Jun 18 2008
Parkour, As Much a Part of Cinema Now as Ever
News has broken that a follow up is in the works to the 2004 French action movie “District B13″ or “Banlieue 13″. The origianl film was a vehicle to bring the French born technique of movement called Parkour to the big screen. Parkour is a recent sport that concentrates on maneuvering through environments in the quickest and most efficient way possible. The original film follows David Belle, the founder of Parkour, as he attempts to fight the gangsters who have overrun the housing projects in which he resides. He leaps, crawls, swings, runs, and ducks in a truly magnificent acrobatic way throughout the film.
The sequel, “District B14″ will start filming next month, and really marks a movement in film to capitalize on this very real stunt form. Parkour has been featured in chase sequences in “Casino Royale”, “Live Free or Die Hard”, and the “Incredible Hulk”. But this is not a brand new trend. Aruguably the first proponent of Parkour, before the word was ever minted, has to be Jackie Chan, who as performing all of his own Parkour stunts, without harnesses or special effects, for decades. In anticipation of “District B14″ and many more parkour sequences to come, I thought it would be interesting to contrast a scene from “District B13″ and a small compilation of Jackie’s many parkour themed moves.
“District B13″
Jackie Chan:
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