Timo Tjahjanto continues to reach new action heights with every new film and ‘The Shadow Strays’ continues this trend with violent aplomb. Following action juggernauts ‘The Night Comes for Us’ and ‘The Big 4’, ‘The Shadow Strays’ sees Timo back on familiar territory as he dives into the world of deadly assassins and vengeful killers.

Aurora Ribero plays 13, a young expert killer working for a group of shadow ops assassins who, after almost botching a recent hit on a clan of Yakuza, is forced to sit out the next mission and recuperate. Frustrated at her slight lapse in judgement and missing out on the next mission, 13 soon puts her substantial combat skills to use when her young neighbour, Monji (Ali Fikray), goes missing after the recent murder of his drug addled mother. 13 discovers he’s been taken by a trio of nasty gangsters (one of them a corrupt cop, the other the son of the soon to be governor, and the other a vicious drug dealer) who don’t want any loose ends fingering them in the murder of Monji’s mother. 13 thus makes it her mission to free Monji and teach the evil trio a lesson: they massively underestimating the ferocious skills of 13 as she cuts her way through Jakarta.

Opening with an incredibly bloody and sustained action scene showing 13 and her instructor Umbra (Hana Malasan) laying waste to Yakuza scum (and action so good it would be the finale in most other action films!), Timo and his team let fly with a dark tale of merciless justice. While he introduced a somewhat lighter tone in ‘The Big 4’ (that film was still excessively violent and action-packed though!), Timo returns to the oppressively dark underworld of assassins, corrupt officials, and violent retribution more in line with his seminal ‘The Night Comes for Us’. While this doesn’t quite reach the heady heights of that classic or the even better (to this reviewer at least!) ‘The Big 4’, ‘The Shadow Strays’ gives it a good go and once 13 embarks on her quest, the violent action rarely lets up.

Timo reteams with his go-to action guy, Muhammad Ifran, and along with the rest of his crew, once again show they’re some of the best in the business at orchestrating on-screen action. From the opening salvo (which is so good, Timo has a hard time topping it!), to 13 cutting through swarms of assailants, to the epic one-on-one beatdown finale, ‘The Shadow Strays’ showcases some marvellously crisply choreographed and violently mounted action. It’s relentlessly bloody and stabby (and may be a bit much for those not as used to blood-soaked action) but fantastically staged and wonderfully satisfying for hardcore action fans.

Aurora Ribero is phenomenal as the young, supercharged assassin, determined to complete the self-given mission of rescuing her young neighbour friend. Fluid and frantic in the action scenes, she carries the film on her slight frame, completely convincing as a ruthless killer. Likewise, she’s backed up by the equally great Hana Malasan as her fellow killer and instructor, the two cutting through swaths of Japanese bad guys in hi-tech ninja gear with gleeful ferocity. The set-up and subsequent narrative may be a bit thin and overly familiar to some (deadly assassin befriends youngster and then has to protect/rescue them!) but Timo injects the film with his signature style, momentum, and creativity, making this female lead action flick one of the best of recent years. There’s a late act inclusion of the other members of 13’s team who find themselves caught up in all her revenge-fueled antics that keeps proceedings interesting, but action is the name of the game here and the film really does soar when Timo lets his cast and crew cut loose.