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THE RAID: REDEMPTIONMovie Reviews
Indonesian language thriller about a rookie who must lead an elite special forces team through a heavily armed building to capture a brutal crime lord on the top floor. Cast:Iko Uwais, Doni Alamsyah, Ananda George, Pierre GrunoDirector:Gareth EvansRelease Date:March 23, 2012DVD Release:August 14, 2012From:Sony PicturesRating:RLength:1 hr 41 min
The Raid: Redemption played to good reviews. • Mark Jenkins wrote for NPR, "...this electrifying movie isn't just a collection of gory moments. It actually goes somewhere.... notable simply for its technical skill and storytelling mastery." • And David Lewis wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle, "...claustrophobic, tense, ultraviolent - and fun..." More Reviews Below...
The Raid: Redemption Positive Reviews (42 Reviews, reviews below)
Jake Coyle, Associated Press: MODERATE(cg) "Small amounts of backstory bleed out of the action, but there's little propelling things beside the simple kinetic kick of the film's video game-like plot."(See all of Jake Coyle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 606 words, 03/22/12
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: GOOD(cg) "I do wish that Gareth Huw Evans were a better storyteller. When he isn't turning mad-dog violence into visual rock & roll, 'The Raid' shreds narrative coherence to ribbons."(See all of Owen Gleiberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 246 words, 03/23/12
Scott Bowles, USA Today: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...the year's most turbo-charged film, an Indonesian martial-arts movie that ups the violence by giving its characters a modern-day worldview -- and weaponry."(See all of Scott Bowles's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 367 words, 03/23/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: POOR(cg) "...almost brutally cynical... director Gareth Evans knows there's a fanboy audience for his formula, in which special effects amp up the mayhem in senseless carnage."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 780 words, 03/23/12
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (13 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: FAIR "...the way that Mr. Evans visually exploits the martial art pencak silat in combination with the unimaginative rest soon makes the movie grindingly monotonous..."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 373 words, 03/23/12
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "The special effects here are wiry martial artists grunting their way through fight after fight. It's exhausting but exhilarating."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 107 words, 03/23/12
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "Welsh-born writer-director-editor Gareth Evans ('Merantau') proves a visionary force... It's exhilarating, riveting stuff that fans of high-octane filmmaking should not miss."(See all of Gary Goldstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 219 words, 03/23/12
Lou Lumenick, New York Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "...eye-popping, jaw-dropping and bone-crunching... The action is brutal, bloody and virtually nonstop in this adrenaline-packed riff on 'Assault on Precinct 13.' "(See all of Lou Lumenick's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 414 words, 03/23/12
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...combines the punches, kicks, jabs and krrrrrunches of karate, judo and aggressive Black Friday shopping.... impressive..."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 390 words, 03/23/12
Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine: EXCELLENT "...breathtaking in its sheer propulsive majesty.... about as pure an action film as you're ever likely to see... the film wants to have its cake and eat it, too. It does."(See all of Bilge Ebiri's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 622 words, 03/23/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: POOR(cg) "...almost brutally cynical... director Gareth Evans knows there's a fanboy audience for his formula, in which special effects amp up the mayhem in senseless carnage."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 780 words, 03/23/12
Ernest Hardy, Village Voice/LA Weekly: VERY GOOD "Lean, fast-moving, and filled with game-changing fight sequences that have a brutally beautiful (or beautifully brutal) quality..."(See all of Ernest Hardy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 218 words, 03/21/12
Peter Howell, Toronto Star: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...exhilarating... director Gareth Evans and star Iko Uwais have action chops to spare.... Action directors, the gauntlet has been thrown down."(See all of Peter Howell's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 598 words, 03/23/12
Liam Lacey, Toronto Globe & Mail: VERY GOOD(cg) "By the end of the film, you may involuntarily find your hands wandering up to your face, checking for missing teeth and broken cheekbones."(See all of Liam Lacey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 575 words, 03/23/12
Josep Parera, La Opinion: OUTSTANDING(cg) "La claridad expositiva del director Gareth Huw Evans, también guionista y editor del largometraje, es una muestra de su talento..."(See all of Josep Parera's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 376 words, 03/23/12
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: MODERATE(cg) "It's not for everybody. But it is undeniably cinematic and even kind of thrilling - assuming you can stomach the wall of nauseating sound effects..."(See all of Michael O'Sullivan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 498 words, 03/23/12
Gary Thompson, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a huge buzz movie at Toronto and South by Southwest, contains plenty of visceral thrills... The fights are to the death, and death takes its sweet time."(See all of Gary Thompson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 511 words, 04/06/12
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: OUTSTANDING(cg) "It is 100 percent highly concentrated whoop-ass, and it is sensational.... There are stunt set pieces here that will be talked about for years..."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 393 words, 03/30/12
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a bracing, exhilarating affair, but it's also exhausting.... overkill is what Evans is selling, and fans of martial-arts films will gladly buy."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 599 words, 04/13/12
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...poised at the midway point between an ultraviolent video game and a neo-classic dance musical. As midnight-movie mash-ups go, it's pretty amazing."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 649 words, 03/30/12
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: MODERATE(cg) "There are people, but no real characters. There are grunts, but no real dialogue. There are just body parts, twisted into peculiar positions... while the music pounds away."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 563 words, 03/23/12
