City of God

Rating: 10/10 (16 October 2017)

Directors Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund showcase the dangers of growing up in a lawless city crawling with gangsters and corrupted government, in their 2002 film City of God. The film underscores the reality of Rio de Janeiro's youth, and captures the experience of a group of young boys growing up in the slums of Rio de Janeiro. Juxtaposing the coming of age narrative of the group of young boys with the not so innocent gangsters creates an atmosphere of chaos as the two opposing figures fight for the viewers attention. The film often calls us to question, "Why return to the city of God, where God forgets about you?" In this lawless city, the every man is God because it's every man for himself—the gangsters are untouchable because they bribe the cops, and the civilians must decide whether or not honesty is worth the risk of death.
Many of the shots in this film are taken at either a high or low angle shots in order to depict power or weakness. The gangsters are often shot with low angle shots because it makes them seem more powerful and dangerous, while the civilians and even the police officers are shot at a high angle to show how inferior they are to the gangsters. The directors really take you on a journey to see how the other half of the world lives.
The narrator, Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues) guides us through the survival of this lawless city. In the City of God you either become a gangster or you live in extreme poverty. The only way to power is by killing and dealing. Danger is ever present, so many of the characters carry around a gun. Except Rocket, instead of a gun he uses a camera. His camera is his way out of the slums, with his dream of becoming a professional photographer he quickly finds himself in dangerous situations in order to get the perfect shot. The film starts with Rocket hoping to avoid the head gangster, Li'l Zé, but he finds himself in the middle of a shoot out. The camera then begins to spin in a chaotic manor. The director films this scene in this way in order to emphasize the danger Rocket is in, as the camera continues to spin Rocket becomes a young boy. He states that in order to tell his story he must first tell the story of the three most dangerous gangsters The City of God has ever seen.
As to whether or not the characters make it out of the City of God, we do not know, but what is certain is that with Rockets camera work, we the viewers, are forever closer to the City of God he captures on film.