City Of Men

City Of Men

Synopsis

Two best friends Acerola and Laranjinha are coming of age. When they’re about to turn 18, they learned of their missing fathers’ pasts which will shed new light & perspective on their friendship, whilst midst in this discovery, they’re embroiled in the middle of a war between rival drug gangs.

Official Site: NA

Singapore Release Date: 5th November 2009, Thursday

Running Time: 106 minutes

Ratings: G

Genre: Crime | Drama

Cast: Douglas Silva, Darlan Cunha, Jonathan Haagensen, Rodrigo dos Santos

Crew: Director (Paulo Morelli), Producer (Guel Arraes, Andrea Barata Ribeiro, Bel Berlinck, Fernando Meirelles, Paulo Morelli), Writers (Elena Soarez, Paulo Morelli), Music (Antonio Pinto) and Editing (Daniel Rezende)

The Trailer

The Review

“City of Men” is a sequel of sorts to “City of God”, and a feature film that stayed true to the TV show, and those who are familiar with the TV series would finally come to understand about the estranged fathers of the boys in the movie.

Personally I feel, to watch this movie and fully understand it completely in depth, it would probably be best that you watch the TV series from which it was inspired, and also watching “City of God” before hand.

Directed by Fernando Meirelles, City of Men is about a tale of friendship and adult responsibility. A movie that captures real life as it happens. You might be mistaken for the gun battles in the slums of Rio as a war zone, but in fact is is a fact of life for the millions who live there.

The story is about best friends Laranjinha (Darlan Cunha) and Acerola (Douglas Silva), two teens barely makes ends meet in the slums of Rio de Janeiro. Laranjinha is trying to find his father as he approaches 18 years old, so as he can finally put a name to his identity papers, while Acerola is beginning to learn what it means to be a father to his own son.

Amidst poverty, racism, drugs, guns and violence, the absence of schools, hospitals, formal employment government assistance, and in the backdrop of a violent turf-war between two rival gangs, both of them found that their fathers past and their futures are intertwined.

The deal about this movie is about the kinds of lives the people in the slums lead and the types of futures they will have. Despite the depressing settings, and the great cinematography that came out of it, the movie hands out a surprising amount of optimism.

It’s a movie that will move the spirit and touch the heart. It gives a certain sense of gratefulness as you walked out of the theater knowing that you’re not living in the Rio slums, and comparatively you’ll find yourself grateful for where you’re living after seeing this film.

The Good

• Superb character development
• Movie feels authentic
• Cinematography is top-notch

The Bad

• Little explanatory background
• Will be difficult to follow the first part of the movie initially, as you try to understand and grasp the story/characters
• The poverty all-around will sadden you

Editor’s Ratings