Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Cyril Raffaelli | ... | Capt. Damien Tomaso | |
David Belle | ... | Leïto | |
Tony D'Amario | ... | K2 | |
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Bibi Naceri | ... | Taha Bemamud (as Larbi Naceri) |
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Dany Verissimo-Petit | ... | Lola (as Dany Verissimo) |
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François Chattot | ... | Krüger |
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Nicolas Woirion | ... | Corsini |
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Patrick Olivier | ... | Le colonel |
Samir Guesmi | ... | Jamel | |
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Jérôme Gadner | ... | K2 boy 1 |
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Tarik Boucekhine | ... | Yoyo (para 1) |
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Grégory Jean | ... | Para 2 |
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Warren Zavatta | ... | Para 3 |
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Dominique Dorol | ... | Cerbère Taha |
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Ludovic Berthillot | ... | Le gros mercenaire |
In the near future, the worst ghettos of Paris, France are literally walled off and among the worst is District B13. Controlled by the ruthless crime lord, Taha, a young righteous punk named Leïto is determined to bring him down. When the boss retaliates by kidnapping his sister, Lola, a rescue attempt by Leïto is destroyed by betrayal that gets him arrested and Lola kept in the clutches in Taha. Six months later, a crackerjack undercover cop named Damien is given a urgent mission: a neutron bomb has been stolen by Taha in District B13 which has an automatic timer function engaged and set to detonate in less than 24 hours. Now with time running out, Damien and Leïto must work together to find and stop the bomb, but there is far more to this crisis than any of the field players realize. Written by Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)
This film takes everything that has been learned in the last 100 years about how to make an action movie and distills it into a perfect 85 minutes.
The stars are true athletes, including David Belle, the co-founder of the sport of Parkour. He has spent 18 years perfecting his skills, which means that most of the spectacular stunts are real, not done with special effects.
The plot is action-movie perfect as well: A criminal kingpin, a damsel in distress, an honest cop, a noble criminal, corrupt officials, double crosses, nearly superhuman enemies. And at stake: honor, truth and the lives of millions.
There are hardly any extraneous elements, few scenes that don't make sense, no characters that do something really stupid when they should have known better. Every loose end is wrapped up in a very satisfying way. And there's even meaningful social commentary. All (though I said it before) in 85 minutes.
Why do other action movies drag on for two or even three hours and have long slow spots? Why do other action movies have plot holes big enough to walk through? Why do some of them lack drama, get silly and end up feeling like a waste of time? Why can't they all be as taut and tightly written as this one?
Because it's hard. It's hard to reach this level of perfection. It's hard to make a movie in which every scene counts. It's hard to get the plot, the acting, the action and the emotions right.
It's so hard it took 100 years. But here it is. Don't miss it.