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City of God, like the cycle of violence it portrays, goes full circle. In the mesmerizing opening scene we see youth chasing a runaway chicken down the street to the beat of pounding music. We meet Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), who suddenly finds himself surrounded by cops on one side and a gang on the other. All are heavily armed. How did it come to this? In a creative move, the "Matrix" shot stops time and circles Rocket. Suddenly he's a young boy playing soccer on a dirt field. It's the 60's and this is how City of God came to be. Through Rocket's eyes, we see how the slum was born when the poor were moved to the city's outskirts. The forced isolation and poverty led to petty crimes and robbing the trucks that came through on the dirt roads. It's all somewhat harmless until unexpected, vicious murders are committed in a brothel by Lil Dice, the youngest member of a gang. The page is turned, drugs and weapons are introduced and Lil Dice becomes Lil Ze (Leandro Firmino da Hora), the reigning godfather. Like any Mafia film, you know how this is bound to end. And because this is the City of God, you also know someone is waiting in the wings to take power. Police corruption, drugs, violence and gang wars are explored in this Brazilian epic. Over time, small time robberies lead to savage murders, drugs, weapons, revenge and all-out war. In one humorous but unsettling sequence, the history of an apartment is told. What started off as a little old lady selling weed on the side turned into a cocaine den and axis of operation. The king of the drug hill is constantly fending off the wolves hungry for a piece of the action. And because life has no value in and of itself, to ask to be spared is simply ludicrous. The human cost of poverty cannot be ignored, as the incentive to join a gang in City of God is much like it is in every other city in the world: a sense of belonging, working up a hierarchy, loyalty, at least temporary protection and the opportunity to make more than anyone else in a neighborhood surviving on peanuts. In the middle of this craziness we see Rocket attempting to win a girl's heart, sometimes getting high, enjoying the beach and trying halfheartedly to become a gangster. He can't hold up a store because the girl is too cute and can't hold up the bus driver because he's always been so nice to him. He's obviously the observer and as the photographer, he can't necessarily make things better. He's no hero, just someone trying to survive. There's good reason why Fernando Meirelles can be compared to Martin Scorcese. There's the obvious parallel between the formation of the underclass (or the forgotten class) in City of God and Gangs of New York. But there's also the edgy violence of Goodfellas and characters capable of fathomless violence, like Lil Ze. Both directors are able to portray monsters in a human light. And within all the craziness they show, both manage to almost stop time to create intense, overpowering moments without pandering or exploiting. In this film it's when Lil Ze corners a group of small children, "runts", who have taken to the streets to rob without respecting the elder gangs. At first defiant in what they believe is their power, they are reduced to tears when Lil Ze forces one child to kill another. Where we saw the future heartless gang member a moment ago, we now see a mere child. Visually inventive, the tones of the film are set with the use of color. In the 60's bright yellows and sand tones pervade the screen, giving it an air of nostalgia as well as some sense of brightness for the future without forgetting the poverty. The seventies are dipped in various shades of blue and by the end of the film is when we really see daylight again. Except for a few shots at the beach, everything seems to be enveloped in darkness. As Rocket the narrator is also a fledgling photographer, the camera documents, zooming around corners and sneaking up to scenes of violence. The sequence in the outdoor dance party that ends in violence is brilliant, as it captures the intensity of the night with music and adolescents determined to have a good time. Lil Ze's unrelenting brutality pours out when tragedy strikes his right-hand man (Phelipe Haagensen), the only one to keep him in check without getting killed and considered the "coolest gangster". The last part of the film chronicles the pure carnage of a gang war. It's impossible to know who's killing who and why, but we certainly get a taste for retribution when a man is killed by a child whose father he killed. The message drums on for minutes: the cycle of violence won't end here. The only ones with any hope at all are the ones who can leave. Another theme in the film is the media. The power of publicity is not lost on the gangsters. Recognizing its value Lil Ze, like Renee Zellweger and Catherine Zeta-Jones in Chicago, is thrilled to have his picture in the paper and wants more. On the one hand the media flocks to the slums for lurid crimes, like the husband who tries to bury his still breathing wife in the dirt floor of their shack, as if these crimes can only be committed by the poor. On the other hand gangsters relish their image and the fear they provoke in the slums and beyond. Rocket is able to manipulate both sides of the fence. With his camera he is at the right place at the right time, taking a photograph of Lil Ze with his gang, guns and girls that lands on the front page. He now has his way out. But has he sold out? An epic that begins and ends with blood in the streets, City of God pulses with the heartbeats of those who fight to remain on top and those who fight to escape.
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