Analysing 'City of God', Meirelles and Lund, 2002

The film belongs to the gangster and crime genre, although there is a twist on the conventional gangster film as we can see life from a different perspective; the innocent. The director uses classic connotations and denotations used in a gangster movie and put them in a different context so we read the text differently, and find it in some aspects more appealing.The generic expectations of the genre are challenged as the film is by Brazilian directors who employ traditional Brazilian conventions etc. and this is different from what English speaking audiences understand to be a classic gangster and crime film. The text fulfils our generic expectations in the fact that we see throughout the opening; gangs, guns, slaughter and the now cliché innocent bystanders, things that anchor the film as being part of the gangster genre and we also realise the film is partly from the crime genre as we see murder of the innocent, and this is a traditional convention of the genre.Meirelles and Lund treat the characteristics playfully as they have moved our conceptions and ideas about a particular genre and put them in an entirely different setting, letting us experience a completely different style of film which we dot expect, thus creating enigma. Although the text does not conform to the characteristics of one genre specifically, we see that each genre has been thought of, such as the violence and murder which is used throughout gangster films and the stock characters of gangster vs. police for the crime genre. The directors have treated the genre quite ironically as our conceptions of gangster films are of men in expensive suits, a variety of weapons and a fear of no one. In ‘City of God’, it is shown to be quite ironic how gangs in run down slums in Brazil seem tougher than the people we see in films. The realistic footage and the sense that what we are watching is actually going on in other places of the world makes the characters in the film see very tough and macho, even without expensive clothing, accommodation or weapons, compared to the traditional conceptions we have of gangsters, as we know these films are fiction, compared to ‘City of God’ which we are made to believe is real. By putting the genre in an entirely different setting which English audiences do not understand, we are alienated from what goes on in the country and therefore we see the characters to be more menacing.Mise-en-scene is used throughout the beginning to give the audience a true understanding of what is going on. When analysing the film we can tell that it is set in the seventies due to the stock costumes, for example short shorts, stripy flamboyant t-shirts and bold afro style haircuts all distinguish the film as being set in the past. The clothing of the gang denotes a rugged and worn look but connotes the lack of attention to clothes; the gang has bigger things to deal with than appearance. We can also tell what the ‘City of God’ is really like through mise-en-scene. We can see the harsh conditions the people live in; old, sparse living conditions, empty streets, make-shift roofs and terraces highlight the peoples struggle in the crime-ridden city to find basic things such as proper shelter. By showing us all the surroundings, the audience can see everything and feely sympathetic for the innocent living in the city. Mise-en-scene used in the beginning helps establish where the characters are such as outside the terraces, preparing food, in the middle of the road and walking down stairs and what time of day events are taking place such as bright lighting to convey daytime. In the films opening there are a lot of quick succession shots which bring prominence onto one single object using MCU and XCU. Instead of the directors deciding to show the audience what is going on, where we are in MS etc. in a few lengthy shots, they have chosen to establish everything in a very short amount of time which also creates anxiety. In a few MCU shots of Lil’ Ze’s gun and the slaughter of the chickens, the audience immediately realise what is going on and can now let their mind focus on what is being told in the story.In the opening there are a variety of shots used to give the audience a view from a different angle with every shot. MCU and CU shots give make certain objects stand out, as well as selective focus which makes things in either the background or foreground seem more important than anything else in the shot. When Lil’ Ze is filmed, MCU, low angle shots are used to make him seem bigger than everyone else in the city. The directors use tilting and panning throughout the opening to bring some variation into the film. With these shots we can see what is going on in more depth such as a tilt down, depicting the chicken flying down from one level to another, leading the gang somewhere else and a pan right shot of the chicken running, closely followed by the gang, showing how close the chase is becoming, and we are not sure if the chicken will make it, creating enigma. There is a crane shot used to give a view from above of the ‘City of God’. When examining mise-en- scene in this shot, we can see the dilapidated buildings and the clothing that the gang members wear. Handycam and steadycam are used to give a more realistic feel and give different perspectives. Handycam is used as a POV shot of the chicken looking up at the gang, (making them seem higher in status) running from the gang, now the audience can understand what it is like to be caught up in the heat of the chase. At the end of the opening there is a canted angle of the police to create distortion and an uncertainty as to what will be the outcome of this confrontation.Sound is used in the opening to anchor the images used and to help the audience understand what each image means. The lively samba music connotes the films Brazilian background and also creates tension due to its up beat rhythm. The sound of gun-shots is heard throughout the opening very often and this shows that there is violence and death everywhere in the slum. When the hero, Rocket, is caught between the police and the gang, there is non-diegetic sound of his heart beating fast and this connotes fearing building up within the character, what will become of him? At the very beginning of the opening, the audience are left anticipating what is about to come from the black titles with no sound, not giving anything away. When the first shots come on, the sharpening of a knife is heard; the sound is very raw and tells us immediately that the film will be violent and bloody. The film is made to look very realistic, no filters are used and there is strong use of handy and steadycam. Any