City Of God

City of God was directed by Katia Lund, and Fernando Meirelles. It was released in 2002, and the language throughout the whole film is Portugese. This film is based off of the Gang warfare in the slums of Rio De Janiero. The first time i had watched this film, i was amazed and blown away. I love how the story is told from Rocket, the main character's point of view. The way he introduces the characters and their stories are very clever and interested. It is as if he is actually telling the viewers the story of how the ghettos of Rio De Janiero came to be. I have seen a lot of gangster/crime movies and this is one of the few that greatly stands out to me. The number one thing that i always look for in a movie, is the storyline.

No doubt, this story line was absolutely intriguing, interesting and gritty. I didn't really pay that much attention to the music during the film besides a club scene playing, "Kung Fu Fighting," because i was so concentrated on the story line and guessing what would happen next, but i do remember the lighting being really good. At ominous parts, the light would be dark and shadow the characters and the surroundings. When it was a normal or happy scene, the light would be very light, mostly being out in the sun or outdoors. I felt the directors directed this film very well. How the different camera angles, and lightings are directed before a crucial scene is perfect. The movie is pretty fast paced, with so many killings and different types of stories. But this is what makes the movie so good. Usually when a strong character is killed off, the movie starts to suck or you start to wish he/she was still in it. But in City of God you can care less if he/she is still in the story cause your so engaged in the story and new characters. In the end, everything comes together and in the end you have a beautiful gangster movie and story. Especially since this film is based off of a true story.

City of God is not just one brutal murder after another, it also consists of humor and  has a feel good feeling to it. When there isn't killings and the story progresses to the money making and how the City of God profits start to rise due to Lil Ze, the film has the feel good feeling of watching them make money and grow. Also when the characters are just simply chilling, every scene you can notice the character developments. It kind of allows the viewers to root for the criminals. But when the drug war starts to get more intense, the story starts to get into some serious gun fights over turf. When there is a serious part, or a sad moment, the directors still seem to throw some comedy in the following scenes or prior scenes. I think thats what makes this movie so unique from other gangster filcks. It has comedy, brutality, thrills, great acting, and like i said before a sick ass plot.

Being that the film wasn't made in the U.S. it didn't have any famous actors or actresses, but yet the acting was really good. Not only was the story interesting, but every single character in this movie either has a strong personalities or a crazy one.They all have a sole purpose for the film, from Lil Ze to the Runts. Overall, i strongly recommend this film and give it five stars

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