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CITY OF GOD Send This Review to a Friend
As unnerving as it is brilliant, "City of God" burns into our consciousness with its look at the pitiful violence that engulfs those caught up in the drug-dealing and gang warfare taking place in Rio de Janeiro favelas that have become hotbeds of danger and tragedy. Director Fernando Meirelles's style is jangling realism, lending documentary-like atmosphere to a story scripted by Braulio Mantovani from Paulo Lins's novel by the same title. What is especially upsetting here as that killing is done without conscience by mere boys and that life is so incredibly cheap and can be snuffed out in an instant.
The focus is primarily on two characters. One is Li'l Dice (Douglas Silva), a youngster whose goal is to become a tough Rio gangster, and indeed, grown up and known as Li'l Zé (Leandro Fermino da Hora), he follows that path. The character who holds out more hope is Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), who narrates the film. He has a way out--photography--his potential ticket to a better life by chronicling what he sees around him.
The film, shot in Brazil, gets its name, "Cidade de Deus," from one of the poorest of housing projects, a place that breeds the kind of lives depicted. The director has amassed a large cast of both professionals and non-actors to create this perilous world of the 1960s and 1970s shown with cold, searing drama. The result is a film that can be tough to watch but at the same time totally engrossing. There are scenes that can make one cringe, as when a frightened boy is told he has to be wounded and asked to choose where he wants the bullet.
Ruthlessness is never far from the surface, yet "City of God" makes us yearn for an out for at least some of those with two strikes against them before they begin to grow up. This is an extremely accomplished work that arouses memories of Italian neo-realism. A Miramax release.
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