sound that is captured is therefore probably natural and left in during editing to give the film a more realistic feel.When examining each character through their non verbal language we can depict certain aspects about them which help to establish what the character is like. We can see the stark differences between the two leads, Lil’ Ze and Rocket through their non verbal language, Rocket walks very calmly and speaks quietly. When we see him first of all, a tilt-down shot of him and his friend walking down some stairs, we can see that he likes to keep himself to himself, he is very still and shows little emotion, the audience connotes that he has had quite a rough time and has seen some terrible things living in the ‘City of God’. When studying Lil’ Ze through his non-verbal language we can see that he is very aggressive, he walks with very heavy footsteps whilst ‘the runts’ run. His face is very tight and he draws his weapon with little worry, the audience connotes him as being one of the gang leaders in the city. When we first hear Lil’ Ze speak, the music is stopped and when he shouts we can only hear what he says and not the music. This connotes that he is the voice that every one listens to and nobody else. He laughs when he orders the gang to kill the chicken; murder is funny to him. When we hear Rocket speak he is quiet and soft compared to the aggressiveness of Lil’ Ze and this also distinguishes the two to be very different from each other. The gang members run through the city as fast as they possibly can after hearing their leaders commands, the viewer connotes that punishments will be dealt out if they do not obey Lil’ Ze. In the opening the directors need to identify who each character is and create sympathy in the audience for some but not necessarily others and in the ‘City of God’, the audience can understand what each characters purpose and history is, just from the opening.The directors use a lot of visual techniques which keep us interested and help us understand certain aspects of the film. Meirelles and Lund choose not to employ the rule of thirds too often in the opening scene as they want to establish who the main characters in the story will be. Although shots where characters are placed directly in the centre look unnatural, we are forced to look at them and remember their faces for later on in the film. Leading lines are used to draw us subtly towards the main focus such as the crane shot showing the alleyways and streets that the runts run through, leading us to where they will eventually end up, and the chicken running past who is followed by the runts. Lighting in the beginning connotes that the events are occurring during the daytime. The credits come into the shot as clear blue typography against a black background; our focus is purely on the text. There is no aural sound to distract us from the text and when the credits continue to come up whilst we are watching the opening unfold, the text is white against the bright red’s and orange’s of the slum so our eye is drawn towards the bottom of the screen where the writing appears. When Lil’ Ze appears to Rocket for the first time in the film, he is shown walking in slow motion, this brings prominence onto him and helps the audience to understand that Rocket is afraid of him as we are experiencing the shot from rockets point of view. Jump cuts are used in the opening to make a dramatic point, such as the chase of the chicken, cut to Rocket and his friend walking down the streets. Cutting from one frame to the next very quickly varies the audience’s point of view, we are shown a perspective from a variety of characters and it also compresses time. There is a good use of continuity editing so the audience can understand each shot after the other, realising each detail from each frame. Natural framing is used so the audience appreciate what the director wants them to see most such as the parked cars and tall buildings surrounding the gang when they stand in line in an establishing shot. The opening is an example of montage editing, which gives it a very modern and edgy feel, which is in keeping with the film as a whole.Although we are not to know from the first part of the film that the story will be told asynchronously, at the closing of the first sequence we are told ‘whose story’ we will hear first, letting us know that we will gain each piece of the puzzle throughout the film, until we see the whole picture and understand it, at the end. The first section of the film ‘chase the chicken’ is told as a linear narrative. The chicken see’s what is coming of his comrades so he decides to make a run for it which in turn causes the gang to chase him which results in Lil’ Ze’s gang in what we perceive to be, a potential shootout with the police.The audience is placed as someone looking in on what is going on in the ‘City of God’. Use of handycam and steadycam by the directors make us believe that we are part of the action, but the narrative and a range of camera techniques allowing the audience to see more of what is going on than the characters places us as people trying to understand what has happened in the ‘City of God’ and what is taking place at present. To help the viewer to appreciate that something may be of importance later on in the film, there is prominence on the shot, keeping the image or words in the back of our heads, such as the information told to us during the narrative.We identify Lil’ Ze and his gang as the enemy to the innocent people in the ‘City of God’ as the director establishes them through CU shots of their weapons and we see Lil’ Ze push over an innocent bystander which we connote as being brutal and violent for no reason, therefore we recognize him to be bad. We identify Rocket as the hero of the story as he is the one who talks to us during the narrative and this establishes him as someone who is on our side and we therefore connote him as being good. A radial track shot establishes Rocket as the innocent bystander caught in the middle of a conflict and this makes the audience feel sympathy for him and also creates enigma as we want to know what will happen to him at the end of the story. We are alienated from the gang members as we are not quite sure if they are truly ruthless or just caught up in Lil’ Ze’s criminal activity, as we do not get to hear them speak, we only identify them as being street urchins, too young to hold a gun. Through the beginning we identify the chicken as a helpless living thing trying to escape death, which is the same story of the people living in the city, but this is not revealed until the end of the film when we have seen everyone’s story and understand how rocket and others in the