Raid, The: Redemption

The Raid: Redemption takes place in the heart of Jakarta's slums where an impenetrable safe house is operated by the world's most dangerous killers and gangsters. Until now, the rundown apartment block has been considered untouchable. Cloaked under the cover of predawn darkness and silence, an elite swat team is tasked with raiding the safe house in order to take down the notorious drug lord that runs it. But when a chance encounter with a spotter blows their cover and news of their assault reaches the drug lord, they find themselves stranded on the 6th floor with no way out. The unit must fight their way through the city's worst to survive their mission. (Gary Reber)

Special features include commentary with Writer/Director Gareth Evans; six Gareth Evans behind-the-scenes video blogs (HD 39:32); Inside The Score trailer teaser for Mike Shinoda's first feature film (HD 01:23); the following featurettes: Behind The Music (HD 11:05), An Evening With Gareth Evans, Mike Shinoda, and Joe Trapanese (HD 11:05), An Anatomy Of A Scene (HD 02:15), Claycat's The Raid (HD 02:56) plus four Inconversation with Gareth Evans and Mike Shinoda featurettes (HD 11:30); "The Raid TV Show Ad (circa 1994)" (HD 00:44); the theatrical trailer; upfront previews; and an UltraViolet digital copy.

The 1.78:1 1080p AVC picture is rawly photographed digitally to convey a cinematic edginess and heighten the sensation of intense killing, violence, and death. The color palette is heavily tinged with grayish hues, which distort the naturalness of fleshtones. Colors are generally muted and undersaturated. Contrast is crushed with undefined blacks and poor shadow delineation. Resolution is generally soft throughout, though, close-ups of facial features, hair, clothing, and object texture at times exhibits detail. Overall, this is a mediocre picture experience, but the imagery certainly conveys an intense sense of terror. (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is an intense sonic experience, with an aggressive surround presence heightened with directionalized atmospherics and sound effects, as well as gunfire and hand-to-hand combat emanating from all directions. Amidst the violent sonics are the quieter moments where dialogue occurs. Generally, dialogue sounds natural (Indonesian or English dubbed). The LFE .1 channel effectively intensifies the more violent scenes with deep bass sonics. The techno-synthesizer tinged music score nicely supports the on-screen storytelling with a wide and deep soundstage that extends aggressively to the surrounds and throughout the soundfield. This is an effective and intense sonic experience that keeps the violent storytelling on course to the bitter end. (Gary Reber)