City of God = must see mooveee!

Last night I finally got to see City of God. It was, in the most common, generic, yet accurate word, beautiful. First of all, the artistic quality of the film is amazing. The colors are striking and gorgeous and change with the mood of the film as the story progresses. There's some amazing camera work in there along with some awesome music.

Second of all, it's a true story. It's about the flavelas in Rio de Jeneiro, which are just dicrepid, cramped neighborhoods where the drug dealers rule and the police are afraid to go. It's incredibly interesting just to get a glimpse into a world so different. The interesting thing is that most people in the flavelas like the "hoods" (gangmembers) because they protect them and take care of them, get them medicine when they can't afford it. Even more interesting is the absense of any racial messages. Everyone in the film is of a different race: there are (hottie) boys who look like they're straight from Kenya alongside red-headed, pale skinned white boys and brown skinned Hispanics. But there is never any mention of race, which I think is beautiful and progressive in itself. I mean, the story isn't about race, so why include the topic just because it's there? The issue of morals is ever prevalent: There's a scene where the hoods all get together and pray before they begin their war. At first I thought of that one bible passage about how the devil can recite bible passages to support his cause (I really should learn what the real passage is). But then I thought, no, these guys aren't devils. These guys are playing God's game based on what He handed them. They're playing by the rules they've been given, and I do not at all consider all of these guys bad people. That's the thing: everyone in this film seems to kill someone at some point. They become desensitized, but in the end there are still boys who care about people, no matter how many people they've killed. It's hard to bring words to this, but I think it's an important idea that's brought up in the film.



I insist that you go see this film just because it's so moving. And because I think that getting a glimpse into another world is an eye opener, is essential to your overall understanding of the world. But I will warn you: there's a ton of guns and shooting and it seems like nearly everyone dies. However, I'm not going to say that you shouldn't see it just because you don't like violence. This story is about violence. It's about desensitized people trying to get by and it's about the means by which they must do this. It's really just an overall incredible film. A must see. It won't make you cry, but it'll make you feel and it'll make you think.