city are constantly escaping being killed by gangs.The major themes in the narrative are slaughter and gang violence. CU and MCU shots at the very beginning of the opening during the meal preparation denotes people preparing a meal but it connotes the sacrifice of something insignificant, simply to satisfy the gang. We see the gang violence through the eyes of rocket; POV shot’s show what life is like to be an innocent, through times where there is on going conflict between the police and the cities gangs.Tension is created through a number of different techniques; the music is fast paced to highlight the anticipation and suspense which is around every corner in the ‘City of God’, and this music speeds up as time passes by. The sound effects from the cooking of the chickens and the footsteps clambering around the streets all create suspense of what is about to come. Before there is any actual camera work, the credits are shown. This prolonged sequence of not seeing any of the film makes the audience hungry to watch the film. The final shot of Rocket facing Lil’ Ze’s gang makes the audience want to know what will come of Rocket and is the enigma of the opening two minutes. Quick succession of different shots also gives the opening a very quick pace.When we think of Gangster dramas, we think of hardened criminals, very masculine and proper, although the male lead characters in ‘City of God’ are presented as being quite different from an audiences conventions, mainly they are from a completely foreign part of the world and they also seem to have different conceptions about being a gangster than what we see in British movies. The characters are from very poor and rough backgrounds which common movie goers are not familiar with; they are used to seeing very formal and smart gangsters in lavish houses with fast cars. By giving the genre a view from a completely different social group, we want to watch more to find out what life is like for a ‘gangster’, in a different part of the world. The film has a ‘postmodern’ example of the traditional gangster film. Placing the same typical gangster story in a different part of the world creates dynamism, highlighted by its use of familiar framework and social realism. Capitalism is an ideological discourse evident within ‘City of God’. We see Lil’ Ze as the leader of a group of young people, ultimately telling them what to do when he sees fit, he is gaining his power as he has been brought up in harsh surroundings where he has realised that to survive, you need to be on top. Through a capitalist government we are encouraged to make money for ourselves and the film displays how every man is out for himself. We have a certain view about being a successful and strong person that is reinforced in the film; we look up to these characters and the way they do things reinforced in the film. The counter culture appeal of crime and a gangster way of life governs the way we live our lives, and therefore there is a basis of social rules and practices which we follow.The framework of semiotics used in the opening sequence include at the end of the opening sequence Rocket denoting a boy caught between two rivals but connoting the innocence of the people in the city who have no choice but to pick a side. Throughout the opening, lively Latin American music is played. This connotes that the slaughter of animals is every day and fun; there is nothing serious to it. The tempo of the music gets faster; this connotes action and the race to kill the innocent. The limited weapons connote the gang’s power in numbers rather than in arms. Analysing the mise-en-scene when Lil’ Ze gang faces the cops, we can see that the group clearly do not fear death or the police and this connotes the gangs experience in the ‘City of God’ making them very tough and hard to scare.The target audience of the film are a variety of social groups who find each genre appealing. Anybody watching ‘City of God’ would find it very visually impressive but the directors made the film with the made the film with the younger male gangster lovers, putting a twist on the classic thug movie. The film has a variety of sub genres such as drama and love intertwined throughout the film, so the audience will appreciate it, whatever their social or cultural background. The producers of the film may have made the film with favoured audience readings which are not immediately relevant; it is up to the viewers to decode it depending on their social and cultural backgrounds.The probable readings of the text are that Lil’ Ze and his group reign supreme in the ‘City of God’, (highlighted by their abuse of the innocent bystanders), and that Rocket is the innocent hero of the story as he is the one who speaks to us during the narrative so we develop a personal relationship and liking for him straight away. We understand that the two lead characters were probably brought up in and live in the dilapidated ‘City of God’, highlighted by their accents, the suburban setting which we find them in, and the clothes they wear. The possible readings of the text are decided by the audience themselves. As the story is told as non-linear narrative, from the beginning, we are to decide for ourselves how we think the characters have come to be their personal situation. The film is shown in a specific order and shows certain images to create a preferred reading in the audience as the directors want them to understand straight away what is going on.Our age and gender shapes how we read this text, as the target audience would be similar ages to the characters, and therefore we look up to individuals as the heroes of the story. Our gender makes us think separately about the film. Teenage women living in Britain would interpret the text as being dominated by male characters as all we see of women are those preparing and cooking the food for the male dominated gang members, the women are shown as characters that are of no importance to the story. The lead characters in the opening are both male as is the voiceover, speaking in a very rough and harsh voice, someone who we always connote as being male. Teenage men living in Britain read the text as different from traditional gangster movies where there is normally a completely different enigma such as death. Men see Lil’ Ze to be an interesting character who we want to find out more about and we also see Rocket the male hero of the story, and this is in keeping of films we like to watch, so all males will find the text appealing to their ‘action’ senses. Our cultural references shape how we understand the text, we are outsiders looking in, probably working or middle class, and we are shocked at what we see happening in the city.