One of the greatest movies ever made

Rating: 10/10 (26 August 2015)

In my opinion, a good movie is one that tells an important and entertaining story, makes you feel a range of emotions and makes you believe and feel for the events that are happening on screen. It should be able to do this by harmonising acting, writing, directing, post production and sound. And when I think about movies that have been able to exceed these expectations, often City of God is one of the first titles that pops up in my head.
City of god takes a look at the lives of various kids and teenagers involved in a turf war in the slums of Brazil that spans over 2 decades. Life in the slums, corruption, gang violence and growing up in a dangerous place are some of the themes addressed in the film. It has a unique storytelling structure, transitions from one story of a 'hood rat' (or gangster) to another, before they intertwine in the climax.
The characters of the film are amazingly likable and relatable. The slightly psychotic tyrant 'Lil'ze', Peace loving Ned, charming Benny and lovelorn Shaggy are some of the more prominent characters in the movie. My favourite would be Rocket, the narrator. He aims to be uninvolved in the turf war and become a successful photographer. All he wants to do is mind his own business, stay alive and get laid. That's about as relatable character a movie character will ever be. The raw and emotional acting of the cast makes the movie all the more memorable and authentic.
One of the main filmmaking achievement of City of god is the way that it immerses the audience in its unfamiliar setting through brilliant editing and music. The famous opening, the 'chicken chase' sequence, is a perfect example of this. The actors, played mostly by residents of the slums itself, provide great authenticity. They manage to provide great, believable acting performances as well, despite having no prior experience in the craft.
Despite being an emotionally impactful story, this movie still has several scenes that ooze coolness, without straying away too much from the actual grittiness of the subject material. Also, there are several witty dialogue scenes that help to prevent the film from getting too gloomy. Without scenes like Ned on the bus, Rocket taking photos of the gang and Benny's party, these characters would be mere participants in the harrowing events of the area. These scenes are crucial in highlighting one of the film's main theme: That these hood rats and gangsters are, at the heart of it all, still humans like the rest of us.