City of God … a stupendous chronicle of violence October 7, 2007
Posted by idontmatter in fun, movies.Tags: entertainment, movies
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I watch a lot of movies, both indie flicks and Hollywood big budget fantasies, so there’s not much that impresses me. “City of God”, or “Cidade de Deus” in Portuguese, is however an extraordinary motion picture.
The movie is a captivating story of how crime affects the poor population of Rio de Janeiro. In the almost alien landscape of the slums, the only thing that really matters is whether you live or die, morality and law are relics of a dead society, or actually relics of a society that never really existed. The place is run by boys. Not teenagers, but 10 year olds that carry real weapons and kill people with real bullets.
The narrative focuses on the parallel life stories of two boys called Rocket and Li’l Dice. While both boys grow up in the same violent and atrocious environment, each takes a different path as the years go by. Li’l Dice changes his name to Li’l Zé and becomes the most violent gangsters in the City of God. Rocket it’s passioned about photography and he soon finds himself chronicling the violence of his environment.
The movie starts with a bang, and the action never slows down. The events unfold quickly in a cinematic and emotional tour de force. After all, this is the only option for a such a thrilling tale of violence having the tagline “If you run you’re dead…if you stay, you’re dead again. Period.“. Using a stylized mixture of realism and surrealism Kátia Lund and Fernando Meirelles, the directors, manage to take you, as a viewer, on an disturbing ride through the social drama of poverty and violence.
Full of It … bad movie, good point September 26, 2007
Posted by idontmatter in movies.Tags: movies, personal
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There’s this movie I’ve watched yesterday. It’s called “Full of It“. It’s bad; it’s based on exactly the same stereotypes like all the other teen movies you’ve seen, the same beginning, the same ending, the same characters. It’s not even a funny comedy. It’s just dull.
The movie is about Sam, a short 17-year old kid that tries to fit in a new high school by lying in order to impress the popular kids. He’s lame, but he does make a really good point. Here’s the talk he has with his parents:
Dad: You know the meeting rules. Nothing but the truth. Now, why have you been lying?
Sam: You guys have no idea how hard it is out-there. I’m down in the trenches everyday day trying to make people actually like me … and do you know how embarrassing it is having my entire family drop me out to school in that piece of crap car, kissing and hugging you like some sort of baby? Do you?
Mom: Sam, what ca we do to help?
Sam: Nothing!
Mom: Look, Sam, honey if you could just explain to us why you lied?
Sam: Because lying works. People actually like me when I lie.
Dad: No, Sam. You’ve got to be yourself. People will love you.
Sam: Dad, cute it. That’s the biggest lie of all. Being yourself works great if you’re actually great, but what if you’re a massive loser like me?
Dad: Ok, that is it. No more lying! End of story!
Sam: No! Not end of story. My life sucks and lying is the only thing that makes it better. That’s why I lied today, that’s why I’m gonna lie tomorrow and that’s why there’s nothing anyone can do to stop me.
He’s right. The biggest lie of all is telling someone that he’s great even if he’s not. If you’re a loser nobody’s going to like you for who you really are and if you think about it, why would they? After all, you can’t expect them to willingly embrace your mediocrity. So, if you’re a loser and you get the chance to start over in a place where nobody knows who you are … then lie. Redefine yourself by lying, anything that will make you less of a loser is good for you.
