Where do you want to take the shot? In the hand or in the foot?
– Zé Pequeno (Lil’ Zé)
This review contains some spoilers but are marked in the paragraph in italics.
After first watching this film, in the early hours of the morning, surrounded by darkness apart from the soft glow of the credits that flowed from the screen, the only response that I could formulate was that this was unlike anything I had ever seen before. It hit like a punch to the gut, giving no apologies, with scene after scene building on the depravity and brutality that encapsulates the aura of the piece. Perhaps it was the executions performed by mere children or equally their own deaths at the hands of others, maybe it was the visceral cinematography of César Charlone with the use of hand-held cameras to accelerate the pace, while increasingly distancing the audience emotionally through the sheer range of events occurring simultaneously, so that the death of a child is able to become commonplace and expected. But no, it was the nature of the narrative that clenches you in it’s fist and refuses to let go, through the move away from the traditional focussed and basic protagonist/antagonist formulae, and in the understanding that this boy’s (‘Rocket’) life is not so much his own but a product of others; as inferred at the beginning of the film, to tell one’s story first you must tell those correspondent.
It is in this capacity that Lins, Mantovani and Meirelles excel (from the adapted material of “Cidade de Deus” by Lins), reconstructing the crime genre from somewhat repetitive to a genuinely moving piece of cinema, that not only informs us on an individual’s own journey but allows us to gain a better understanding of our own cultural identities as a result; it places an emphasis not on the selfish concerns of the individual but of all equally in the small community presented, no matter how small a role. Over the course of the film relationships are built and destroyed as we are led through the jungle of not only human experience but of the group experience all to the backdrop of the sun-drenched vibrancy of Rio in all it’s glory, a striking metaphorical representation of this imbalance and constant turbulence in such a community, that is effortlessly detailed through the passing of time, the development of Rocket and as a result the setting Rocket lives in to mimic this change.
While never existential, being firmly grounded in solidarity and hope in spite of events, the narrative still imprints upon the audience the issues of societal differences and the futility of war in resolution to these; through the cyclical series of events it feels as if nothing has been achieved, that the cycle has been fuelled again by death, ironically giving growth to the next generation of gangs. In this manner the final, lingering shot of the Runts (aforementioned street kids) moving off down the streets of modern Rio, is perhaps the most physically effecting, leaving the audience with little hope, that had been carried throughout, that the understanding gained in viewing was shared equally – in their ignorance all violence has been once more rendered futile.
It is this balance between futility and fragility that is so carefully mastered throughout by Meirelles, ensuring that no side becomes too excessive and falls out of such a balance. This insignificance of human life that is portrayed from the outset is further perfected through the use of “non-actors”, the casting call and subsequent auditions were for those living in Rio at the time, those who were largely unknown to audiences at the time of release and so allowed for full immersion for the individual. Just as the violence increases and the body count with it, we lose track of morality while for the perpetrators, we have no prior attachment or expectations and so come to believe their status, power and aims; we view them not as actors but as the characters they portray, and in doing so bring us one step closer to reality.
This, however, is no mere flirtation with the truth but a representation of the historical events which preceded it; at once powerful, emotionally affecting and stylistically brutal, this truly is a breathtaking example of modern crime that has and will continue to transcend time as a testament to suffering, war, love, passion and vice, painting a most accurate picture of humanity in the process.
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