It’s insane to consider that The Raid: Redemption turns 12 this year and that it remains largely unmatched since as a relentless, fist-pumping triumph of pure, unadulterated hand-to-hand combat. Remember when it was going to be remade with the Hemsworth brothers? Good lord.

Also maddening over the past decade-plus is how many opportunities Hollywood has botched with its breakout star, Iko Uwais. Mile 22, Stuber, Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins, Expend4bles, that utterly useless appearance in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (alongside Yayan Ruhian, who co-stars in The Raid: Redemption as the unforgettably savage Mad Dog). There is nothing glorious about that trail of dead.

At least we’ve had the overrated but certainly strong The Night Comes For Us and the resplendently rowdy Headshot along the way for Uwais and John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum for Ruhian. There is also, of course, 2014’s The Raid: Berandal, in which Welsh writer / director / editor / co-choreographer Gareth Huw Evans reunited Uwais and Ruhian for an excellent expansion of the original film’s chaos. In this original outing, scrappy Jakarta SWAT cops take on floors and scores of criminals overseen by the vicious gangster Tama (Ray Sahetapy) using largely their feet, fists, heads and knives.

Uwais and Ruhian choreographed the lion’s share of the combat in The Raid: Redemption, which Evans has given a square-one audiovisual remaster for a 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray issued this week. That release is available in gorgeous steelbook packaging that depicts heroic Rama (Uwais) gazing upon the skyscraper full of scumbags through which he will scurry.

The previous Blu-ray transfer carried a flat, silver-purple tint that lacked crisp definition. That disc’s sound mix let the bullets of a first-act firefight thunder and zing around the room but dialed down all dynamics after the ammunition ran out.

On the new 4K, the Dolby Atmos audio mix only enhances the adrenalized aggression of the Indonesian martial art pencak silat — which marries the foot-fist way to joint manipulation, throwing, bladed weapons and other moves that appear to dole out permanent debilitation.

There’s an ominous omniscience to Tama’s building-wide intercom entreaty for his ceaseless supply of cockroach lackeys to “enjoy yourselves” during their machete mow-downs. Overhead directional precision makes it feel like bullets are raining from above. And the electronic soundscapes of the international version’s score (composed by Joe Trapanese and Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda) now burble with uninterrupted oomph and purpose. 

The sound of silence is also a standout in this Atmos mix, as you can almost hear the plaster settling in the whispery aftermath of an early explosion. And the climactic three-man battle royale featuring Ruhian’s Mad Dog finally gets the audible majesty it deserves, complete with a subwoofer hit on every blow to bloodied flesh. (The 4K disc offers two Indonesian / Bahasa Atmos tracks and two Indonesian / Bahasa DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks; you can choose from the Trapanese / Shinoda score and the original Indonesian soundtrack in either audio format, and there are also English and Castilian Spanish dubs in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1.)

As for the new video transfer: Purists are welcome to complain about a dramatic difference from the color timing they’ve known for a decade, but they’re just being proscriptive scolds. Evans supervised this transfer himself, so it’s difficult to argue that it doesn’t represent his ultimate, and preferred, vision for the film. Deeper blacks push the hallways of the tenement building into longer, darker and more dangerous territory. The brief blasts of fluorescent color inside its apartments pop with more ferocity than ever. And despite some soft elements to occasional scenes (reminders that this was a low-budget endeavor after all), the sweat gleams, stray fabrics, shimmering blood and stippled floors are all excellently detailed. Frankly, this 4K transfer is like staring at God before he drops you with a flying neck break.

Special features are ported part and parcel from the previous 2012 Blu-ray release (which is also included in the package, as if to illustrate the comprehensive nature of the A/V cleanup). Those extras include:

  • Feature-length audio commentary from Evans
  • Roughly 40 minutes of behind-the-scenes video blogs that cover the film’s weapons and fight training, location, camera and lighting, makeup and visual effects, set design, fight choreography and post-production
  • A moderated Q&A with Evans, Shinoda and Trapanese
  • A featurette on Shinoda and Trapanese’s score
  • A breakdown of the hole drop scene
  • A roughly 10-minute assemblage of conversations between Evans and Shinoda
  • Two amusing sidebars — a “remake” of the film with Claymation cats and a throwback animated ad for the film.

The Raid: Redemption never lets up until its closing credits, which would initially seem to amuse with credits like “Hole Drop Attacker #7” and “Drug Lab’s Guard #21.” But as the nameless bad guys accumulate in dizzying numbers, it’s just a reminder of the still-unrivaled rush the film provides all these years later, and this 4K presentation is a must-own.