To say that District 13 – Ultimatum – a subtitled, French-language, parkour-with-added-martial-arts film – is an acquired taste is an understatement.
The sequel to 2004’s free running fetish-fest District 13, Ultimatum is very much a case of more of the same and very little else. The… ahem… plot of this follow-on sees jumpy freedom fighter Leïto (PK co-inventor David Belle) and kicky undercover cop Damien (martial artist and former stuntman Cyril Raffaelli) reteam trois ans plus tard to try to bring peace to the racially-charged ghetto. Oh, and unite five warring gang bosses before a corrupt branch of the French Government annihilates the whole of the Banlieue and cashes in on its redevelopment. They achieve this by jumping over things and kicking over other things in a cool and violent fashion.
The latest film from Luc Besson’s action production line (quatre Taxis, trois Transporters et un Taken) and directed by one of his disciples and former music video director Patrick Alessandrin, Ultimatum is visually slick and entertaining with well choreographed kinetic set-pieces but ultimately an empty viewing experience. Just as all of the latter-day films Besson has a hand in seem to be.
Don’t get me wrong, at times Ultimatum is enjoyable. Mostly when Belle jumps over things or when Raffaelli whacks other things. In fact the (sometimes comedic) action scenes are undoubtedly five-star quality in terms of ingenuity, skill and ability. There really is nothing else quite like it. Plus it’s the only thing that currently comes anywhere close to Tony Jaa’s brand of unassisted unbelievable action chops.
It’s just a shame that the storyline, characters, acting and dire-logue that should support this crazy action chaos instead let the whole thing down through their uniformly catastrophic level of one-star quality. Perhaps it’s unfair to aim this sort of criticism on a film that, for all intents and purposes, exists solely to showcase the skills of its protagonists. After all, no-one ever accused early Van Damme efforts (Bloodsport/Kickboxer/A.W.O.L.) as lacking substance.
But then again those films didn’t have the backing and expertise of a master craftsman like Besson. So that must be how this film (and all Besson’s “productions”) must be judged, non? Consequently it must be noted that as disposably fun as District 13 – Ultimatum is, we’re now a long old way from the high watermark of Léon.
[etRating value=“ 2”]
The sequel to 2004’s free running fetish-fest District 13, Ultimatum is very much a case of more of the same and very little else. The… ahem… plot of this follow-on sees jumpy freedom fighter Leïto (PK co-inventor David Belle) and kicky undercover cop Damien (martial artist and former stuntman Cyril Raffaelli) reteam trois ans plus tard to try to bring peace to the racially-charged ghetto. Oh, and unite five warring gang bosses before a corrupt branch of the French Government annihilates the whole of the Banlieue and cashes in on its redevelopment. They achieve this by jumping over things and kicking over other things in a cool and violent fashion.
The latest film from Luc Besson’s action production line (quatre Taxis, trois Transporters et un Taken) and directed by one of his disciples and former music video director Patrick Alessandrin, Ultimatum is visually slick and entertaining with well choreographed kinetic set-pieces but ultimately an empty viewing experience. Just as all of the latter-day films Besson has a hand in seem to be.
Don’t get me wrong, at times Ultimatum is enjoyable. Mostly when Belle jumps over things or when Raffaelli whacks other things. In fact the (sometimes comedic) action scenes are undoubtedly five-star quality in terms of ingenuity, skill and ability. There really is nothing else quite like it. Plus it’s the only thing that currently comes anywhere close to Tony Jaa’s brand of unassisted unbelievable action chops.
It’s just a shame that the storyline, characters, acting and dire-logue that should support this crazy action chaos instead let the whole thing down through their uniformly catastrophic level of one-star quality. Perhaps it’s unfair to aim this sort of criticism on a film that, for all intents and purposes, exists solely to showcase the skills of its protagonists. After all, no-one ever accused early Van Damme efforts (Bloodsport/Kickboxer/A.W.O.L.) as lacking substance.
But then again those films didn’t have the backing and expertise of a master craftsman like Besson. So that must be how this film (and all Besson’s “productions”) must be judged, non? Consequently it must be noted that as disposably fun as District 13 – Ultimatum is, we’re now a long old way from the high watermark of Léon.
[etRating value=“ 2”]
