Amazing - I've never seen anything like it

Rating: 10/10 (7 October 2019)

The City of God (2002) executes every aspect of an Oscar-worthy film. Cinematographer Cesar Charlone does an exceptional job of conveying real-life in the slums of Rio de Janeiro during the 1960s through the use of color, lighting, music, sound, camera angles, and moving camera shots. Most of the film's shots consists of handheld shots which create a documentary-like film and feels very life-like. In other words, it's almost as if you yourself are living in the City of God.
The film is set in the 1960s in the slums of Rio de Janeiro and revolves around a boy named Rocket who refuses to follow the destiny that his life has set for him - working for a drug dealer. The second main character in the film, Lil Ze, is a relentless sociopath - the complete opposite from Rocket. While Rocket has had his mind set on becoming a professional photographer ever since he was a little boy, Lil Ze's goal has always been to be the respected kingpin. Rocket's dream is what keeps him away from Lil Ze but at the same time, it's also what brings him closer to Lil Ze.
One of the many scenes that I found cinematically appealing was when Rocket was narrating "the story of the apartment." I thought that the use of color and the editing effects helped enhance the story. For example, at the beginning of the scene, the color was warm, signifying that the story of the apartment had started off with innocent intentions since Doa Zelia, the woman who started selling drugs in the apartment, was simply trying to provide for her family. The degradation effect is used effectively to show the progression of the story. As we see the story progress, the color slowly transitions from warm to cold and blue as there is an increasing amount of violence with each stage.
Overall, this film gets a 10/10 from me. I highly recommend it, even if you are sensitive to violence. These are real life occurrences that I think everyone needs to be exposed to so that more people are aware of what happens in other parts of the world.