District 13

Banlieue 13

Or District 13, if you have the American release.

An action move by Luc Besson in the spirit of "The Transporter" or "Wasabi", staring David Bell as Leito and Cyril Raffaelli as Capt. Damien Tomaso.

The movie is in what amount to three acts. In the first act we meet Leito the local boy who is trying to keep his building from becoming a graffiti covered haven for crime. He is busy trying to get rid of some drugs when K2 (who has his name shaved into his head) and the hard boys show up to reposes said drugs. Things get worse from there. Leitos big mistake comes at the end of the act.

In act two we meet Damien the local cop with a bad attitude. He spends the act taking down the local crime ring gambling establishment. I should note that the take-down of the big boss is fabulous and makes the gang in Oceans 11 and 12 look like complete amatures.

Act three is when our unlikely pair of heros team up to take on the local crime boss of District 13, who has accidentally ended up with a nuke in his hands. The nuke, I might add, has a countdown timer running and only a few hours left before the barrio is leveled.

The writing is good, and the acting is sharp. The chase scenes are Jackie Chan at his best with some Jet Li thrown in for good measure. If you are an action genera fan, I really recommend this movie.

The subtitling in English is a little week here and there, but for the most part either sub or dub is worth watching.

Also, Bell and Raffaelli are well and away the best pair of action move jocks this decade. I would watch for them in upcoming films.