City Of God

City of God (Cidade De Deus) (2002)

Runtime: 130 minutes

Directed by: Fernando Meirelles/Katia Lund

Starring: Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino, Phellipe Haagensen, Douglas Silva, Alice Braga

From: Several different companies

As sometimes occurs, I revisit a motion picture for the first time in many years to discuss here, along with my own personal enjoyment. In this case, it was ages since I saw this for the first (and only) time; as I've been here for 8 (!) years now it was about time to finally say a few words about this. Then again, this is rather dark and brutal so that is one of the reasons why the revisit took so long.

Much to my relief, City of God is still great. Admittedly, the in media res opening doesn't seem so fresh-it's used WAY too often now; for example, it was also in the last film I saw, Nobody-and perhaps at times this is too flashy. All that said, those elements do not ruin the experience as the movie is an intense look at the slums of Rio that spans a few decades. There is no shortage of harrowing events, sometimes involving children/teens. Thankfully it does not seem exploitative or in bad taste. Also thankful is that while not every character followed is a reprehensible human being-Lil' Ze is an amazing villain-the one that the audience can easily get behind is Rocket-at least that's what he's called in the English subtitles-a photographer who manages to escape from that brutal world.

Those that hadn't seen this in ages either or haven't given it a shot yet, I do not want to reveal much more. It does have to be said that the comparisons to Goodfellas are understandable... and not just for the narration that's heard throughout. There are plenty of characters shown and all manage to be distinctive. Many topics are also interwoven into the plot and it is an intoxicating mix. Its lofty reputation is deserved; if you are not put off by crime movies and/or tales involving astoundingly harsh moments-at times with kids-then it's a must for any serious movie fan.