French cinema cottage industry magnate Luc Besson co-wrote and produced this hit-and-miss action thriller, circa 2013, where Paris’ ghetto District B-13 has been walled off by the military to contain its rampant violence.
“Parkour” originator David Belle plays crime fighter Leito who single-handedly takes on the cruel druglords within the walls of the high-rise slum. For the uninitiated, Parkour is “a philosophy of action based on total mobility in an urban environment.”
Think Buster Keaton and Jackie Chan rolled into the body of a young urban punk, freestyling over staircases, balconies and the bodies of his rushing attackers.
The opening action sequence is filled with inspired stunts of running and jumping that will put your heart in your mouth.
But as the story settles into a more traditional shoot ‘em up, it loses its value of the physical to the spectacle of thousands of rounds of ammunition being fired.
Martial arts master Cyril Raffaelli (“The Transporter”) stars opposite Belle as Damian, an uber cop with a mission.
Rated R. 85 mins.
