City of God (2002)

City of God throws so many names, nicknames and time jumps at you in its opening stretch that you might want a notebook. Stick with it. Rocket narrates like a kid flipping through a photo album, freezing the frame to explain who’s who, and the pace never lets up across 130 minutes. The camera moves like it’s running too, all bright sun and quick cuts, and somehow it never turns the violence into a show. Rocket is the heart of it, a quiet kid who would rather hold a camera than anything else, watching his neighborhood change around him. Li’l Zé is one of the scariest characters ever put on film, mostly because the movie shows exactly how he got that way. It’s tough to watch, and it should be. An 8.6 on IMDb from 884,992 ratings. A 9.3 because it tells a hard story with energy and real respect for the people in it. $14.61 says you sit quietly for a minute after it ends before anybody says a word.

What works: The energy of the filmmaking, Rocket’s narration and a story that shows how a neighborhood changes over two decades without ever glamorizing it.

What doesn’t: The huge cast and constant time jumps are hard to follow early on, and a few side stories get dropped just as they get interesting.

Who it’s for: Grown-ups who want a crime story with real weight, and anyone who has ever wanted to see a city through a photographer’s eyes.