Hey, everyone. ”Moriarty” here. My apologies to Gelogurte, who sent this to us a few days ago. I’m glad he did, though, since this just won a major award at the Berlin Film Festival, and it sounds like it’s going to be amazing. Don’t take my word for it, though. Check this out:
Hey, Ain't It Coolers! Gelogurte here from brazilian website A GALAXIA again. How are you all doing? A few years back I sent you a review of BUS 174 so today I'm here to talk about Jose Padilha's latest film called ELITE SQUAD. It premiered in the Berlim Festival where it won the Golden Bear and it was in cinemas in Brazil last year and it will be released in the US through the Weinstein Company in the next few months. Some people call this film the "new CITY OF GOD". Well, maybe in the sense that it's just as good... maybe even better. This movie was a huge hit here, which is rare. It was the fourth biggest gross of the year, I think, behind only the obvious stuff like SPIDER-MAN 3 and SHREK THE THIRD. And strangely enough, anybody could check it out before it even hit theaters. Why? Because somebody got his hands on a bootleg copy so you could buy it in any street corner six months before it's release. That generated a huge buzz for the movie and people actually went to theaters after all, which I guess is a good reflection on our audiences (despite the bad manners inside the theater). In Brazil, specially in Rio de Janeiro where the film takes place, cops are not the most trustworthy public servants around. Some people say they are even worse than the criminals and they are kind of right. After all, these are people that you are suposed to depend on. At least with criminals you know where you stand. And these cops are crooked to the bone. I heard from a cab driver that a cop once let him off the hook for a pack of cigarretes, I kid you not. Most of them have a few schemes to earn some extra cash. That's what we call "the Brazilian little way", which is probably why we are still a third world country. But sometimes, you'll find someone good. An honest cop. A talented cop. A guy that joined the force because he believes in doing the right thing. And that guy may be selected by the BOPE (Battalion of Special Operations). I guess they are like the USA's SWAT team. These guys aren't just cops or employees of the state. No. These guys are soldiers and they are fighting a war. And they are led by Captain Nascimento, played brilliantly by Wagner Moura. But Nascimento's wife is pregnant and he can't stop thinking about it. He doesn't want his kid to grow up without a father and when you're guy constantly in the line of fire the chances of that happening are pretty big. To make things worse, the Pope is coming to visit Rio and the BOPE is responsible for his security, specially because the Pope insists he'll stay close to the people and the favelas. So Nascimento needs to find a replacement and he needs one fast. Now there are two guys that may be up for the job. One is Neto, played by Caio Junqueira, a kid that thinks he can be this generation's Rambo (if Stallone's haven't returned, I mean) and Nascimento's first choice. The other is a not only a cop, but a Law Student called André (André Ramiro in his first movie role) which may be too civilized for the job. So instead of showing the human side of criminals like BUS 174, ELITE SQUAD has a more simplistic aproach. Criminals are bastards. Cops are bastards. Even the guys from BOPE are bastards... but at least they are the "good guys". And if you believe that the ends justify the means, well, you'll find yourself rooting for them through the whole movie. Actually, even if you don't. Because the brazilian people is pretty tired of being afraid all the time. Sure the BOPE are a bunch of fascists... but at least they are trying to do something right. Specially because, in this movie, the criminals are even worse. Remember Li'l Zé from CITY OF GOD? He's a sissy compared to the drug dealers of ELITE SQUAD. But this is Wagner Moura' show. This guy gave life to probably the most quoted character in the history of film. I doubt that in any country any character in any movie have so many people repeating his exact lines. He's relentless but he's actually very human. A prick, but the kind of charming prick you want buy your side. He's not a anti-hero, he's a contemporary hero. He may cross the line but in this movie you'll cheer when he does it. You'll root for him and his men every step of the way. And for him, if you are an ocasional pot smoker, for example, it's your fault. What? Everything. It's that very simple line of thought: if people didn't buy drugs, there would be no drug dealers. Period. Violence would drop like a brick. Addicts who doesn't have any money wouldn't steal and rob and kill for money. To think that people break the law to give food and shelter to his wife and kids is pretty naive in his view. In his own words when he is busting a user's balls: "it's you who finances this shit". Like I said, simple... maybe too simple for some... but not entirely wrong. I think I can't recomend ELITE SQUAD enough. It's a great movie. It's politically incorrect, it's violent, it's funny and it's great fun. And it makes you care. When you left the theater, it makes you feel avenged of all the times you got mugged or had your house broke in, which I guess it rarely happens in the US but here you have to watch over your shoulder all the time and have eyes in the back of your head. Captain Nascimento is the new action hero of the country. Of the millenia! Skulls!
