The Raid was one of my favorite movies of last year. You can read my review HERE. I watched it, then immediately watched it again the next day. What director Gareth Evans, and actor Iko Uwais brought to the screen was nothing but pure magic. The fight scenes were unlike anything I’ve seen in a martial arts movie. They were so violent, and raw, and brought an intensity to every frame.
To say that I’m a little happy for a sequel to the Raid, entitled, Berandal, is an understatement. We haven’t heard much news on the film, until today. It seems that production is starting up with a 100-day shooting schedule. The official plot and press release are below, along with a few new images from the making of the film.
Highly-anticipated Actioner “The Raid 2” Starts Production in Jakarta, Indonesia
Los Angeles, CA (January 31, 2013) – PT Merantau Films and XYZ Films announce the start of production for THE RAID 2 (Indonesian title, THE RAID 2: BERANDAL), the sequel to the wildly popular international hit THE RAID (aka THE RAID: REDEMPTION). The film reunites writer/director Gareth Huw Evans with actor Iko Uwais, who will be reprising his starring role. Ario Sagantoro is producing for PT Merantau Films, along with Nate Bolotin, Nick Spicer, Aram Tertzakian and Todd Brown for XYZ Films. Executive producing are Rangga Maya Barack-Evans and Irwan D. Mussry.
In addition to Uwais, the international cast includes Tio Pakusadewo, Putra Arifin Scheunamann, Julie Estelle, Alex Abbad and Roy Marten. The film is currently lensing in Jakarta, Indonesia and is scheduled to shoot for over 100 days. Line producing the film is Daiwanne Ralie, with Matthew Flannery and Dimas Imam Subhono serving as directors of photography.
Picking up right where the first film ends, The Raid 2 follows Rama (Uwais) as he goes undercover and infiltrates the ranks of a ruthless Jakarta crime syndicate in order to protect his family and uncover the corruption in his own police force.
The Raid premiered at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival, where it took home the Audience Award in the Midnight Madness section. It went on to play at Sundance and SXSW, before enjoying a theatrical release in the United States through Sony Pictures Classics. The film is approaching $15M in global box office.
XYZ and PT Mereantau Films are also in post-production on KILLERS, which is co-directed by Timo Tjahjanto and Kimo Stamboel, with Gareth Huw Evans and Rangga Maya Barack-Evans executive producing . Evans and Tjahjanto recently collaborated on SAFE HAVEN, a celebrated segment in the horror anthology film S-VHS, which just premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
XYZ Films recently premiered Calvin Lee Reeder’s THE RAMBLER at Sundance as well.
“We’re incredibly excited to start the next chapter of The Raid story,” said XYZ Films. “Gareth introduced a rich and fertile world in the first film, and we’re eager to see him expand on that vision with Berandal.”
“To all our fans thank you so much for your support. We can’t wait to come back and show you what we have been working on,” said writer/director Gareth Evans. “We’ll be there in 2014 with a film bigger, better and bloodier! Wish us luck.”
Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (SPWA) acquired the film for the United States, Spain, Latin America and South Africa, and Sony Pictures Classics will once again release the film theatrically in the United States.
The Raid 2: Berandal does not have an official release date set, but I would expect it the end of this year, or early next year.
~Chaz
