For those who thought that The Raid 1 & 2 were the last word in kinetic, ultra-brutal martial arts movies, think again: The Night Comes For Us, from director Timo Tjahjanto, is a strong contender for the most excessively violent, blood-drenched action flick ever made. The film's many fight scenes are wonderfully choreographed and flawlessly executed, Tjahanto's breath-taking direction employing shooting techniques that are guaranteed to astound, although it's the sheer quantity of blood and guts that really impresses.
The film stars Joe Taslim as triad member Ito, who seeks redemption for all the terrible things that he has done by saving a young girl, Reina (Asha Kenyeri Bermudez), from his hit squad. Having gunned down his own men and escaped with the girl, Ito finds himself targeted by the triad's top killers, who include Raid star Iko Uwais as his old pal Arian, Julie Estelle (The Raid 2's Hammer Girl) as a motorcycle-riding assassin, and a pair of lesbian hit-women: Elena (Hannah Al Rashid), who is armed with a kukri knife, and Alma (Dian Sastrowardoyo), who wields a whirling wire weapon.
As Ito, aided by his loyal friends Bobby (Zack Lee), Fatih (Abimana Aryasatya) and Wisnu (Dimas Anggara), battles to protect Reina, viewers are treated to all manner of graphic violence: bodies are beaten and mutilated, necks are slashed, and bones are broken. A man is hung on a meathook, someone is machine gunned in the face, and a grenade rips another poor bloke to pieces. There's a shotgun blast to the foot, a knife through the neck, a severed hand, an evisceration, pool balls to the skull, a hook in the crotch, a utility knife in the mouth (and through the cheek), and more bullet hits and stabbings than I can recall. The stuntwork is amazing and it's hard to believe that no-one was seriously injured.
The carnage is so spectacular that it's easy to forgive the simplicity of the plot (the narrative is not nearly as involved as The Raid 2; it's more akin to the original Raid movie in terms of complexity).
