Incredible portrayal of the environment

Rating: 10/10 (6 July 2009)

This is an amazing look into the slums here it is of Rio de Janeiro, but I can imagine it fitting a lot of other cities around the world, as well. It's a threatening, treacherous place, where innocence can only just barely survive, if at all. There are a lot of unconventional methods in this, it could perhaps even be called an experimental film, and it all pays off. The actors are unknowns, and a number of them grew up in the neighborhood this deals with. Not a single performance is lacking, and no one is miscast, and that goes for the children, too. The cinematography and editing also contain untraditional practices, and they aid in the magnificently storytelling. This is cut to evoke the frantic, gritty, and often brutal nature of the life in the slum, and it is unbelievably effective, involving and engaging. The use of music is excellent. This has strong and frequent violence and sexuality, and the language is harsh. The DVD has a well-done, 50-minute long featurette that goes into the process of making it, a nice and funny little 60-second animation, a theatrical trailer and a music video. I recommend this warmly to anyone who watches gang-movies. 10/10