Fernando Meirelles' 2002
smash City Of God had
a curious problem most films would love to share: It was almost too
entertaining. Was Meirelles' kinetic exploration of violence and criminality in
Brazil a searing, timely exposé, or a cheap holiday in other people's misery?
It felt somehow indecent and even exploitative to derive such visceral pleasure
from such grim subject matter. City Of God became a huge hit, scoring
four Oscar nominations, winning a fervent cult (it's currently ranked the 16th
greatest film of all time by Internet Movie Database users), and inspiring a
hit television series called City Of Men.
Now the City Of God series has come full
circle. The television series spun off from City Of God, which itself was adapted
from Paulo Lins' 1997 novel, which in turn was based on a true story, has hit
theaters in the big-screen adaptation City Of Men. Got that? Alas, in the
trip from real life to literature to film to television and then back to film
again, the series has lost a step or two. City Of Men boasts the same
hyper-saturated, vivid look as City Of God, but the pacing is much more relaxed.
Douglas Silva and Darlan Cunha co-star as best friends coming of age together
in the drug and violence-infested slums of Brazil. When Cunha reaches his 18th
birthday and seeks out the father he never knew, he uncovers dark secrets that
threaten to destroy his brotherly bond with Silva. Meanwhile, a violent gang
war puts everyone's life in danger, gang-affiliated or not.
City Of Men has its share of problems,
but being too entertaining isn't one of them. The film isn't bad by any means,
but after God's
adrenaline-shots-to-the-heart rush, the laid-back storytelling comes off as a little
sleepy. In many ways, Men is more mature than City Of God: It wrestles earnestly with
biblical issues of fathers and sons, legacies of violence, and the tensions
that develop within even the strongest friendships. Yet it lacks the splashy,
showboating panache of its big-screen predecessor. Much has been gained in
transforming an entertaining action extravaganza into a leisurely,
substantively family drama. But much has been lost as well.