Cyril Raffaelli, Parkour Badass

August 23, 2007 11:57 PM

Cyril Raffaelli is a French stuntman, parkour stud and all-around physical badass.
posted by jonson (21 comments total)

That banlieue 13 movie is pretty cheezy, but I always liked this fight scene (butt kicking starts about 3 minutes in).
posted by juv3nal at 12:15 AM on August 24, 2007

I'm a total sucker for French guys doing absurd stunts, so thanks for this.
posted by maryh at 1:20 AM on August 24, 2007

I like the stunts, but the fight choreography...
posted by BrotherCaine at 2:07 AM on August 24, 2007

Those were some truly amazing stunts, all three times.
posted by carsonb at 2:12 AM on August 24, 2007

Incredible as all the dangerous stuff is, I still found myself impressed most by the way he can spin himself around on a car door handle.

I'm going outside now to rip my arm off....
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 2:21 AM on August 24, 2007

Very nice, but Kiki does le parkour while snacking on la ratatouille.
posted by rob511 at 2:35 AM on August 24, 2007

Kiki's got ability, but Cyril's got better form. With practice and lots of hard work, Kiki might have a shot in Hollywood as a stunt cat. Never give up, Kiki. Reach for the stars!.
posted by redteam at 3:50 AM on August 24, 2007

As impressive as this guy is, I wish more of these parkour videos were like this (from this thread). Maybe it's just better video editing, but that guy looks like spider-man commuting to work.

These Cyril videos are just a bunch of stunts repeated over and over again. It feels like watching a porn consisting of nothing but cum shots.
posted by mullacc at 4:34 AM on August 24, 2007 [1 favorite]

I like cum shots.
posted by Pecinpah at 5:44 AM on August 24, 2007

I feel like a lot of the Parkour Stud link is more gymnastics than actual parkour (not that I'm qualified to tell the difference). I love how he ends some of his flips though - arms down to his sides, ready to walk off like nothing happened.
posted by fermezporte at 6:36 AM on August 24, 2007

Also, can anyone explain the half-pants half-shorts he wears?
posted by fermezporte at 6:40 AM on August 24, 2007

Awesome David Belle clip, also from Banlieue 13 which he stars in with Raffaelli.
posted by forallmankind at 7:34 AM on August 24, 2007

too bad they didn't conquer the world.
posted by exit at 8:01 AM on August 24, 2007

Old News
posted by klanawa at 8:01 AM on August 24, 2007

In fact, the description in the "parkour stud" link is " This is not Parkour."
posted by DU at 8:14 AM on August 24, 2007

That guy gives me a wide on. He's seriously hot. *fans face* Phew.

Awesome.
posted by nickyskye at 9:03 AM on August 24, 2007 [2 favorites]

Am I the only one who just sees parkour as the embodiment of my childhood dreams as I ran through the woods and towns as a kid? I'm totally enamoured by these guys! Modern-day ninja for real. Imagine the cop's reaction were he/she to be chasing some kid and he whips out those moves!
posted by Dantien at 9:30 AM on August 24, 2007

nickyskye: A "wide on"?? I must work that into conversation...
posted by LordSludge at 9:47 AM on August 24, 2007

Parkour is the shit. "No Obstacles" is an article in the New Yorker profiling David Belle, the inventor of parkour.

Also if you're really into parkour check out Yamakasi, it's a French kids film about a group of kids who have to use parkour to steal enough money to pay for a friend's heart operation. It's not a good movie by any standard, but some of the parkour (like free climbing a fourteen story building) is pretty fuckin ace.
posted by PostIronyIsNotaMyth at 9:51 AM on August 24, 2007

I recall a movie reviewer ranting about how one of the bad guys in Live Free or Die Hard jumped out of an exploding helicopter, landing on a car and got right back up. He seemed to think this was the most unrealistic part of the movie, and the only flaw. I went to see the movie, and when the scene occurred, I said to myself, well duh, it's the guy from B13 who's an absolute badass. Look at him move. If anyone could walk away from a 30ft fall from a helicopter, it would be Cyril.
posted by asfuller at 10:07 PM on August 25, 2007

I thought I recognized him. This guy plays one of the blond twins in the Jet Li kick-flick Kiss of the Dragon.

For a henchman without a speaking part, he comes across as surprisingly charismatic. Here's his fight scene with Li.
posted by Ritchie at 3:39 AM on August 26, 2007