Written by Linda
February 04, 2010
District 13: Ultimatum is a series of fantastic action sequences held together by a pretty cheesy and predictable plot. But did I mention the action sequences are really cool?
I have not yet seen the original District 13, a French film that exploded onto the scene in 2004, introducing international action fans to the physical art of parkour. Let me explain: According to Wikipedia (the source of all that is true, according to the wise world of the internets), parkour is the physical discipline of training to overcome any obstacle within one's path by adapting one's movements to the environment. In plain English, this skill allows one to be able to run up walls, take a running leap to slither through an impossibly small window, or to literally between tall buildings with a single bound. Simply put, parkour is really really cool to watch, and is especially thrilling when you know that the stunts in the film were done without the aid of wires or CGI.
In Paris, in the year 2016, District 13 in the city has been reduced to poverty, violence, and chaos. The district is basically a ghetto for the immigrant population, and has become a warring ground between Africans, Asians, Muslims, and everyone else that lives in the sorry government-built high rises. But a nasty developer, in cahoots with bad eggs from the government itself, wants to wipe out District 13 and all the riff-raff, and rebuild the area as the next middle-class burb. The problem is that there are a few million people already living there, and many of them, we quickly learn, are badasses.
District 13: Ultimatum reunites good cop Damien Tomaso (Cyril Raffaelli, who looks like a more slender, sexier Vin Diesel) with District 13 dweller Leïto (David Belle, who happens to be a founder of parkour... and it shows). Without seeing the first movie, it was a little unclear to me whether Leïto was a cop, ex-cop, ex-thug, or just a guy. No need to sit and wonder about it though, because the action is what matters. For instance, watch Damien fight of wave after wave of bad guys by swinging around and original Van Gogh painting. And at the end of the fight? Not a scratch on the masterpiece! (Nice!) Or watch Leïto jump, slither, and slide off of buildings, outrunning a gang of bad cops. "How did he escape?" demands their boss. Errr... he is extremely "agile," they sheepishly say. No shit!
Surprisingly, it is the last half hour or so where the movie kind of tumbles and falls in its momentum. When badassery should be at its ultimate ass-kicking peak, they start... talking? And it is whenever people start talking in this sequel the film runs out of steam because the cheesy underlayer is exposed.
From perusing the web, it seems pretty unanimous that District 13: Ultimatum is an inferior sequel to the original movie. That said, even for the uninitiated like myself, Ultimatum still offers some eye-boggling action that is fresh and entertaining.
