A movie truly sent by God!

Rating: 10/10 (3 January 2004)

It is incredible how you can be surprised by some movies you see. You haven't heard much of them, which confuses you after you've seen them and been totally blown away by the experience. "Cidade de Deus" is one of those films.
The story starts of with a boy describing his and his friends youth in "the city of God", which seemed to me as some kind of a Ghetto to Rio de Janeiro. After getting to know the characters and their personalities, we get to follow their different paths in life. Most of them are filled with drugs, crimes and violence. The different characters' stories is from thereon excellently bound together into the main saga - a bunch of Ghetto kids becoming the most fearsome gangsters of a big city.
Although the movie clearly has been inspired by various other films, especially from the gangster and thriller genres, it always succeeds with maintaining its own original touch. Sure, some people say that the cuts between scenes is like stolen totally from the desk of Tarantino himself, but on the other hand I have also not seen a movie that moves with such power and speed in its storytelling since 1994 (which is when "Pulp Fiction" came to the cinemas). So, why can't a movie be inspired by other great examples? Isn't "Cidade de Deus" a perfect example of how well of a result it can make?
All in all, this is one of the most wonderful makings that has ever crossed my eyes, and it is an honor to give it my highest rating. It is in good company with "A Clockwork Orange" and all my other favorite movies of all times...