Yamakasi (2001)

Perfect cast and a good story

Instant Favorite.

Fresh and Exciting

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

This movie is simply terrible. It glorifies smalltime thugs, who break into houses, steal works of art, and threaten a doctor with violence.As the morons they are, they insult one of the people they are stealing from, for not listening to the loud, obnoxious and clichéd rap music that they like.Luc Besson tries to tell the story of a group of youth down on their luck, who work together to help someone, but the reality is really different, and this is what makes me uncomfortable. They are not guardian angels, they're just thugs, who use threats to get what they want.

To the best of my knowledge, this was one of the very first feature films to showcase the amazing art of Parkour. The plot (minimalist as it may be) concerns a group of seven Parkour specialists (the Yamakasi of the films title) who resolve to utilise their amazing skills in order to undertake some highly energetic burglaries; the intention being that the stolen loot will be used to pay for a little lads desperately needed heart transplant. The intentional irony is that the 'victims' whom our heroes are stealing from are the very same unscrupulous doctors who are making vast sums of money on the side for these dubious organ deals.The above scenario provides the requisite excuse for some awesome free running displays throughout, probably most spectacularly in one sequence wherein three of our heroes are chased around a lavish entrance hall by some ferocious guard dogs.Aside from the incredible acrobatic displays another factor which really lifts the film is its curious feel good factor which permeates throughout. Another reviewer here summed it up best by likening this to a children's film although certainly not in any derogatory way. Scenes of violence are entirely eschewed in favour of relief comedy instead which makes for a pleasantly refreshing change.I've read some reviews bemoaning the fact that with seven main protagonists plus a number of other major characters, all cramped into a 90 or so minute film, character development is inevitably limited. Whilst admittedly true, I really didn't find it to be an issue here as our hero's are such an instantly likable bunch and after all, it's their physical agility that is the real star anyway.Overall, after hearing so many Luke warm verdicts on this film, I was very pleasantly surprised after finally viewing it for myself. It requires nothing more than to sit back, relax and enjoy the spectacle. Certainly if like me, you enjoyed this and your Parkour appetite has been whetted, then you would be well advised to seek out its semi sequel, Les Fils Du Vent and the awesome District 13 for some more free running shenanigans.

Let me start this saying that I consider Luc Besson a very creative person. Probably he is not the best writer, he may not even be a good one, but he always comes up with the most original ideas in his scripts. And I admire him for that.With that said, I must said that I had mixed feelings when I was watching "Yamakasi"; for one part, I was so amazed by the complex stunts and the beautiful action scenes shot in an old school way, everything beautifully choreographed, but, on the other hand, the dramatic scenes and the plot were so weak that I wonder how a script written by three people could be so plain and undeveloped.The core plot is very simple, the Yamaksi are a gang of 7 guys whose love for adrenaline has taken them to create the extreme sport of climbing buildings as mountains and practically defy gravity in their acrobatic adventures; one day a kid tries to imitate them, but his heart condition makes him faint and suddenly he needs a heart transplant. The problem is, that the organ can only be get by illegal ways, so it will cost a lot of money that his family can't pay. The Yamakasi, feeling guilty, decide to steal from the rich to gather the sum needed for the transplant. they only have 6 hours to get the money and they will use all of their skills to make it.The problem with the plot, is that it is all we get, it is just a mere excuse to show the Yamakasi skills and to make fun of the French police. I must say again that I was impressed by the amazing stunts, but I would have liked something to identify with the characters.The script's problem is not the story, as many people believe, because I found it very original. In my opinion, the problem with the movie is that we have very few development of the 7 heroes, we barely know them so it is very hard to feel empathy towards them. The Yamakasi end up as 2-dimensional heroes with very limited motivations. It would be great if at least 10 minutes of the movie had been spent in getting to know them, but the only thing we know is their nickname and their "ability".That would be my only complain, because it seriously hurt the film. As result of the undeveloped characters, there is very few the actors can do. Nevertheless, Maher Kamoun did a remarkable job, although it is probably because his character, Vincent, is the only one who gets a complete development; as a police officer who is a cousin of one of the Yamakasi, he has to struggle between his responsibility as officer and his responsibility with his family.Something that is also worth noticing, is that our 7 (9 if we count Vincent and their friend Michelin) heroes show a lot of ethnic diversity that reflects the society in modern day France. To have a team of Arabs, Africans and French as heroes was something way different from what we are used to see.In the end, "Yamakasi - Les Samouraïs des Temps Modernes" is an average but entertaining film that, while certainly could have been a lot better, at least supplies good entertainment with a big dose of adrenaline. 6/10

This film was a total disappointment. Aside from a few stunts sprinkled throughout, it was a real dog. Bad acting, labored dialogue and cliche after cliche abound until the viewer is forced to just speed through the thing until you see people jumping around. Skip it. If you don't know anything about Parkour, this may spark your interest. If you've seen the commercials on Nike and other places about the amazing stunts that some of these people do, you aren't going to find anything here. What's more interesting is the pan-ethnic group itself and the obvious Arab/Black discrimination that goes on in France. It's interesting that most of the Traceurs are of Arab and Asian descent. Just as hip-hop and rap are the voice of the underclass here, so it is in France with the Arab underclass.