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City of God
Release Date: 2004-06-08
Sales rank: 884
Celebrated with worldwide acclaim, this powerful true story of crime and redemption has won numerous prestigious awards around the globe! The streets of the world's most notorious slum, Rio de Janeiro's "City of God," are a place where combat photographers fear to tread, police rarely go, and residents are lucky if they live to the age of 20. In the midst of the oppressive crime and violence, a frail and scared young boy will grow up to discover that he can view the harsh realities of his surroundings with a different eye: the eye of an artist. In the face of impossible odds, his brave ambition to become a professional photographer becomes a window into his world ... and ultimately his way out!Like cinematic dynamite, City of God lights a fuse under its squalid Brazilian ghetto, and we're a captive audience to its violent explosion. The titular favela is home to a seething army of impoverished children who grow, over the film's ambitious 20-year timeframe, into cutthroat killers, drug lords, and feral survivors. In the vortex of this maelstrom is L'il Z (Leandro Firmino da Hora--like most of the cast, a nonprofessional actor), self-appointed king of the dealers, determined to eliminate all competition at the expense of his corrupted soul. With enough visual vitality and provocative substance to spark heated debate (and box-office gold) in Brazil, codirectors Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund tackle their subject head on, creating a portrait of youthful anarchy so appalling--and so authentically immediate--that City of God prompted reforms in socioeconomic policy. It's a bracing feat of stylistic audacity, borrowing from a dozen other films to form its own unique identity. You'll flinch, but you can't look away. --Jeff Shannon |
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The Motorcycle Diaries (Widescreen Edition)
Release Date: 2005-02-15
Sales rank: 744
The beauty of the South American landscape and of Gael Garcia Bernal (Y Tu Mama Tambien, Bad Education) gives The Motorcycle Diaries a charisma that is decidedly apolitical. But this portrait of the young Che Guevara (later to become a militant revolutionary) is half buddy-movie, half social commentary--and while that may seem an unholy hybrid, under the guidance of Brazillian director Walter Salles (Central Station) the movie is quietly passionate. Guevara and his friend Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna, a lusty and engaging actor) set off from Buenos Aires, hoping to circumnavigate the continent on a leaky motorcycle. They end up travelling more by foot, hitchhiking, and raft, but their experience of the land and the people affects them profoundly. No movie could affect an audience the same way, but The Motorcycle Diaries gives a soulful glimpse of an awakening social conscience, and that's worth experiencing. --Bret Fetzer |
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City of Men
Release Date: 2008-07-01
Sales rank: 5324
In this long-awaited follow-up to his Academy Award(R)-nominated film CITY OF GOD (2003 Best Director Fernando Meirelles) producer Fernando Meirelles (THE CONSTANT GARDENER) returns to the Brazilian favelas to tell an inspiring tale of friendship and family on the gritty streets of Rio de Janeiro. Growing up in a culture dictated by violence and run by street gangs teenagers Acerola (Douglas Silva) and Laranjinha (Darlan Cunha) have become close as brothers. With their eighteenth birthdays fast approaching Laranjinha sets out to find the father he never met while Acerola struggles to raise his own young son. But when they suddenly find themselves on opposite sides of a gang war the lifelong friends are forced to confront a shocking secret from their shared past. Featuring stunning cinematography and a fascinating behind-the-scenes feature CITY OF MEN is an even greater experience on DVD.System Requirements:Running Time: 110 minutes Language: Portuguese Subtitles: English / French / SpanishFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA/CULTURE CLASH Rating: R UPC: 786936743968 Manufacturer No: 05539200Action-packed and fueled by Brazilian funk, City of Men returns the makers of City of God to the scene of their first success. In this case, the search for family supersedes the search for identity--not that there isn't a correlation between the two. Though produced by Fernando Meirelles, Paulo Morelli's feature isn't a sequel, but a follow-up to the four-season series of the same name. While Meirelles's movie takes place in Rio de Janeiro's past, Morelli's transpires in the present (not counting flashbacks from the show). Days away from turning 18, boyhood friends Acerola (Douglas Silva) and Laranjinha, a.k.a. Wallace (Darlan Cunha), grew up without fathers. Ace has a wife and child; Wallace has a steady girl. The duo gets along with the gang that rules their labyrinthine hillside neighborhood or favela, but hoodlum life holds little appeal. Ace struggles to raise his young son--his security guard father was murdered during a robbery--while Wallace tries to track down the dad he never knew. With Ace's assistance, Wallace solves the mystery of his genealogy, but at great cost to their friendship (and lives). Despite the South American pedigree, City of Men suggests the South Central of Boyz N the Hood more than City of God. It's not that Morelli's kinetic film looks like John Singleton's more classically composed enterprise, but that it deals with similar inner-city concerns. That said, Silva and Cunha are every bit as charismatic as Ice Cube and Cuba Gooding Jr.--if not more so. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
