After years in development hell, Timo Tjahjanto’s long-awaited The Night Comes For Us finally hits Netflix
If you a regular reader on here then chances are, you’ve known about this film longer than most of the world. I was still expressing concern that we would never get to see The Night Comes For Us back in 2013. So, the wait is finally over. What did I think of Tjahjanto’s latest entry into the Indonesian world of extreme martial arts and knife-wielding mayhem?.
The first thing I noticed was that Gareth Evans’ name was nowhere to be seen. Maybe I got the info wrong but at the start of production, Evans was supposed to be involved. He was to co-produce the feature under his Merantau Pictures banner. He was also meant to be directing the action scenes. However, involved or not, this had zero effect on The Night Comes For Us. This was also the first Indonesian production to be produced by Netflix. After the huge success of this film, I can see Netflix producing a lot more movies from that part of the world.
Triad enforcer, Ito (Joe Taslim) has a sudden change of heart when ordered to wipe-out and massacre the entire population of a quiet fishing village. His actions come with severe consequences as the Triads he once worked for have now turned against him and want him dead.
The action scenes and level of violence in this are just insane. It was worth the long 5/6 year wait. Iko Uwais (The Raid movies) who also co-stars choreographed the whole thing. His work and talent are really on a different level. Not only is Uwais the new face of extreme martial arts, but he’s also responsible for creating these painfully realistic action sequences.
Iko Uwais makes movies like John Wick or The Equalizer look like rom-coms
One thing I did notice though, man, these Indonesians can sure take a bullet. These guys and girls are so bad-ass they’re almost like super-humans. For example, Ito runs and slides to take cover behind a table. The bad guys are emptying their machine guns at him. We can clearly see his legs and feet which are still exposed under the table. But somehow, they manage to miss him entirely. If you can get over these minor flaws then you’re in for one of the best action movies of the decade.
We also get to see Julie Estelle (Hammergirl from The Raid 2) back in action. I think her talent was sorely underused in Tjahjanto’s previous movie, Headshot. Estelle certainly makes up for it in The Night Comes For Us. She’s as every bit important for this new wave of extreme martial arts as Iko Uwais and co. The female fight scenes in this are as brutal and unforgiving as they come.
Not a perfect film. But, it’s that action-packed and chaotic you forget any flaws due to the constant flow of blood, gore, limb-chopping and machinegun shredding.
7½ Machete Chops Out Of 10
Words by Gary Gamble Found/Owner/BigCheese @ Moviehooker
