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City of God (2003, U.S. release)Rated R for strong brutal violence, sexuality, drug content and language.Starring Matheus Nachtergaele, Seu Jorge, Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino da Hora, Philippe Haagensen, Johnathan Haagensen. LVJeff's Rating: 8/10
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 Photo ©Miramax Films. All rights reserved. |
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Brazilian Reign I've heard City of God described as a Brazilian Goodfellas. That's mostly an accurate summary, but I would add a little more to it -- it's a Brazilian Goodfellas without a protagonist. This may sound odd, given the presence of a narrator (Alexandre Rodrigues) who also participates in the story. However, he's primarily an observer, a young man who grows up within a violent world while yearning to be, appropriately enough, a photographer. He's not the main character -- instead, we are invited to hone our attention on a succession of doomed personalities who rule the slums of Rio de Janeiro with reckless bloodshed. The movie, based on real events, is an intimate account of gang life in the '60's and '70's, beginning with the minor criminal activities of a trio of youthful hoods and culminating in a vicious war between a gang headed by the cold-blooded L'il Ze (Leandro Firmino da Hora) and the party of his rival, Carrot (Matheus Nachtergaele). The tale is presented with a combination of tried-and-true energetic techniques -- tracking shots, hand-held camera work, fast editing, period pop music, and swooshing pans and sound effects. The look is gritty, the depiction of gun violence is unflinchingly brutal, and the body count is high. In other words, it all feels a little too familiar. That's not to say it isn't effective. Director Fernando Meirelles competently puts forth this hip-gangster-epic style with flair. As a result, the story sucks us in and keeps us entertained with every new plot turn. Too bad it just doesn't seem fresh. Despite being about Brazilian gangs, a topic most Americans probably don't think much about, I got the feeling that, no matter the location in the world, a gang is the same anywhere you go -- worshipping guns, money, power, pride. And the depiction of such a lifestyle seems to be the same from movie to movie, including this one. In City of God, however, we are not invited, as we are in Goodfellas, to experience what is so intoxicatingly alluring about the criminal life. The narrator, Rocket, sees the world first-hand but stays mostly uninvolved. As a result, we watch the other characters with a noticeable detachment. The film loses a bit of urgency and suspense this way -- everything the gangsters do looks reproachable, and I can't shake off the feeling that even the nicer ones ultimately get what they deserve. What work best in City of God are the portrayals of the characters involved. They cover a good range of personalities and, curiously, make a case for the theory of hard-wired human behavior. Each major player in the movie is distinct, and we can sense how deep each one's inclination toward crime is due to natural-born tendencies as opposed to social and economic influences. L'il Ze, the most ruthless of the leaders, had a murderous streak even as a young child. His partner, Benny (Philippe Haagensen), goes along but appears to value honor and hipness over violence. Meanwhile, Rocket tries to begin a life of crime after being frustrated with earning money at legitimate jobs, but finds he just doesn't have it in him. One last major character's lust for vengeance eventually overpowers his sense of decency. It all suggests the ills of society are best cured not with blanket policies but instead with case-by-case strategies -- some of these people could be reformed, some probably just can't be, and some will never need to be. In the meantime, we are invited to look upon the gangland scene with sadness and some apprehension. As the film ends some time in the early '80's, we see new kids with guns picking up where the old kids left off, ready to start the cycle anew. 'Tis a pity these kinds of stories are so easy to find and tell. ©Jeffrey Chen, Jan. 25, 2003 |
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