City Of God was directed by Fernando Meirelles and it was released on the 3rd January 2003. It is about two boys who are growing up in the violent area of Rio de Janeiro. They grow up together but end up going there separate ways one of the boys goes off to be a photographer and the other one becomes a drug dealer. The two main features I am going to focus on is mise-en-scene and camera angle, movement and position.





The knives at the beginning of the scene are being sharpened making the audience feel the anticipation of what they would be used for we think it is to kill something. The scene is a montage, the pace of the editing is quick and flowing with close up shots off al the things happening such as the chickens being killed, the carrots being chopped people dancing and playing music. The music is creating a sense of carnival as they focus a close up shot on the feet of the people as they dance showing how they can have fun despite of their poverty.

The music stops all of a sudden when the camera focuses on a plate of blood. It then turns to the chicken running from the man like a chicken cam. It has crane shots looking down at the chickens escape and we also see that this is set in a favella which is a Rio de Jeneiro slum we can tell by the clothes they are wearing and they are carrying guns with them it does not look like a well off town.
The Mise-en-scene helps to highlight the tensions that exist in this area and we can clearly tell from the gang that chases the chicken that this part of Rio is dominated by gang warfare. This is supported by the voice-over when Rocket says “In the City of God, if you run away they get you and if you stay they get you".

when little z walks round the corner with his gun it slows down on him walking in slow motion with his gun glistening which indicates that he is the leader of the gang. it focuses on his bright white teeth with a grin on his face making him look a bit crazy. it then does an extreme shot on rocket who is portrayed as being an innocent person he just wants to get a good picture. Be is now in the middle of the confrontation between the police and the gang. The camera spins round half way to focus on the police with their guns ready for the gang and then it spins back round half way to focus on the gangs with their guns ready to fight with the police. There is then a 360 degree camera movement where everything in the frame is being spun around apart from rocket. The scene spins from the favella in Rio de Janerio where he lives now into when he was a child where he used to be living which looks like more of a well off part because we see houses built with bricks where it is clean and tidy young children playing with a football outside. No one is carrying a gun around with them as if it is natural unlike in the favella in Rio where he is now.