David Lewis, San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "...claustrophobic, tense, ultraviolent - and fun.... the story has enough twists and turns to keep things interesting, not to mention a brilliant, pulsating score..."(See all of David Lewis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 248 words, 03/23/12
Shawn Levy, Portland Oregonian: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a boggling spectacle of raw thrills that should make other directors ashamed of calling their work 'action movies.' "(See all of Shawn Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 716 words, 03/30/12
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...built on shaky and blood-soaked ground, but if towering technique is all you want from an action movie, then yippee-ki-yay."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 290 words, 04/13/12
Steve Persall, Tampa Bay Times: EXCELLENT(cg) "People die messy and masterful... a movie so violently entertaining that it could slide by without a plot but attempts one anyway."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 352 words, 04/12/12
Tom Long, Detroit News: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...an all-out assault of a film, the kind of thriller that leaves you shaking your head in disbelief.... sheer action ecstasy."(See all of Tom Long's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 323 words, 04/06/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (11 Reviews)
Ernest Hardy, Village Voice/LA Weekly: VERY GOOD "Lean, fast-moving, and filled with game-changing fight sequences that have a brutally beautiful (or beautifully brutal) quality..."(See all of Ernest Hardy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 218 words, 03/21/12
Eric Eisenberg, Cinema Blend: EXCELLENT(cg) "Evans' film plays fast and loose with physics and biology and the end result is a true thrill ride and one hell of an experience."(See all of Eric Eisenberg's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 541 words, 03/23/12
Peter Keough, Boston Phoenix: VERY GOOD(cg) "Everything that American directors do wrong in action movies, Gareth Huw Evans does right... the wit is in how they use their fists and feet and whatever else comes..."(See all of Peter Keough's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 257 words, 03/29/12
Noel Murray, AV Club: EXCELLENT(cg) "...blisteringly quick, designed to make the audience gasp, and then cheer. My only real beef with the film is that there's no real variation in tone or plot from start to finish."(See all of Noel Murray's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 223 words, 01/21/12
Cynthia Fuchs, Pop Matters: EXCELLENT(cg) "You're here to see shooting and kicking, neck snapping and back breaking, flips and falls, as well as a series of brilliantly choreographed battles."(See all of Cynthia Fuchs's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 782 words, 03/23/12
Alison Willmore, Movieline: VERY GOOD(cg) "...so much ass is kicked over 'The Raid's' 100 minutes that viewers may feel a little bruised themselves... a remind of just how wonderfully cinematic violence can be."(See all of Alison Willmore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 860 words, 03/22/12
Jaime N. Christley, Slant: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...isn't long on good looks. Some might say the lo-fi aesthetic complements the bargain-shopper purity of the premise and execution; others might say ugly is ugly."(See all of Jaime N. Christley's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 521 words, 03/17/12
Curt Holman, Atlanta Creative Loafing: EXCELLENT(cg) "...it goes for the gut like few films since the heyday of John Woo... a jaw-dropping showreel of the Indonesian martial art of silat..."(See all of Curt Holman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 628 words, 04/05/12
MaryAnn Johanson, Flick Filosopher: POOR(cg) "...a flick that deploys bloody brutality to a cast of anonymous characters to make no point beyond 'Ain't asskicking cool?' Except it isn't."(See all of MaryAnn Johanson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 282 words, 05/18/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (4 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: FAIR "...the way that Mr. Evans visually exploits the martial art pencak silat in combination with the unimaginative rest soon makes the movie grindingly monotonous..."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 373 words, 03/23/12
Mark Jenkins, NPR: VERY GOOD "...this electrifying movie isn't just a collection of gory moments. It actually goes somewhere.... notable simply for its technical skill and storytelling mastery."(See all of Mark Jenkins's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 587 words, 03/22/12
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "Welsh-born writer-director-editor Gareth Evans ('Merantau') proves a visionary force... It's exhilarating, riveting stuff that fans of high-octane filmmaking should not miss."(See all of Gary Goldstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 219 words, 03/23/12
Andrew O'Hehir, Salon: EXCELLENT "...offers some of the best Asian martial-arts choreography of recent years and an electric... an invigorating and entirely unpretentious legal high."(See all of Andrew O'Hehir's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,003 words, 03/22/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (5 Reviews)
Robert Koehler, Daily Variety: EXCELLENT "...incredible and incredibly violent... offers a continuous sequence of action with a clear and effective premise... The effect is exhilarating..."(See all of Robert Koehler's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 868 words, 09/10/11
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "Welsh-born writer-director-editor Gareth Evans ('Merantau') proves a visionary force... It's exhilarating, riveting stuff that fans of high-octane filmmaking should not miss."(See all of Gary Goldstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 219 words, 03/23/12
Emanuel Levy, Cinema 24/7: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a dynamo adrenaline picture, with non-stop action set-pieces... Problem is, it has very little on its mind by way of theme, plot, characters, and so on."(See all of Emanuel Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 408 words, 03/20/12
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: FAIR "...the way that Mr. Evans visually exploits the martial art pencak silat in combination with the unimaginative rest soon makes the movie grindingly monotonous..."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 373 words, 03/23/12
18.8 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Raid: Redemption's reviews are separated by an average 18.8 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
The Raid: Redemption (42 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Raid: Redemption's reviews cover 50.9% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 20,457 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 487 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 3 Days Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Raid: Redemption's reviews on average broke 3 days before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is The Raid: Redemption's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Raid: Redemption (42 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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