Bad News: Gareth Evans Shoots Down THE RAID 3
Gareth Evans is one of our favorite filmmakers, mostly because his Raid movies are two of the greatest action showcases of all time. The Indonesian Silat-fueled duology of devastating dude-destruction is a true high water mark in the genre's modern era, and we've been patiently waiting for Evans to follow-up The Raid 2 for four years now.
Well, Evans' Apostle just destroyed audiences at Fantastic Fest (read our review here), and the writer/director dropped by to chat with a few of us (look for BMD's full interview soon). While speaking with /Film, he unfortunately shot down a third Raid film, despite rumors about a trilogy-capper coming seemingly since the credits rolled on The Raid 2. Evans said:
"The Raid and The Raid 2 were incredible for me, but I just didn’t want to be doing The Raid(s) all the time. And the more time has gone on from that, the less interested I’ve been to go back there. What we did with The Raid 2 we kinda close that off nicely, so it didn’t really appeal to me to jump back into that world again.”
I mean, it's not hard to wrap your head around that rationale (not to mention respect it). The Raid 2 does have a perfect ending, bringing the epic journey of Iko Uwais' undercover cop to a satisfying close. Why return and possibly deliver a third installment that some could find lackluster?
Plus, wait until you folks see The Night Comes For Us, which is essentially the Raid films mixed with a Johnnie To greatest hits record (read Evan's review here). The latest from Gareth's V/H/S 2 compadre Timo Tjahjanto, it's a total "hold my beer" moment, as if Timo (along with Uwais and Joe Taslim) is trying to one-up his buddy in the insanity department (and, to be honest, might actually best both Raid pictures). You like heroic bloodshed? How about just bloodshed? Well then Netflix has the movie for you.
As mentioned above, we're going to have a full chat with Evans coming right here. He's one of the most amiable, astute purveyors of cinematic carnage working today, and had a lot of smart things to say, both about Apostle and his general approach to violent filmmaking. Look for that soon!
