MonsterPerfect Good idea lost in the noise

AshUnow This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Calum Hutton It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

Edwin The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

adonis98-743-186503 Set in the ghettos of Paris in 2010, an undercover cop and ex-thug try to infiltrate a gang in order to defuse a neutron bomb. Banlieue 13 will offer you an 1 hour and 24 minutes of action and a lot of parkour and David Belle did an amazing job with all those stunts the film was directed by Pierre Morel (Taken) and it was written by Luc Besson (Leon) so i just gave you 2 reasons why this is a must watch Foreign film it has some pretty cool action sequences and a lot of cool stunts it also has one sequel and an American remake starring Paul Walker and David Belle alongside RZA it's not as good as this film was but it's still pretty watchable for a remake to be honest.

Robyn Nesbitt (nesfilmreviews) The straight-faced absurdity is part of the film's charm, but it's the relentless pace with invigorating action sequences that comes to define "District B13." Director Pierre Morel, working from a script by producer Luc Besson, focuses only on the essentials for an action film: speed, stunts, and the kind of human special effects that technology can't deliver.Set in future of 2010, "District B13" imagines crime and anarchy to have gotten so out of control that the government has erected a wall to isolate a suburban ghetto from proper Paris residents. Leïto (David Belle) is one of few residents to challenge gang leaders, who are profiting from illegal activities festering inside the slums. The undesirable occupants of District B13 are ruled by the ruthless, drug addicted gangster Taha (Bibi Naceri), who is protected by his own crew of criminals. When these gangsters mysteriously acquire a massive bomb and trip the 24-hour fuse, elite cop Damien (Cyril Rafaelli) teams up with local resident and crime stopper Leïto to save the day. And yes, the story line is as ridiculously bad as it sounds."District B13" is simply a continuous stream of fight and chase scenes, each more elaborate than the last. The film's opening chase sequence is devoted to Leïto as he dazzles with his virtuosic ability to leap across buildings and rooftops, through windows, and over the various concrete impediments of the urban jungle. (Belle's athletic talent stems from his background as one of the founders of the sport of Parkour, which combines running and martial arts, moves for total mobility in an urban environment). All of the stunt work done real, what you see is what you get (no CGI). Both Raffaelli and Belle execute all of their own stunts, while stylishly captured by first-time director Pierre Morel.

ericmarseille I'll always remember how I discovered this incredible movie ; I was bored late one evening and tried to look for something watchable on TV because I couldn't sleep...And then, BOOOM! the introductory chase sequence! like a punch in the stomach! And then all the rest of the film, aaaaww..wonderful, just wonderful.This film will leave you exhausted and relieved : AT LAST a REAL ACTION FLICK! bow your head in shame, Hollywood!Definitely in my 10 best films ever list, no matter how good the rest.Three remarks now :The only drawback of this film is, yes, that it slows a bit after twenty terrific first minutes, but such an explosion of action can just not last for the duration of one film, alasPeople regularly ask if CGI was used in this film ; as a fan of David Belle and Cyril Raffaelli, I've read the interview about the stunts : the only trick they used was a harness securing David Belle in the scene when leïto jumps from the window to catch the rope. NOTHING ELSEThey are people who say all over IMDb that the plot twist in the end is unbelievable and stupid...Oh, really? Well I can tell you as a real Paris banlieusard -my first 39 years of life in Sarcelles and Les Ulis, this will legitimate me with the French readers-, that many many people in my country would feel VERY COMFORTABLE with that plot twist! And concerning the violence in the banlieues, just let me tell you that, if the violence isn't yet up to this film's, it is slowly but surely going up and up! so no, this isn't totally a fantasy, just a exaggerated image of a terrible reality.

TxMike I have become a Luc Besson fan, two of my favorite movies are "Nikita" and "The Professional." While he did not direct this one, and was only the co-writer, it really looks and feels like a Luc Besson film. The two leads reminded me of a young Al Pacino and a slender Vin Diesel. Sometimes it isn't clear who the "bad guys" really are, but as in other Besson films, the good guys ultimately prevail. But there are many surprises along the way. Much of the "chase scene" action involves a technique called 'Parkour', where the person being chased uses whatever is already at his disposal to climb buildings and walls, or jump to rooftops. The person credited with inventing this technique is David Bell, and he has one of the two lead roles. He is the one who looks like a young Pacino. Both he and the other actor have a long careers also as stunt men, so all the action is real, and they are doing it.Cyril Raffaelli is Capt. Damien Tomaso of the Paris police force, with a reputation for being the best. He usually spends weeks, maybe even months, planning and executing, perhaps even establishing an elaborate false identity, to get close to the crooks to nab them.David Belle is Leïto, who grew up in an area called District B13, a housing project that has gotten so bad and out of hand with the criminal element, the city has built a wall around it with razor wire on top and heavily armed guards at the entrance. In a way it reminded me of how Manhattan Island had become in the movie "Escape From New York." There are a number of interesting things going on in the movie, but the big one involves a "clean bomb" that has been hijacked and ended up in District B13. Tomaso is given the quick assignment to sneak into the district and after locating the bomb, would put in a code to defuse it, to keep from killing 2Million people, but he has less than 24 hours. He ends up needing Leïto, and also in a move perhaps inspired by "Escape From New York", he is broken out of jail and told his sister is being held there, but for his help he can become a free man. A curiosity is little-know actress Dany Verissimo who plays Lola, the sister of Leïto. About the time this movie was being filmed, she was also breaking into the video industry as a porn star. She actually is a good choice for the role here. French with English subtitles, a very entertaining movie, watched it on streaming Netflix.SPOILERS: When the two men got into District B13, and when they tracked down the bomb, they called for the deactivation code. But they were deceived, it was in reality the 'activation' code, and Leïto was the one to realize it. The two men fought, Tomaso to get to the code keypad, Leïto to keep him away. At time 'zero' it did not explode. It turned out the police chief was trying to kill all those in District B13 because he had run out of ways to deal with the area and he was willing to sacrifice the two men in doing it, and many other innocents. But the men captured what amounted to his confession on video, with audio.Note: The 2014 movie "Brick Mansions" set in Detroit and starring Paul Walker was released a few months after Walker's death.