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Watch This: Gareth Evans' Kick Ass Homemade Samurai Short Film

by Alex Billington
January 26, 2016
Source: YouTube

This is badass! The Raid 1 & 2 director Gareth Evans has released a short film online that he produced entirely on his own. It's a short samurai film shot in Wales that is a test sequence to prove that they can film action similar to The Raid films but with a PG-13 rating. The main cast includes Hannah Al Rashid, Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman. This isn't anything more than a test sequence, but it's awesome to see and hopefully good inspiration for filmmakers trying to figure out how to shoot action. I dig the black & white style, as it allows the viewer to appreciate the composition. I'm a fan of Gareth Evans (watch my interview from a few years ago) and I think he's one of the most talented action directors making films today. Enjoy!

Storyline from YouTube: In a time of civil war, a young warrior is given the task of delivering a treaty between two rival lords. During her journey through the woods however, she finds herself hunted by two assassins intent on intercepting her message of peace in a bid to maintain the fear, instability and violent rule of their leader. This is a "test action sequence designed by Yayan Ruhian, Cecep Arif Rahman and Gareth Evans. It was designed in a bid to create choreography that maintains the style and rhythm set out in their prior work (The Raid 1&2) while staying within the parameters of a PG-13/12A audience friendly certification." It was shot on location in Wales with a Sony NEX-7 camera and "only the Director and Cast."

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13 Comments

The man is obsessed with Asian stuff! He kind of reminds me of The RZA, but talented.

DAVIDPD on Jan 26, 2016

I want to see more! Lol - yes, he definitely has more talent behind the camera than Rza.

DarkMatter on Jan 26, 2016

Yeah Evans is the far better director, but RZA is probably the better rapper though.

bumboclot on Jan 27, 2016

Undoubtedly.

DAVIDPD on Jan 28, 2016

I liked it, but parts seemed to clean, also the guys were pretty rubbish at working as a team and took too long to die. Some cool shots though.

Carpola on Jan 26, 2016

Wow..very impressive..I think Gareth will be perfect for ninja scroll.

Aaron on Jan 26, 2016

Agreed...

Scopedog on Jan 28, 2016

The fact they're dressed like Samurai holding Katanas doesn't make it a samurai movie (as the title implies). It's clearly a mix of Kung-fu & Chinese fighting, nothing to do with samurai & budo.

Giannis on Jan 26, 2016

Mostly the type of Indonesian fighting style from the Raid movies. I don't think they were going for authentic Samurai moves so much.

bumboclot on Jan 27, 2016

I'm not convinced its shot in Wales.

Steven on Jan 27, 2016

I love how Gareth Evans shoots his action scenes. Interesting camera movements but not to the point of being confusing. Just waiting to see what big budget movie he ends up doing down the line.

bumboclot on Jan 27, 2016

Swords on back, terrible US movie-only idea. Two Katana at once, terrible. Skills employed, terrible. Why did anyone find this remotely "good"?

Drestin Black on Jan 28, 2016

It's just an experimental thing. Culture and japanese real swordplay aside, it is "good" movie.

Khamim Noise on Jan 28, 2016

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