City of God (2002)
Directed by Fernando Meirelles
Written by Fernando Meirelles
Starring Alexandre Rodriguez, Seu Jorge
Release Date May 18th, 2002
Published November 22nd, 2003
At the end of 2002, while most critics were debating the historical accuracy of Scorsese's Gangs Of New York or making comic asides about Nicole Kidman's prosthetic nose in The Hours, Roger Ebert was proclaiming a little seen Brazilian gang movie the best film of the year. City of God is a brutally realistic tale of poverty, crime ,and community in a Brazilian ghetto told with an immediacy and power that most Hollywood films could only dream of.
Directed by Fernando Meirelles and shot on digital video, City Of God tells the story of youth gangs in the real Brazilian ghetto known as the City of God. In the city's existence, it has known only gang rule and violence. For Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), hope of getting out of the ghetto lies in choosing which gang will protect him until he can find his way out. As a teen he finds a stolen camera and finds his calling as a photographer, earning a protected place in the ghetto as the official photographer of both warring factions who don't mind being on the front page.
While the story is told from Rocket's perspective the story is really that of the colorful and dangerous ghetto and its unique violent history. In one terrific series of scenes, Rocket recounts the history of one apartment, which over the course of a decade passed from one powerful drug dealer to the next. Then there is the story of Knockout Ned (Seu Jorge). Ned tried to stay out of the war but was forced into it by drug dealers suspicious of a guy who didn't want to fight.
The greatest tragedy of the film however is the story of Benny (Phillipe Haagensen), a bright charismatic kid and protege of the violent leader Lil Ze (Firmino Da Hora). Benny had grown up with Ze as his right-hand man. As they grew older and more powerful, Benny saw that power as a way to get out. When Benny fell in love, he was finally ready to leave the city. His fate seems predictable but the performance by Haagensen is absolutely magnetic and director Meirelles has a way of staging the story that builds the tension to a point that the tragic events feel almost cathartic.
City of God is a tremendous piece of work from a director who is making his feature film debut. Until City Of God, Fernando Meirelles was a commercial director. After this impressive debut, it's likely that commercials will be an afterthought for Meirelles, who is destined for greater things.
Because of some snafu with it's release, City Of God was not eligible for the Oscars and won't be this year either. I understand that we must have rules but how can an award for artistry be so restrictive that one of it's most deserving be left out because of some minor rule? Regardless of the Oscar, we don't need an award to tell us that City Of God is a magnificent film. See it for yourself.
