Banlieue 13 - Ultimatum (2009)

Director:

Patrick Alessandrin

Writer:

Luc Besson (screenplay)

Release Date:

18 February 2009 (France)

Genre:

Action

Plot:

Damien and Leito return to District 13 on a mission to bring peace to the troubled sector that is controlled by five different gang bosses, before the city's secret services take drastic measures to solve the problem.

Plot Keywords:

Digit In Title | Parkour | Second Part | Sequel | Number In Title

Cast

Cyril Raffaelli	...	Capt. Damien Tomaso
David Belle	...	Leïto
Philippe Torreton	...	Le président de la République
Daniel Duval	...	Walter Gassman
Elodie Yung	...	Tao
MC Jean Gab'1	...	Molko
James Deano	...	Karl le skin
Laouni Mouhid	...	Ali-K (as La Fouine)
Fabrice Fletzinger	...	Little Montana (as Fabrice Feltzinger)
Pierre-Marie Mosconi	...	Roland
Johnny Amaro	...	Policier centre de contrôle
Pascal D'Amato	...	Le garde escaller préfecture
Guy Amram	...	Le chef commando GIGN
Pascal Aubert	...	Le Chef De Poste
Jean-Gilles Barbier	...	Le commandant de police

Also Known As:

B13-u (France) (poster title)
Banlieue 13 Ultimatum (France) (working title)
District 13: Ultimatum (Europe: English title) (festival title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some violence, language and drug material.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | France:U | South Korea:15 | Japan:G | Iceland:14 | Germany:16 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #45629) | Netherlands:12

Filming Locations:

Belgrade, Serbia

Company:

Europa Corp.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: At one point, the main character is using what seems like a monocular telescope to oversee the situation. The next shot confirms this when the screen shows as if you were looking through one. However, the device used is not a telescope, but a night vision monocular. Not only the model can be recognized (it's of "Yukon" brand), but also the 2nd (smaller) lens on the device, which is actually a IR emitter. Using this device at day will not allow to see very much. Moreover, the following shot of the telescope view should be green because thats what one sees when viewing in night vision.

Movie Connections:

Follows Banlieue 13 (2004)

Not as good as the first, but oh well...

When I watched Banlieu 13 which was released in 2004, the first impression was: "Wow!" The action-packed movie was filled with parkour, or the art of movement. Thus what I saw back then were not computer generated tricks. How the fight scenes were performed by the lead actors David Belle (especially) and Cyril Raffaelli made the original Banlieu 13 a joy to behold, offering something unique in the action genre. Of course, the story was practically simple and the ending was easy to predict.

The sequel takes place in 2013, three years after the first movie. The corrupted DISS set up a scheme to frame the citizens of the Banlieu 13 so that it would provide a reason for the government to completely demolish the district filled with gangster factions. To ensure the smooth execution of the plan, Captain Damien Tomaso was set up and sent to prison for possession of drugs. Later, Damien managed to contact Leito asking for help. Now Leito must find a way to free Damien while dodging the chase from the DISS, and prevent the annihilation of Banlieu 13.

Compared to the first movie, B13-U was a disappointment. Sure, there were still parkour scenes in the movie, but after seeing the first movie, there's barely anything feels new in the sequel. The story was even more simple than the first and this made the film even less appealing. Acting was not the main strength of the first movie and it wasn't as well in the second one.

Overall, B13-U was a mediocre action movie, completely unsuccessful in picking up the success of its predecessor.