Rating: 7.2/10
Director: Pierre Morel
Writer: Luc Besson, Bibi Naceri
Stars: Cyril Raffaelli, David Belle, Tony D’Amario, Bibi Naceri
Runtime: 84 min
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Released: 02 Jun 2006

Synopsis: In the near future, the worst ghettos of Paris, France are literally walled off and among the worst is District B13. Controlled by the ruthless crime lord, Taha, a young righteous punk named Leïto is determined to bring him down. When the boss retaliates by kidnapping his sister, Lola, a rescue attempt by Leïto is destroyed by betrayal that gets him arrested and Lola kept in the clutches in Taha. Six months later, a crackerjack undercover cop named Damien is given a urgent mission: a neutron bomb has been stolen by Taha in District B13 which has an automatic timer function engaged and set to detonate in less than 24 hours. Now with time running out, Damien and Leïto must work together to find and stop the bomb, but there is far more to this crisis than any of the field players realize.

In 2010, social problems such as violence, drugs and organized crime have overrun the poorer suburbs of Paris, especially a Banlieue commonly referred to as B13 (Banlieue 13, or District 13 or Borough 13 in English), a ghetto with a population of some two million. Unable to control B13, the authorities construct a high wall topped by barbed wire around the entire area, forcing the inhabitants within to survive without education, proper utilities, or police protection behind the containment wall. Police checkpoints stop anybody from going in or out.
Leïto and Damien fight their way to the tower holding Lola and the bomb. Once there, Damien calls his contact to receive the deactivation code, 9293709B13. Leïto recognizes the code as a reference to the bomb’s location (9293 is the district’s area code), the day’s date (7 September), and the district, B13. Leïto deduces that the government has set them up and the code will actually detonate the bomb instead of deactivating it. He fights Damien to prevent him from entering the code. The timer runs out and the bomb does not detonate, proving Leïto’s theory.

The pair return to the government building with the bomb and force Mr Krüger to admit that he had planned to blow up B13 as a means to get rid of it. The confession has been taped and is immediately broadcast by pirate television transmission. The pair’s actions cause a major scandal that sparks public support for B13. Soon the rest of the government promises to tear down the containment wall and bring back schools and police to B13. Leïto and Damien depart as friends, and Lola kisses Damien to encourage him to visit B13 in the future.