A young member of an elite group of assassins goes rogue to save the son of her neighbour in The Shadow Strays. Codename 13 (Aurora Ribero) is the member of an elite group of mercenary assassins known as “Shadows.” 13 gets sloppy when she feels empathy on a mission in Japan and is instructed by her instructor Umbra (Hana Malasan) to return to Jakarta and await further instructions. However, when her neighbour is murdered and young son Monji is kidnapped, 13 goes on a search for the criminals responsible, leaving a trailer for bodies behind.
The Shadow Strays Synopsis
The Shadow Strays is an Indonesian action-crime thriller written and directed by Timo Tjahjanto (Headshot, V/H/S/2). The film focuses on a female assassin, simply named Codename 13, who is told to lay low after she is nearly killed on a mission in Japan. However, 13’s empathy for others gets the best of her when she has discovered that Monji, the orphaned son of her murdered neighbour has gone missing, and a henchman named Jeki is ramsacking the apartment. With the reluctant help of Jeki, Codename 13 dives headfirst into a criminal underworld run by Ariel, the crazed son of the current candidate for governor.
My Thoughts on The Shadow Strays
In its most simplistic description, The Shadow Strays is an incredibly bloody film that is the female-led equivalent to The Raid. Similar to how The Raid film was a breakthrough for Iko Uwais, The Shadow Strays should do the same for Aurora Ribero, who partakes in some very impresessive action sequences. While the film as a whole is entertaining, my only real criticism that the purpose of this nearly two and a half film is to set up a franchise, complete with a midcredits scene, featuring a very familiar face. However, The Shadow Strays is still highly recommended for fans of violent action films.