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El Secreto
Release Date: 2007-12-03
Sales rank: 4680
The Secret Extended Edition with Latin American Spanish voice-over dubbings in and subtitles.Not really a movie or documentary, The Secret is more of a video seminar, a presentation featuring a series of authors, philosophers, doctors, quantum physicists, entrepreneurs, and spiritual practitioners expounding on the powers of The Secret (probably the most well-known of the presenters is Jack Canfield, author of Chicken Soup for the Soul and The Success Principles). What is The Secret, exactly? "That principle can be summed up in three simple words: thoughts become things," proclaims writer Mike Dooley, author of Notes from the Universe. Put it another way, it’s The Power of Positive Thinking and how it can be applied to attracting more money, better health, and relationships; in short, happiness. (There is a rundown of topics on the DVD Chapters menu). Most of the material here is given in a straightforward manner, with the presenters simply talking into the camera to address the audience directly, which is good because it avoids the trap of pretense. On the other hand, the quick edits between presenters (would it hurt to let them say more than one sentence at a time?) don't help because it reduces many of their points to palatable sound bites and aphorisms. To many viewers, this may make the program come across as a series of nice ideas not rooted in reality. Plus it's somewhat spurious to claim that The Secret was well understood and practiced by specific individuals like Plato or Shakespeare (it's well known that some of the historical figures noted didn't exactly live happy or even prosperous lives, despite their achievements). But still, the primary message is one of positivity and hope for everyone. So what to make of it? In the end, programs like this generally find an audience that is open to the message, and many will probably find it to be a source of inspiration. Others will approach it with a good deal of skepticism or dismiss it as another way of marketing happiness the masses. It simply won’t resonate with everyone, but if it resonates with you, you're likely to enjoy it and get a lot out of it. Those looking for more on The Secret might want to check out the companion book by Rhonda Byrne. --Daniel Vancini |
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Black Orpheus - Criterion Collection
Release Date: 1999-06-08
Sales rank: 7278
1960 Academy Award Winner and winner of the Palme d'Or at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival, Marcel Camus' Black Orpheus retells the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice against the madness of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. With its magnificent color photography and lively soundtrack, this film brought the infectious bossa nova beat to the United States. Criterion is proud to present the extended international version of Black Orpheus in a gorgeous new transfer. Marcel Camus's 1959 update of the Greek myth features an all-black cast and a story set in the frenetic energy of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. Orpheus, a trolley car conductor and superb samba dancer, is engaged to Mira but in love with Eurydice. For his change of heart, Orpheus and his new doomed lover are pursued by a vengeful Mira and a determined Death through the feverish Carnival night. Camus at once demystifies and remystifies the old story, shifting not only its location but its tone and context, forcing a reevaluation of the legend as a more passionate, pulsing, sensual experience. The film is really one-of-a-kind, an absolute whirl that barely needs words. --Tom Keogh |
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The Motorcycle Diaries (Full Screen Edition)
Release Date: 2005-02-15
Sales rank: 5790
The beauty of the South American landscape and of Gael Garcia Bernal (Y Tu Mama Tambien, Bad Education) gives The Motorcycle Diaries a charisma that is decidedly apolitical. But this portrait of the young Che Guevara (later to become a militant revolutionary) is half buddy-movie, half social commentary--and while that may seem an unholy hybrid, under the guidance of Brazillian director Walter Salles (Central Station) the movie is quietly passionate. Guevara and his friend Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna, a lusty and engaging actor) set off from Buenos Aires, hoping to circumnavigate the continent on a leaky motorcycle. They end up travelling more by foot, hitchhiking, and raft, but their experience of the land and the people affects them profoundly. No movie could affect an audience the same way, but The Motorcycle Diaries gives a soulful glimpse of an awakening social conscience, and that's worth experiencing. --Bret Fetzer |
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City of Men
Release Date: 2006-09-26
Sales rank: 10869
