The Night Comes For Us tells the story of an elite group of six men and women whose identities are unknown. They are called the Six Seas. They are commissioned by the Triad Leaders to maintain order over their empire by extreme measures. Allowed to work on the fringes of the Triad organisation, these elite enforcers leave nothing but death behind them. The problem is if you are a member of the Six Seas you can never leave the family – the only way out is death.
As far as action movies go, The Night Comes For Us breaks new boundaries. It pushes the violence well above anything that has ever been seen before. This makes the ultra-violent action movies that come out of Hollywood look like kids tv in comparison. Timo Tjahjanto wrote and directed this movie and is a huge horror fan himself. He has credits for films such as V/H/S.
The Night Comes For Us is a martial arts masterpiece however he really pushes the gore factor. In fact this film verges on becoming a slash horror. It certainly makes some of the most extreme horrors look quite tame. Visually this film is incredible with Gunnar Nimpuno heading up the cinematography. He demonstrates some amazing camera work using wide frame in the huge fight scenes so that the viewer misses none of the epic action.
The cast is huge, but very few make it to the end of the story alive. However, the main characters are incredibly diverse and cast brilliantly. Joe Taslim is fantastic as Ito who moves from one bloody fight scene to the next. He is genuinely terrifying. Iko Uwais carries the same presence on screen. Julie Estelle is a real stand out though we never really get to the bottom of her character. One fight scene against two assassins is insane – fingers pulled off, bowels hanging out – that sort of crazy!
This film takes your breath away at times. The shock factor is through the roof. There is little if any CGI used in this film, just amazingly choreographed fight scenes. Classically shot, they just make the extremely brutal violence seem more real. It has an 18 certificate and deserves it. It is not for the faint-hearted and certainly not for the kids. You wouldn't watch a Timo Tjahjanto movie if you are looking to watch something lighthearted anyway.
As far as action movies go though, this film is going to be talked about for years. It has raised the bar so high it will be hard to get above it. If you are looking for a real badass all-out action movie, then you must watch this. It is a new release on Netfix (Released – 19th October 2018) easily one of their best movies yet.
