The Film
Transvestite?
Worse, a cop.
Yes, that's an actual exchange that goes down in the first few minutes of District 13: Ultimatum, the French follow-up to the 2004 original.
Main characters Leïto (David Belle) and Damien (Cyril Raffaelli) are back to save our beloved ghetto, with Luc Besson (The Fifth Element, The Professional) returning for his producer's credit.
Two years have passed since we've last seen our heroes. Damien starts his adventure dressed as a prostitute that raided Prince's closet, with his backside completely exposed. Hey -- he knows how to work it, as well as his many cheesy lines. He then re-partners with Leïto, in both the action and bad dialogue.
Overall, the 2.35:1 transfer looks good. Many scenes sacrifice detail for the fists of fury, but it seems to work and never distracts from the overall enjoyment of the film. Colors are bold for the most part and blacks are strong. However, the film's darker scenes, of which there are many, don't pack the same punch, with the lack of detail more noticeable, as well as a more dim, boring color palette.
The Sound
From the menu, this movie sets itself up more like a music video. It plays like one throughout the entire film, where dialogue and even special effects take a backseat to the bass-booming techno soundtrack. As with many foreign films, you'll want to flip over to the French soundtrack, which also get the DTS-HD Master Audio treatment. The English dub just plain stinks and makes the dialogue even more cheesy, if that's possible.
The Extras
D13:U arrives with a healthy dose of background detail. There's no commentary track, which is fine. It's all about the action, and we're guessing a commentary track would have been no more thrilling than the actual dialogue. The two production features are the ones to watch here, assuming you want blow-by-blow insight.
Final Thoughts
The song remains the same here, and that song is very loud. District 13: Ultimatum is certainly not the best Blu-ray you can buy. However, if you can stomach the techno soundtrack and shaky cam, you'll be in for a nice ride.
Product Details
Where to Buy:
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