As Seen on the SUNDANCE CHANNELFrom the team behind the Academy Award®-nominated feature CITY OF GOD including directors Fernando Meirelles (THE CONSTANT GARDNER) and K tia Lund comes the hit Brazilian television series CITY OF MEN a comedy/drama about two teenage boys growing up in a dangerous Rio de Janeiro slum starring Darlan Cunha and Douglas Silva featured in the motion picture that inspired this series.The CITY is a shantytown located in one of the many mountains of Rio de Janeiro. The MEN are two 13-year-old kids Laranjinha and Acerola. This series brilliantly mixes humor and reality to explore life in the "favelas" and in particular the indomitable spirit of two best friends growing up in one of most volatile communities in the world.System Requirements:Run Time: 570 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS Rating: NR UPC: 660200314125 Manufacturer No: PALMDV3141Brazilian TV series City of Men is a dazzling, propulsive, and fiery exploration of life in a chaotic Rio de Janeiro slum, seen through the eyes of Acerola (Douglas Silva) and Laranjinha (Darlan Cunha). These two boys prove to be amazingly charming tour guides to a world by turns terrifying and exhilarating. Using the jam-packed storytelling that made the movie City of God such a revelation, the first episode alone is a marvel, merging the history of Napoleon with a cutting analysis of drug lords and class structure in the poverty-ridden neighborhood. The other three episodes of the first series carry on this riveting approach, mingling social observation with rich, compelling characters. From the second series on, the show becomes less overtly political and more about Acerola and Laranjinha's passage from youth to adulthood (embracing, with humor and pathos, the adolescent boys' obsession with sex)--though every episode has some sly or startling observation about race, wealth, and gender. Each series is filmed a year after the previous one, so the boys literally grow before our eyes; it's impossible to watch and not feel deeply involved as Acerola woos a girl named Cristiane and ends up a way-too-young father, or as an innocent prank escalates into a life-and-death struggle. Some episodes teeter on the brink of silliness--one of the last ones has the boys engaging in absurd cross-dressing--but the briskness of the writing and the charisma of Silva and Cunha carry the show through. Add to this the dynamic musical score of Brazilian pop and samba, and you have essential viewing. World music has already found popularity in the U.S.; welcome to a masterpiece of world television. --Bret Fetzer |
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Favela Rising
Release Date: 2007-03-13
Sales rank: 14091
Jeff Zimbalist and Matt Mochary's documentary is a major achievement in nonfiction filmmaking a vibrant important work that is as inspiring as it is tragic. The narrative centers on Anderson S a distinguished-looking young man who grew up in the worst of Rio di Janiero's infamously violent favelas Vig rio Geral. Though most residents of this extremely impoverished community do their best to cobble together a piecemeal living the neighborhood is ruled over by murderous drug lords whose average age of death is between 14 and 25 years old. In 1993 after one of these men murdered a few notoriously corrupt cops the military police retaliated by brutally and randomly murdering 21 innocent favela residents. One of these victims was S 's younger brother. Rather than allow the anger and despair to propel him into a place of darkness and revenge S decided to stop the cycle of violence using the universal language of music as his conduit to social awareness and rebellion. Mobilizing like-minded friends and musicians he started a newsletter and a band to perform his upbeat yet courageously honest music which featured lyrics about the massacre and police brutality. The filmmakers track S s project as it evolves from a small newsletter to a bona fide national music with childhood musical education being a top priority.Beautifully shot with visually stunning graphic elements added FAVELA RISING brings vibrance and color to one of the most downtrodden settings on earth imbuing its people with honor. The access the filmmakers got to the residents from regular families to masked men with machine guns is incredible. In the end though it is the music that is the real star of the show which demonstrates the truly remarkable power of song and rhythm to transform lives.System Requirements:Run Time: 82 mins Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DOCUMENTARIES/MISC. Rating: NR UPC: 796019798198 Manufacturer No: 79819 |
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Bus 174
Release Date: 2004-07-20
Sales rank: 15382
A shocking, hypnotic look at a real-life disaster. In June 2000, an armed gunman hijacked a bus in downtown Rio de Janeiro. An angry, strung-out former street kid, he spent an afternoon threatening his hostages while the lurid drama was broadcast live over the national TV networks. The extensive newsreel footage from this terrible event forms the bulk of Bus 174, but director Jose Padilha takes time to fill in the background, too: the poverty-broken world of the gunmen is detailed, and so is the political situation that led to some ludicrous decision-making on the part of the authorities during the siege. The fact that most viewers outside Brazil don't know how the ordeal ended will add to the suspense, but either way this is a gripping experience. The sight of the crazed hijacker, self-consciously styling his weird version of action-movie villainy, will haunt you long after the film is over. --Robert Horton |
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Women in Fury
Release Date: 2001-07-31
Sales rank: 23096
Covering for her brother, Angela Duvall is sent to a women's prison. Trapped behind bars, Angela's beauty excites the passions in her fellow prisoners and the guards alike. Also, she catches the eye of a group of inmates who work for the man her brother murdered. In order to live long enough for her brother's confession to arrive, she must escape into the dark Brazilian jungle! |
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