City of God
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Movie Reviews of City of God
Movie Review: Horribly depressing,... yet a great movie!
Summary: 5 Stars
The Brazilian government-built City of God is meant to replace the slums, but ultimately turns into one. In this environment, drug lords rule their neighborhoods. This movie is the fictionalized tale of the development of Li'l Ze, a ruthless killer who demands loyalty, and his battles with a competing drug lord and the police. Dead bodies on the street merit barely a glance from the residents... they have habituated to the violence.
The magic of this production lies in its no holds barred depiction of slum violence, corruption, drug use, and poverty, mixed with the angst of teen love, friendship, and loyalty. Throughout the movie, the life of each character seems to be hanging by a thread. Given that the 2016 Summer Olympics will be held in Rio de Janeiro, there will be increased interest in this film, Rio's associated slums and favelas, "poverty tourism," and security concerns surrounding the Olympics.
I understand the majority of child actors in City of God were recruited from the actual Cidade de Deus (City of God); many were amazing talents. And the ones that weren't were playing the roles of stoned kids... probably not a hard character to play.
This story is told through the eyes of Rocket, a young man whose family and friends are surrounded and influenced by crime, but Rocket seems to escape personal destruction, primarily by having some good friends, avoiding cocaine, and having a dream to be a photographer.
Recommended. It is interesting to compare with another movie about intense life in the slums, City of Joy, based in India, although it is the book, and not the movie, which is the most powerful of the two.
Movie Review: Filmmaking at it's best
Summary: 5 Stars
Cidade de Deus (City of God) is a powerhouse in and of itself. You marvel at the story, and the intensity of each character, at the cinematography, at the twist and turns. And then you'll be saddened by the human condition. You'll understand that this story is as close to the truth of Rio de Janeiro's slums as an audience will ever get. And that's when you learn that this movie is actually based on a true story.
This movie is compelling, heartfelt, and never looses it's footing. It's never preachy or subjective, and doesn't pull at your heartstrings. There's never a moral or a hidden lesson - it's there for interpretation and, yet, it isn't.
The movie follows a single narrator, who has the talent to see his world through the objective photographer's lens. The story is presented in a series of flashbacks and descriptions of each of the character's stories. In a movie with a less talented crew, the script would've been garbled, but this movie eliminates any confusion that might have arisen and turns it into positive complexity.
The beginning of the movie will make you decide to be a vegetarian. And if you manage to feel bad for the chicken, you'll realize how paradoxical it must be that there is a certain numbness towards the hopeless souls of the City of God.
The acting, done mostly by non-professionals, is superb and the characters grab you and remain with you.
The DVD cover quotes Roger Ebert as saying that this will be "One of the best movies you'll ever see." There's a reason that man is the only film critic to receive a Pulitzer - he's absolutely right about this movie.
But don't kid yourself. This isn't the kind of movie you'll watch more than once. It's a remarkable story from each angle, it stays with you, but it's also a hard film to fathom watching over and over again.
Movie Review: "One of the best films you'll ever see!"
Summary: 5 Stars
The film revolves around the, "City of God," a favela (or ghetto) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a horrifying area where drug dealers run the community, and where children killing children is not an uncommon occurrence.
The story begins with the early stages of the City of God (in the 1960's) showing where many of the problems stem from- the extreme poverty, overcrowding etc. Here, in the early stages of the favela, we meet our main characters, along with the supporting cast. The story revolves mainly around two characters living in the favela, Rocket and Lil Ze, and how they take two different paths through life. Rocket's dream is to become a photographer and to escape the City of God while Lil Ze becomes a powerful gang leader and drug dealer.
The film offers an unflinching look at gang life in the City of God, as it follows the favela through three decades; the 60's, 70's and 80's, and shows how violence just spirals into more violence with the disturbingly high amounts of violence in the favela, most involving teenagers and children.
The direction, cinematography, and editing are all Oscar-worthy. The cinematography is some of the best I have ever seen- with a very visceral, jerky feel, very reminiscent of Saving Private Ryan. The editing is very frantic, which makes you feel like you are on the streets of the City of God, and the direction is flawless, seamlessly blending the many elements of the story.
The film was definitely one of the best films I have ever seen. The story, the direction, the cinematography, the editing and the acting all add up to make a excellent movie that I would recommend to all.
10/10, A+
Would also recommend: Bus 174 and Carandiru
Movie Review: The Nonnegotiable Need for Law and Order
Summary: 5 Stars
A young Brazilian reveals his trials and tribulations. Busca-Pé hopes to eventually become a photographer. He lives in the The City of God. It is a dystopian social milieu mired in hopelessness, cynicism, and dire poverty. Criminals essentially do as they wish. Mind altering drug sales and prostitution are mainstream businesses. The police often victimize those they are sworn to protect. Entrepreneurs worry constantly about being robbed and coerced into paying bribes to both government officials and the local mob bosses. Children are not always innocent. As matter of fact, they are sometimes the most vicious of perpetrators. Murdering other human beings is deemed a laughing matter. William Golding's Lord of the Flies is fictional. These ruthless youngsters, many who will not live to see their 21st birthday, are the real deal. God help those who get in their way---or possess something they want.
There is one scene that sticks with me. A group of young punks are robbing a truck driver delivering fuel to the residences in their very neighborhood. This apparently is a common occurrence. Think about that for a moment. Isn't the company forced to raise prices to cover its losses? How difficult is it to hire drivers? Are they paid extra for the added danger? Wouldn't this discourage further investment in the area? How can things ever get better? The City of God is a cruel reminder that law and order is mandatory in sustaining a viable society. This movie is not for the faint of heart. It is not escapist entertainment. The violence is continuous and extremely graphic. Can you handle that? If so, give the City of God a chance. I'm personally glad that I took the risk.
David Thomson
Flares into Darkness
Movie Review: Refracted Enlightenment
Summary: 5 Stars
To say this story of the lives of a few youngsters struggling to subsist in a desolate slum in Rio de Janeiro was anything other than mesmerizing would be disingenuous. To say any portrayed images of their lives and development were unique would indicate that I am oblivious to reality.
City of God is a microcosmic view of life for the so-called underclass in hundreds of urban environments. Is, or was, this sector of one city of Brazil the most horrendous slum imaginable, I don't know but I can say identical circumstances are extant and as powerfully illustrated in HBO's series about life in Baltimore, The Wire - The Complete Fourth Season. This is not intended as some xenophobic diatribe, my inference is each of us should remain cognizant of the human condition and the impact of economic disparity wherever it is encountered and often that disparity can be easily identified in areas too near to be flippantly dismissed.
In this story, the vehicle of escape is a camera but it could easily have been a soccer ball, or any other ball, in another locale. With drugs and other proscribed illegal activities serving as the template to a better life, only for the most independent thinkers and actors could education serve as the critical path to another environment. The narrator of the story and central character, Rocket, is able to circumvent the endemic pitfalls of his surroundings via guile and in numerable instances, blind luck.
This is a story well worth your time but most poignantly as a reminder that economic disenfranchisement is a burgeoning issue and not so necessarily relegated to developing nations.