to Gogo from Kill Bill, the baseball bat guy, Uco and his father, his Japanese friend/rival and his son etc. where most characters get uninteresting in a short-while.
With the element of surprise gone, the sequel struggles to compete as a regular action movie.