A film that could go coolly under the radar as another installment in the throng of Martial Arts films coming out of Indonesia in the last 10 years has thankfully been priased by critics as "The Best Action Movie In Decades", "No frills and all thrills" and "not just a guilty pleasure action flick but a cinematic experience."

Although Roger Ebert isn`t a fan I found myself sucked in to the simplistic character detail from the off. Welsh Writer/Director/Editor Gareth Evans wastes no time in spoonfeeding an audience savvy enough to grasp the legitimacy of our hero: Iko Uwais´ fight for survival. In the opening scene, the audience is given the beautifully bare minimum needed to comprehend A) our character`s dedication to his craft and B) his hunger to survive. Such simple but well chosen shots will already tell you that this is pure cinema.

Our hero: Rama trains to the incessant bleeting of his alarm clock before bidding goodbye to his pregnant wife and where do we find him next? BAM! In the SWAT Van along with his surprised friends and colleagues being told that they are about to undertake the most dangerous day`s work in the city - invading a tower block operated by the most notorious criminal in Jakarta and extracting him. Little do they know of the real motives behind such a suicide mission where nearly every apartment in said block is inhabited by a violent fugitive.

And so the story goes. At first, everything goes according to plan, taking down the block room by room, silently arresting each of the residents until the trigger is flipped and the boss is informed of the policial "infestation" spreading through the criminals` home sweet home.

Evans trick really is to trust in his audience`s intelligence, perfectly executed in the opening act as the mission appears to be succeeding. Shots are broken down by his enzymatic eye into only what must be seen to understand. The direction is lean and unforgiving, it grips you as an audience member, forcing you to pay attention to every minor detail. This does leave you slightly unsymapthetic when few continuity errors do occur. But that said, it is rare to pass judgement on the contunuity department and this lot did a pretty good job.

As the shit hits the fan the bullets start flying and just as you begin to think, this bunch must be hiding ammunition up their jacksies, the machetes, survival knives and bare fists come into play really bringing the talent of the cast and stunts team to the foreground. Not that the gunplay isn`t satisfying. It tops any Expendables style absurdity tenfold. But the terrifying prowess of the Indonesian martial art Pencak Silat is showcased in scenes reminiscent but much more deadly than those seen in films such as Ong-Bak, particularly the bouts involving character Mad Dog (suitably stereotypical character name but portrayed by - one of - the immensely kick-ass, tight lipped fight choreographers: Yayan Ruhian). Though some of the fights do surpass reality it must be said that each maintains a grittiness that never turns you off as so many Crouching Tiger-style Martial Arts films do to me.

It`s clear that yes, this is an ACTION movie first and foremost but for the Eberts who claim there`s not enough story in here to fill a thimble, I would sorely disagree. Sure, there`s not much dialogue but does dialogue make a script? This is notable a wise choice on Evans part as he was writing for translation - why overcomplicate? And when it does come, it packs a punch - "Squeezing a trigger is like ordering takeout." The twists are various, unexpected and well-paced but the heart of the story truly bookends this low-budget cinematic actioner. And best of all the primary theme rings true and left me as an audience member thinking of my own family, not just the awesome action explosion I had witnessed.

One of the few disappointments I had after much personal anticipation for this film was the Mike Shinoda (of Linkin Park) soundtrack. Once the film was picked up for distribution in the States, Sony Pictures put Mike Shinoda to work on the score and as a big Park fan this was a great selling point for me and surely many others. More and more these days we are seeing films accompanied by heart-shredding electro-scores composed by well known artists, Attack The Block - Felix Buxton of Basement Jaxx and Hannah - Chemical Bros, for example. But what Shinoda doesn`t seem to realise is that dubstep doesn`t fit the majority of the scenes in this instance. I would be happier to see the original Indonesian score on my next viewing, which will no doubt come around soon. That said, Shinoda`s score is decent, just not anything to stand against the example of what the Chemical Bros did for Joe Wright in Hannah. But the over-credits tracks are interesting.

With The Raid Gareth Evans has proved himself to be a shining light in a competitive future for modern filmmakers. With such wide consumer access to high end digital recording it`s tough for filmmakers to feel original when well "everyone`s doing it". Similar to other Brit-filmmakers Peter Strickland and Gareth Edwards, Gareth Evans boils his story right down and translates it to an almost exotic and hallucinatory locations and cultures giving it wider appeal than something that could be more homegrown. It just goes to prove that the age-old remedy is still the same: if you want to be a filmmaker, all you need is a camera and a lot of willpower. Oh, and some kick-ass Martial Arts experts always helps.

The Raid was shot on the Panasonic AF100