Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
beautifully merciless, 6 Mar 2004
this is one of the most amazing pieces of cinematography i have ever seen. it is beautifully shot and put together including still frames and interweaving stories to give the true passion and emtoions that rule the gangwarfare and overall life of the slums in rio. the actors although are hardly known deliver their roles so well that it is hard to think that it's just a film and not actually really happening there in front of you. the honesty of the narration and the fact we see the lives of the characters evolving makes us feel like we could really be living their lives with them. it draws you in like no other film has ever done because you see both sides of the war and can really appreciate yet never fully know the hardship that many people have to face daily. it is almost impossible not have loyalty to the lives of the young hoodlums we are introduced to and love immediately; especially the infamous trio whose smooth talking and childlike innocence in their petty crimes will win you over instantly. A hood never stops theyjust take a break, this film never stops enticing and enthralling you it takes a break. each story is separated by freeze frames alowing you to contemplate on the last and prepare for the next even more brutal scene. I dont think it's fair to compare it to films such as goodfellas just because it too is spread over a large time period as i feel that Cidade de Deus is like no other. it is one of my favourite films that i've ever seen due to its ruthless honesty in portraying the slums in brazil and because of the simple yet stunning camera work and direction. Its not like other films that try to reflect the lives and harsh reality for people in the world, it really captures the passionate characteristics of the hispanic culture and the soundtrack just adds to this emotive piece of cinema.
The frantic and precarious lives are revealed to us decade by decade whilst throwing in extra shots from the past which suddenly help us to piece together all the events as the storyline evolves. I don't have one bad thing to say about this film it was electric yet calming, perilous and urgent and altogether absolutely beautiful.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
Astonishing, 28 Dec 2006
I was disappointed that this film is being labelled the new Goodfellas. This film is in a different league to Goodfellas or any other 'gangster' film. I understand that many of the Amercian or English mob movies usually end with the death of the gangsters but I have always regarded them as sensationalising organised crime and making the life of the gangster look fairly attractive to persons with certain dispositions.
City of God is I think more representative of real street crime between kids and men in the slums of Brazil, Nigeria, Somalia, or even some streets in the more developed world.
City of God explains that criminality and murder is not a choice, it is a way of life; the only means of survival. In films like Scarface or Goodfellas the life of a gangster provided the option for the greedy and evil.
City of God is far superior because it shows that for some war is life, and no matter how good a person may be circumstances make people bad. I was astonished by the direction in the film and the way the story developed. The scenes were extraordinary and frighetening. City of God is faultless and the ultimate cinema exposition of criminality.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
ONE OF THE BEST FILMS OF THE YEAR, 16 Aug 2007
The film, directed by Fernando Meirelles, tells the story of life in the slums of Rio de Janeiro, in an area known as the Cidade De Deus, the City of God. The story is told from the narration of the young photographer, Rocket. The different scenarios of life that make up the wider-story are presented in Pulp Fiction style chapters, complete with on-screen titles for each different story component. The story covers all the facets of the life, charting the growth of several key members of the gangs from childhood through to young adulthood, with their transformation from young hoodlums to local drugs barons. The final parts of the story focus on the battle within the Cidade De Deus between two different groups, when business and personal matters lead to an unavoidable confrontation. And what a confrontation it is, although details will not be given away here. The result is a powerful telling of life based around real-life events.
Martin Scorsese seems to have a heavy influence on the direction of this picture, with many moments looking familiar to fans of the legendary American filmmaker. Close ups, sweeping scene shots, freeze-and-zoom shots, and a frenzied handheld approach are all trademarks that will be recognisably traceable to Scorsese, having been used throughout his career. Many shots remind the viewer of Scorsese's narrative dialogue-camera relationship in Goodfellas, in which the camera was used to brilliant effect to highlight the main points in the script. This technique is used heavily in the first twenty minutes of Cidade De Deus, with the freeze frame trick being used to introduce the story's main characters alongside the dialogue of narrator, Rocket.
Throughout the film one cannot help but watch a scene and think, 'I've seen that in Raging Bull, Goodfellas, or Casino', and this may make some look less favourably on the film's direction. However, it is not fair to consider this 'a Brazilian Goodfellas', as one critic has observed. The story has parallels - the underlying ideas of gangsters, drugs and violence -, the direction is similar, and the story is told with narration, much like Ray Liotta's role in Scorsese's epic. But to regard this film in terms of what styles it repeats or nods it's hat to, is to be very ignorant. Fernando Meirelles, has done a wonderfully hypnotic job of blending the old styles, and bringing them up to date with flashy and sometimes dangerously kinetic direction and editing. Look only to the leaving-party scene in which strobe lighting is used to extraordinary effect, almost suffocating the story below a bombardment on the visual senses. Think of a crossover between the visual energy of the Matrix and the violence of the club scene in Bad Boys.
Cidade De Deus is much more than a directorial assault on the senses. As Raul Walsh said if you don't have a story you have nothing, and many flashy Hollywood films have fallen short in using 'ultra-modern' direction to disguise the fact that no substantial story exists underneath. Cidade De Deus is most brilliant in that it combines directorial and editorial brilliance with a story that is almost second to none in recent times. Only the true greats manage to cater to these two needs of cinema, and this is one that does. The direction is amazing, but not to disguise the story flaws, and the story is brilliant, but does not overwhelm directorial originality. But simply, Cidade De Deus is a perfect film for avid fans of cinematography, and those just in search of two hours of a bloody good story.
I cannot decide yet if I would consider this better than Amores Perros, but it is certainly not inferior. The at-the-same-time stylish and brutal visuals of Amores Perros are replaced by a grittier, more hands on approach to the subject. Whilst in Amores Perros the characters took precedent, in Cidade De Deus the location is as big a character as those who live there. As a result we get a much greater feeling of the environment in which the characters exist, and so it is perhaps easier to empathise, and/or sympathise with them. As the official press synopsis says, Cidade De Deus is a character, but is a place not a person. Amores Perros triumphs in creating relationships between the audience and the characters, as it concentrates for a long time on relatively few people, each of whom we grow to know and ultimately care about, which is important for the emotional impact of the film. Cidade De Deus deals with dozens, even hundreds, of characters, and so it is only a minority that we become attached to. This means that while the film leaves a lasting impact we are not left with the same inquisitiveness about the future for the characters that we meet in Amores Perros. Both films leave open ends, but Cidade De Deus feels closed. Whether | |
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