Why City of God isn't great
People don't discuss much about it. Do you have any other reasons?
shareNeeds more cowbell.
share
MovieChat Forums > Cidade de Deus (2004) Discussion > Why City of God isn't great
Lil Ze wasn't evil enough, shoulda had the Joker
not enough stories
Subtitles, shoulda been in english
Not enough drugs, Scarface was better
Scorsese rip off
Main character didn't die
Not enough people get shot
gangsters were terrible shots, shoulda had army training
God wasn't in this movie, title was misleading
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yes, they should have the joker instead of lil ze
sharereally? i thought Lil Ze was an absolute A-hole.
sharelol, you're right, it's a joke thread (I hope). I just put down what I think other people might if they were action junkies or fanboys of other movies
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Brad Pitt wasn't in it.
"Would you *beep* me? I'd *beep* me. I'd *beep* me hard."
Not enough CGI monsters
share
the pacing was bad it got lost at the end.
time is our only true boss
there are no huge friggin robots bashing up the favela's!!
sharenot to mention the lack of space invaders
shareBelieve it or not, I think IMDB shortens the message board after awhile, because I remember being a hugh fan of "City of God"(and still am), awhile back and I used to come to the message board to see how people felt and it was way longer.
shareYEAH AND BECAUSE ITS LAME *beep*
shareI just watched it and I didn't like it. Its not a bad film but hardly an enjoyable one and I don't see myself revisiting it. Here are my reasons... (FWIW, I'm 29 and an avid movie fan)
Its overly long and not much happened other than senseless murdering. I really disliked the characters. They do despicable things. I don't need a movie to open my eyes and make me realize there are terrible people in this world doing terrible things. I know this and I don't want to watch it.
I didn't find it fascinating. These guys are not even intelligent, they're scum with guns. It was just another robbery/murder after another, it was endless. No one had the guts to stand up to these guys and stop them. Where are the authorities ? That upset me to no end.
It wasn't gripping, I wanted to stop watching after 30 min. but persevered hoping something else would happen and due to so much unanimous praise but it was more of the same. Killing killing killing for no purpose.
I wouldn't tell my family to watch it because I'm sure they wouldn't be able to stomach it, if not anger them. I'm aware that places that like this exist, but it wasn't groundbreaking or refreshing. What sets this movie apart ? That it's so downright awful ? (the place that is), its quite literally Hell, there is no hope. That it focuses on these criminals, makes it all the worse. Innocents are there merely as targets.
I've watched plenty of depressing movies, some are really good. But I never feel the urge to re-watch them or recommend them because frankly, they're not enjoyable. There was not much substance here. Like someone said, its like a Brazilian Scarface. At least they tried to make Tony Montana likable. I also disliked that movie btw.
Now, I'm not trying to convince anyone that they shouldn't like this movie. If you like/dislike/love/hate this, then you do. So I don't need counter-points to my reasons because this is how I feel. But if you wanted reasons (real ones I'm assuming), here you go. It just wasn't for me. The acting was superb and felt quite authentic, it was well-made but it was all so depressing, senseless, pointless, etc. etc. I just didn't feel for these characters whatsoever and they were predictable because they've only got a few barbaric things in their mind. Money, power, get in my way and I'll shoot you. If anything, this should be a lesson on why guns in the wrong hands are terrible things and that you should never be anywhere near the slums. Then again that only takes a bit of common sense doesn't it ?
To each his/her own.
because n3st0jr didn't like it and when he finally stopped being boring on a humorous thread and got round to explaining his reasons he said "It just wasn't for me"... wow
Also the dogs were too skinny
"I've made a huge mistake..." - G.O.B
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"If anything, this should be a lesson on why guns in the wrong hands are terrible things and that you should never be anywhere near the slums. Then again that only takes a bit of common sense doesn't it ? "
are you stupid? no offense but... people who are stuck in desperate situations of poverty cant just... not be stuck in a desperate situations of poverty. you a-hole. DID YOU REALLY THINK THE PEOPLE IN THE MOVIE LIVED IN THE SLUMS ON PURPOSE?? wow
"it was just another robbery/murder after another, it was endless. No one had the guts to stand up to these guys and stop them. Where are the authorities ?"
THATS THE POINT! the filmmaker didnt go, "oh lets have no presence of authorities for my own kicks" DUH. the whole point is that their behavior is completely unchecked by a corrupt and not-present government/police force. Did you realize, hey maybe this film is trying to give me some valuable information about the state of the world in the last thirty years?? nah its obviously just trying to show you some "guns in the wrong hands". you're insane.
haha you say "No one had the guts to stand up to these guys and stop them" ok because im sure that you would go up to a gangster and say please stop all this nonsense and he would reply quite delightfully im sure. i think, as the movie was meant to imply, the situation was a bit, just a bit, more complex than that.
bourgeois much??
You're talking about a country where, in the 90s, they passed a law declaring all street children vermin with no rights.
Any film set there SHOULD be depressing. Watching a film about Rio and whining that it's upsetting is like watching porn and complaining about your hardon.
What are you talking about? There is no such law...and never was. Our current Constituition, made in 1988, is called the "Democratic Constitution", and is really heavy on human rights. Such law would be unconstitutional. I'm not trying to say every person here lives in top conditions, just that the State couldn't ever pass a law like that.
I love this movie, but the misconceptions (and the blatant lies and made up nonsense)shown on these boards are too damn high!!
I know you don't want any counter-points, but your post is so full of ignorance and arrogance that a few rejoinders are required...
1. The authorities didn't appear because they were paid off. The rival gangs acted as immanent states... Were you taking notice of anything going on in the film? The state only began to interfere when the media got hold of the story and publicised the conflict to the rest of the country and the world.
2. This wasn't 'random' violence, but violence produced by capitalism and the state; systems that institutionalise poverty, degredation and marginalisation and thus ensure violence and horror.
3. There isn't meant to be any hope. This is a realist film that attempts to paint a picture of the horrible reality. I'm sorry that global capitalism and the state both produce such horror, but this is the reality of things for most of the world. If you want hope, then fight for a better world against the oppressors and against a system that produces such barbarism.
4. These people shouldn't be anywhere near slums? What ignorance! Slums are the byproduct of the existing global economic system and the state authorities that fence in the poor (usually to keep up property prices for the rich, keep it so the wealthy don't have to see or engage with the poor, etc). People can't just choose 'not to be in them'...
We must not check reason by tradition, but contrawise, must check tradition by reason - Leo Tolstoy
Yeah man, I could never identify with those pricks either. Criminal scum they were, right on, right on. Shooting people is bad. That's what my ma told me alright. I'm a good person, unlike those bastards. I have an argument with my neighbor Bob, he tells me I let my kids watch TV too much. Tells me it's bad for them. Does that mean I pull my gun and shoot him dead? No! I'm a reasonable person! When I need a new gaming computer for my son I don't hold up the bank for money! Maybe I'm too good for my own best!
My point is, the reason their city is all bad and corrupted has to be because they have worse people down there, it's as simple as that.
No Johnny depp pirates
No rob pattinson
No seth rogen cameo
No megan fox
or anything that transforms for that matter
It never started on the Disney Channel.
+None of the actors refused to get up out of bed for less than $20 million.
+No flagrant use of cg.
+Nobody's planned out the next 4 sequels with progressively higher budgets and progressively less purpose.
+"It's a foreign film" or "I don't know anybody in it."
= one "baaaad" movie.
The main characters went full retard. You never go full retard.
Sorry, Maury. I'm not a gymnast.