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REVIEW: City of God (DVD)
Cast:
Alexandre Rodrigues
Leandro Firmino da Hora
Seu Jorge
Jonathan Haagensen
Roberta Rodriguez Silvia
Matheus Nachtergaele Directed by: Fernando Meirelles
Story:
City of God starts showing us a desperate chicken escaping several pursuers from being slaughtered. It seems that with this scene the movie wants to give us an introduction to what will follow.
The story takes place in one of the most poverty-ridden favelas of Rio de Janeiro, called the City of God. Here we accompany several generations of gangsters, starting in the late 1960ies. During his childhood Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), the narrator of the movie, witnesses his older brother and his gang getting involved into a criminal rush, which ends with a massacre.
Rocket himself wants to become a famous photographer, whereas another young boy of his age, called Lil Dice (Leandro Firmino da Hora), is looking forward to becoming the greatest gangster in the City of God.
Lil Dice, grown up being called Lil Ze, in the end achieves what he desired: In the ‘70ies, he climbs up the criminal hierarchy; from robbery and murder to dealing with dope and cocaine. He becomes an aggressive, bloodthirsty and incalculable boss of the favela’s most powerful gang. For them life itself does not have any value. The police are corrupt and the population of the City of God is intimidated. For a relatively long time this system works, because Lil Ze's megalomania is throttled by his best friend. When he is killed, Lil Ze stands alone and the situation gets out of control: The rivalry with the second big drug mafia of the city, ruled by Carrot (Matheus Nachtergaele), grows almost to a civil war: the City of God is divided into two parts, people are getting killed, children are recruited for murdering other children.
When Lil Ze rapes a woman, Mane’s girlfriend, he is getting into the unforgiving focus of Mane’s revenge. He is determined to put an end to Lil Ze’s rule of force. The story cleaves its way through even more violence and bloodshed, until both, Mane and Lil Ze, are dead. The new generation of child gangsters are already waiting for their time to continue the circle of unmerciful violence.
© 2002 - Miramax
During all this time, Rocket, the shy and innocent hero of the story, is living in between the fronts. Anyhow, he manages not to get into major trouble, although he tries to make some money by becoming a criminal. However, as a gangster he fails. Sometimes he falls in love, sometimes he is getting high and sometimes he works.
But he never loses faith in his dream of being a photographer. And as fate chooses him his pictures of Lil Ze, whose paths he crosses several times, are published accidentally which paves the way for Rocket to the newspaper. Through the unglamorous fall of Lil Ze, the man who caused pain and fear in his life, Rocket experiences a happy end. It is an allegory of the good and the evil.
Analysis:
City of God is based on a true story, written down by Paulo Lins in his book “Cidade de Deus”. It shows poverty, violence, gang warfare and drug business in an unconvertible rush. The movie continues a tradition of mafia stories; comparisons to Scorsese’s Godfellas are inevitable, joining a hood through three decades of rise and fall. But also it reminds the watcher of drug movies in the style of the Seventies, like Blow – the colours in City of God are a striking and essential instrument to create the right mood.
All of the actors are non-professionals. Director Fernando Meirelles wanted unknown faces to make the watcher look through the eyes of the Brazilian kids – a strategy that works. The actors indeed spring from Rio’s favelas and were educated in own acting workshops.
© 2002 - Miramax
Fernando Meirelles achieves more than an epic drama of violence and social tragedy. Through unique pictures, surprising cuts and a great soundtrack of Brazilian music, he creates an unexpected atmosphere where even in a story like this humour has its space.
Meirelles tells a story of poverty and generations without perspectives and of two different approaches: either you cope with crime to be on top for a short time, or you try to escape.
He does not ask moral questions, he shows what real life is like in a slum. The movie is a recommendable and a realistic approach to a history of drug business and crime, and a testimony of the living cinema of Brazil.
Special items:
+ Original version in Portuguese language and English subtitles
+ Bonus material: Interviews with and information about cast and crew, director and acting teachers
+ Documentation of the teaching process
+ Brazilian cinema trailer
+ Music clip “Batucada Remix”
Review by Caecilia Smekal
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