I love European action movies and District B13 takes a plethora of societal issues in France and revisits these issues in the year 2010 where the French Government have erected walls around these so called troublesome ghettos.

Reminiscent of Escape from New York, the denizens of these ghettos contain almost every stereotyped criminal as chaos reigns, however when a charismatic leader emerges called Taha (Bibi Naceri), he organizes unity as they vow to create a nuclear bomb.

When the police discover this terrorist threat, they send Damien (Cyril Raffaelli) into the heart of Hell who also recruits Leito (David Belle) to his cause as Taha has also kidnapped his sister.

The story is clichéd and is reminiscent of a bad 1980’s or 1990’s Van Damme movie but it actually works quite well as the battles begin and the violence ensues. Cinematographer Pierre Morel brilliantly uses his talents to paint a picture of a country gone mad that goes from fast to faster in only a matter of minutes.

Definitely one for the action buffs and just because the movie was made in France, don’t let this get in the way of a decent action movie.