In 2010, the dangerous districts in the periphery of Paris are surrounded by walls, and the dwellers do not have school, hospital and even police in the area, which are ruled by drug lords. In the 13th District, Leito (David Belle) is a honest man that lives in a clean building and does not permit drug dealers nearby his neighborhood. When he destroys one million Euros in heroin of Taha Bemamud (Larbi Naceri), the criminal abducts Leito's sister Lola (Dany Veríssimo) and the corrupt police arrests Leito. Six months later, the tough and honest Capt. Damien Tomaso (Cyril Raffaelli) is assigned to find and deactivate a stolen bomb that might destroy the 13th District and the two million dwellers. Together with Leito, they have to face the gang of Taha and disclose a despicable secret behind the robbery of the bomb.
The unknown "Banlieue 13" was one of the best surprises I have had this year. It is pure adrenaline and certainly one of the best action movies I have recently seen. The greatest attractions are the performances of David Belle and Cyril Raffaelli. I have just read in IMDb that David Belle is co-inventor of the sport known as Parkour, "which consists of moving freely in a natural area, including climbing on buildings and taking on whatever is in the way". Cyril Raffaelli is also stunt coordinator and stunt. Together, they are awesome, with amazing choreography that recalls Jackie Chan when he was young, and certainly are among the best I have ever seen in the cinema. The direction and the story are also good, hooking the attention until the very last scene. Just as a curiosity, in the beginning of the movie, the guys are watching a Brazilian soap-opera with Regina Duarte and Antônio Fagundes. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "B13 - 13o Distrito" ("B13 - 13th District")
