For those who don’t know, District 13: Ultimatum is the sequel to the 2004 film District 13 (aka Banlieue 13) a movie dedicated to highlighting “Parkour,” the physical discipline of running, climbing, jumping etc. as quickly and efficiently as possible through urban landscapes.
The actual plot of the first film involved a street punk named Leïto (David Belle, founder of Parkour) running, jumping and acrobating his way through the worst ghetto (District B13) in Paris, in order to stop a neutron bomb and save his sister. This sequel finds Leïto and his cop ally Damien returning to the walled-off ghetto of D13 two years later, trying to end the five-way gang war and bring peace to the sector before government goons frag everybody living behind the wall.
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The diligent journalists of Row 3 tell us District 13: Ultimatum will be getting an Region 2 DVD release in the UK in late October. Fat lot of good that does me.
Ah well, for now I guess I’ll have to live vicariously through this wild trailer:
District 13: Ultimatum Official Trailer (English)
Parkour, when done well, is very impressive. Showing off physical skills has been the thrust of the entire kung-fu genre since its inception, so why shouldn’t the French get a crack at it? As mentioned, District 13 is the follow up to the successful Banlieue 13, which was also a movie that gave guys an excuse to hop through tiny windows to escape evildoers. Patrick Alessandrin, the film’s director, has helmed a handful of other french movies, including Mauvais esprit (2003) and apparently is not limited to movies about Parkour. That’s a good sign. David Belle, the man credited with founding Parkour, is one of the stars of the film. Sounds like a movie worth checking out – if you find yourself in a British version of Blockbuster any time this winter.
No official word on an American theatrical or dvd release, but the bold clairvoyants over at Row 3 have predicted a stateside release next year.
So do you think Parkour is enough to keep audiences entertained for the feature film-length of District 13: Ultimatum?
Bonus question: given that Hollywood seems happy to thow anything at all at American audiences (Because my answer to the first question was something like, “the film can’t be any worse than The Final Destination“), would you say that anything that’s expected to make money is a go? Or must studio-backed movies must meet certain standards regarding arc, conflict, etc. (even if it ends up being garbage)?
We’ll keep you posted on when you can expect to see District 13: Ultimatum stateside.
Source: Row 3 & District 13 Official Website
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18 Comments
The sequel was very disappointing. I’m a huge fan of both Cyril and David Belle and have been following their careers for a long time. B13 was a great action film. Horrible story, mediocre acting but AMAZING action sequences.
The director of the sequel does not know how to capture action or Parkour. Too many fast cuts. Doesn’t make sense in the context of a Parkour action scene.
But ppl should still buy the DVD and make this movie famous because Cyril and David Belle are very underrated stuntmen and they need more work.
Btw, David Belle, with a little more acting, would’ve been perfect for Prince of Persia. He can do most of the stuff in the game without using wires/cgi.
The first one was mediocre anyway. I can’t understand why people rave about it so much, its almost as crappy as the Great Challenge.
oh phew! I thought it was a sequel to District 9.
SIN
If the action/fighting/parkour scenes didn’t capture your attention, the I don’t know what to tell you.
They were original, innovative and held you on the edge of your seat. Well I guess my seat.
No stupid CGi, no Wire Fu. The fight therefore looked great.
Cryil and Belle are damn talented and made everything look smooth and realistic.
The fight at the end was a little anti-climactic but nonetheless, the action in the movie made me an instant fan.
Having seen it and having loved the first one I just had to comment on the movie.
Ultimatum isn’t very good unfortunately, the action scenes (hand-to-hand and parkour) are done well but as mentioned the direction is poor with cuts in the middle of what could’ve been great single-shot moments. The story is absurd and a little preachy at the end. The two main stars though are very good and it would be a pity if they didn’t get better work to exploit their talents.
Overall the film is worth watching as an action film if you like stunts and appreciate the skills required to pull these moves off. I wouldn’t want to pay full price to see it but at a disocunt… yeah, why not.
ogb
Belle would be perfect for PoP now. Gyllenhall or Belle, hmmm no contest for me I’m afraid
Is it called District 13 other than the U.S.,because my copy says “District B13″?
looks sick!
I’ve got District B13 on Dvd and I still haven’t watched it,,,
@ 790
Yeah,it really is one of those movies that you have to be in the mood to watch.
Yeah Longshanks that’s for sure.
Lately I’ve been watching a lot of stand up comedy on Dvd. I did watch “American History X” last night,,, never saw it before, it was amazing.
Wow,you wait this long to see American History X?
I guess better late than never,right?
Yeah that’s how it goes sometimes Longshanks,,,
I just recently (for the first time) watched the entire Jason Bourne trilogy in one weekend…
Just think some of you waited for years for the sequels and I had it all in 48 hours. Muhhh
Hahhahaaa!!!
No but seriously Longshanks, somebody mentioned “American History X” on the latest Hulk thread and then I saw it for $3.99 used,,, picked it up and watched it Friday,,,
Eddie Furlong what happened to that kid?, his performance was right up there,,,
Great film,,,
@ ogb
If that works for you then ok. But Im old school and IMHO Chan did better stuff back in the day (Police Sotry/Crime Story in particular). Maybe the sequel will be better, but I need more than jumping from roof top to roof top to have me on the edge of my seat or to make me care. As I said before it was mediocre and was basically as boring as The Great Challenge was.
SIN
It does work for me. And I’m actually a HUGE Jackie Chan fan (before he came to hollywood). Apples and Oranges though. It’d be hard for Jackie Chan to pull off what David Belle/Cyril do (he’s not as acrobatic) and it’d be REALLY hard for Belle/Cyril to pull off what Jackie Chan does. I like both.
And if that’s all you saw in B13 action scenes, “jumping from roof to roof”, then you might have had a closed mind about it. No wires, no stunt doubles and jumps that are dangerous and sometimes deadly. How can that not keep you on the edge of your seat?
B13 was the best parkour film, which still didn’t do justice to the art itself. But I’d watch that anyday over the horrible mess that was Yamakasi 1 and 2
@ ogb
Mind was opened because I watched it, hoping for something cool and i all I got was rehashed chan stunts for the younger generation. They just did nothing for me regardless of wires and no stuntmen. I disagree on chan not being as acrobatic back in his younger days, and I really believe he would have put them to shame if he was the same age and conditioning as them.
Im not familiar with Ymakasi 1 and 2.
Both movies are GREAT. This is an american website, and americans seem to disrespect whats foreign.
@ Michael
Nice to see you’ve interviewed every American on this website and in america to produce that crap theory.
SIN
I mean I can’t change your opinion so no use arguing. I have the outmost respect for stuntmen/women. It’s a thankless job that contributes a great deal to every movie/tv show/commercial/etc. Seeing David Belle and Cyril, stuntmen/fight choreographers themselves, in leading roles doing what they do best made me a fan.
Jackie Chan is definitely acrobatic, but much less than either David Belle/Cyril. Especially now, when he himself said his knees are just shot from doing all those crazy stunts in his youth.
Chan does put both of them to shame overall. His presence, his fighting, etc are second to none. But he is not a “traceur”.
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