In this week’s episode of The Filmmakers Podcast, writer-director Gareth Evans chats with host Dom Lenoir about his latest and much-anticipated film, Havoc.
Gareth shared his long journey of bringing Havoc to life, from its initial spark to post-pandemic post-production, while also breaking down his unique approach to action and storytelling.
Reflecting on The Experience
The conversation kicked off with a sincere and honest reflection of the emotional rollercoaster that comes with making and releasing a film. “With every filmmaker, whether they admit it or not,” Gareth says, “there’s always trepidation, confidence, belief, doubt, and everything else.”
He described the pre-release phase as a wave of fluctuating emotions which only settles once he starts receiving audience feedback. “I’m a whole wave of all that stuff until (the film) comes out and people start telling me, on Instagram, how much they love or hate it.”
The Raid to Havoc
Dom, who is a fan of Gareth’s 2011 film The Raid, shared that Havoc was “Honestly, it’s the best thing I’ve seen since The Raid. The Raid was the best thing I’ve seen since that golden age of 80s/ 90s action films. You’re there with Predator, Robocop… enemies annihilated in huge numbers and fully on board in the adrenaline.”
Beaming at the comparison, as most filmmakers would be, Gareth replied by saying, “All of those films I love. To be put in line with them is incredible.”
From A Single Idea to A Film
Havoc began with a single image. “All I had, back then, was this image of a crime scene with a dead triad boss, a bunch of coke on the table from a drug deal gone bad, and a cop in the crime scene scooping cocaine into a coffee cup,” he laughs. “I didn’t know why he was doing it… Other than, it was an intriguing image.”This image was the basis on which the film evolved.
For Gareth, it was a “love letter to the Hong Kong Heroic bloodshed genre.” He grew up watching these films and found inspiration from directors like John Woo, Ringo Lam, and Johnnie To.
“I wanted to make something breakneck fast and relentless,” he says. Netflix loved the pitch, and “so that began months of finding songs that would inspire me, tone-wise, emotion-wise wise or pace-wise, as I started fleshing out this idea and doing more writing work. It began in the most organic, natural way possible. And then we had the action design, and then brought on board the cast who brought a lot to it as well.”
The Luxury of Time
Havoc was filmed during the height of the pandemic, meaning that the project faced several delays.
“We wanted to do a week or two of pickups,” Gareth explains, “but we couldn’t get everyone back together. Then we got hit by the strikes.”
Two and a half years passed before the team could complete the film. “It was this weird thing where we were sat on a film I could not wait to share, watching other action films come out, praying there was nothing similar.”
Ironically, the delay became a blessing for them.
“It gifted us a luxury we wouldn’t have had otherwise,” Gareth admits. “It allowed me to look at the film fresh. This gifted me the luxury of being able to go back and rewatch it a bunch of times, with enough space and distance to get to the heart of what was necessary and important.”
Making Action Films
For Gareth, the geography of action is non-negotiable.
Dom mentioned that “as an audience, as soon as you’re disoriented, you lose immersion.” And Gareth agreed, referring to The Wild Bunch. “ Me and my dad have watched it countless times. If you carefully look at every shot choice, it tells you where they are positioned. Having that knowledge it’s like being given a map in your subconscious. You’re never lost.”
The tone and aesthetic of Havoc were also deeply intentional. Inspired by the grit of ’70s American crime films like The French Connection and Thief, Gareth and DP Matt Flannery aimed for raw texture. “ I wanted grit and texture, not only in the aesthetic of the film, but also in the production design. We were always looking for dirt when it snowed… it had to be slush… driven through, we wanted all that grime and texture imbued across the city.”
Yet, amidst the grit, “there’s beauty to it,” Dom notes, comparing the lights, atmosphere and haze of the industrial charm to Blade Runner. Gareth agrees, sharing that it “ wasn’t going to be a fun journey into the night… This was going to be the darker parts of the city.”
You can listen to the full episode with Gareth Evans here.