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Movies of the Decade
City of God (2002) is a remarkable film with relatable themes
1:00 pm Oct 28 - by Zach Creer – buzz Writer
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Based on a true events, City of God is the ultimate coming of age story. Set in the slums of Rio de Janeiro, the story is told from the prospective of Rocket, an aspiring photo journalist whose life is intertwined with ongoing gang violence in his neighborhood. It starts with the story of the birth of the gang that now owns the city. Li'l Zé, the boss, wipes out all but one of the other gangs in the housing projects and takes control of all crime operations in this part of the city. Not satisfied with this, he starts to unravel the peace established by his number two and best friend, Bennie. The film captures all the best elements of gangster films, while managing to stay objective to the problems. In the film, we see what drives these boys to crime, yet it does not glorify the lifestyle like others in the genre seem to do, and does not excuse the boys for their crimes. Watching the film, it's easy to mistake this bleak view of Rio with the inner city of Chicago or Detroit. It's fascinating that all the themes and underlying problems in this movie seem like they could have taken place in any major city in the United States. All of this, coupled with Academy Award nominated cinematography that embodies the gritty gangster film perfectly, make City of God a movie of the decade.
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