Barnes & Noble

This breathtaking, ferocious, and occasionally terrifying drama about violent gangs in Rio de Janeiro has been compared to Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas, and the comparison is an apt one. The movie is about a city within a city, a sizable slum where life unfolds chaotically and the law has little sway. In this milieu, young men thrive only when they join a gang, so that's the obvious choice for Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues). With poverty undermining most of the slum's families, the gangs offer structure and community. While Rocket and his friends are certainly criminals, they're not very wealthy, because their activities are limited to the "City of God," whose inhabitants don't have much money. Living lives of violence and desperation, the gang members don't expect to reach a ripe old age -- a perfectly understandable feeling, given the savagery and suddenness of their clashes with rivals. Fernando Meirelles (whose direction earned an Oscar nomination) and his co-director, Katia Lund, employ jerky shots taken with handheld cameras and rapid cutting to give the film a jagged sense of urgency. In this city, danger lurks around every corner, and only the quick of mind and fleet of foot can expect to survive. This urban wasteland seems Dickensian, and the supporting characters are invested with colorful personalities. Brazil's president called City of God a necessary wake-up call, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences saw fit to nominate the film for four Oscars -- in addition to the nod for Meirelles, the film’s cinematography, screenplay, and editing were also cited. The movie doesn't romanticize, exploit, or condescend, as some gangster films do, yet it is every bit as riveting and memorable as many of the genre’s celebrated masterworks. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Fernando Meirelles' City of God is a sweeping tale of how crime affects the poor population of Rio de Janeiro. Though the narrative skips around in time, the main focus is on Cabeleira who formed a gang called the Tender Trio. He and his best friend, Bené (Phelipe Haagensen), become crime lords over the course of a decade. When Bené is killed before he can retire, Lil' Zé attempts to take out his arch enemy, Sandro Cenoura (Matheus Nachtergaele). But Sandro and a young gangster named Mane form an alliance and begin a gang war with Lil' Zé. Amateur photographer Buscape (Alexandre Rodrigues) takes pictures of the brutal crime war, making their story famous. City of God was screened at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Product Details

• UPC: 786936223897
• Source: MIRAMAX
• Region Code: 1
• Aspect Ratio: Theatre Wide-Screen (1.85.1)
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Language: Portugais
• Subtitles: English, Espańol, Français
• Time: 2:10:00
• Sales Rank: 3,002

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