A whirlwind window to a violent world of gun-toting kids

Rating: Null/10 (16 March 2003)

"City of God (Cidade de Deus)" may be the most violent movie I've ever seen.

And just when I thought I was inured to the shooting and the murders, such that I couldn't even keep track of them anymore or who was getting killed by whom for what reason or carelessness, it topped itself and got more violent and made me start caring again.
It's not just the socially conscious Brazilian true story line of abject poverty creating an army of desperate children with guns that makes this so captivating and meaningful beyond the endless bloodshed.

Directors Kátia Lund and Fernando Meirelles have a relentless, in-your-face camera style that circles around somewhat similarly to "Amos Perros." The story, based on a novel based on true facts, if I could figure out the non-translated credits correctly, whips around in time to show us how each mini-gangster in the huge, differentiated ensemble of extraordinary amateur actors got to be the way he is.
The voice-over narrator, and what happens to him as a budding photo-journalist, is a bit precious and is virtually the only bordering on cliche element, but he is a convenient window into a world of children who literally cannot separate fantasy from reality, (who have no access to violent TV, movies, or video games as a scapegoat) and have no impulse control whatsoever.
The pulsating samba, funk, and Brazilian R & B music helps push the pace even faster; the action mostly takes place in the '60's and '70's so there's no hip hop though it's like illustrations of gangsta rap's most extreme tendencies.
Props to the distributor for black outlining the white subtitles, as much of the visuals are a bleached-out landscape of hopelessness.