City of God (2002)
- Emma Gressler
- May 7, 2021
- 2 min read
A young boy named Rocket tries to survive Cidade de Deus, a slum of Rio de Janeiro, over the span of 2 decades, living through the hierarchies of different gangs and gang leaders who resort to crime and violence to stay alive.
Image Courtesy of 02 Filmes and Asmik Ace Entertainment:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0317248/mediaviewer/rm3536558336/
*Disclaimer: this film has violence, murder, rape, drugs, crime and blood. Some readers may find this material disturbing. Viewer discretion is advised. *
Streaming Services:
Crime, Drama
Brazil, 2002, 2hrs and 15min.
Director: Fernando Meirelles, Kátia Lund
Producers: Andrea Barata Ribeiro,
Writers: Bráulio Mantovani, Novel by Paulo Lins, Marc Beauchamps, Bel Berlinck, Daniel Filho, Hank Levine,Vincent Maraval,Mauricio Andrade Ramos, Donald Ranvaud, Juliette Renaud, Walter Salles, Elisa Tolomelli
Cinematographers: César Charlone
Starring: Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino, Phellipe Haagensen, Douglas Silva, Jonathan Haagensen, Matheus Nachtergaele, Seu Jorge
In Portuguese, English Subtitles
21st Century Connections
The cycle of how children would idolize teenagers who were involved in gangs, stealing, and drugs in order to survive, and later overthrow these very teenagers and become the new “top dog”, was a horrible cycle that demonstrated the inability to escape generational poverty.
Films like Goodfellas (1990) and The Godfather (1972) about the Italian mafia were very Hollywood, and more lavish gangs, not based on survival, but more based on luxury. This film felt like a documentary, and it felt so real, partly because some of the actors were from the slum the film was depicting.
The ending credits of the film show side-by-side comparisons of the real life people the characters are based on. Leandro Firmino, who plays Li’l Ze, is from Cidade de Deus, and returned to Cidade de Deus after the film wrapped. This is covered more in the Netflix documentary City of God: 10 Years Later.
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