Explore how the stylistic choices of the director contribute to the representation of the urban environment in the film you have studied for this topic.

Explore how the stylistic choices of the director contribute to the representation of the urban environment in the film you have studied for this topic.

The director of City of God contributes to the representation of the favelas of Rio de Janeiro by varying his stylistic approach through the three decades in which the film takes place.

Beginning in the 1960s, the titular City of God here appears bathed in golden sunlight. Its wide-open spaces and smaller one-storey housing creates the sense that there is a greater sense of community between the slum-dwellers of Brazil’s former capital. The golden tinting of the frame in this decade suggests there is optimism among this community and also that these events are being looked at with nostalgia, that low-level crime committed by the local children seems harmless now. Natural imagery, such as that of trees, water and picturesque sunsets, is used by the director to reinforce the representation that in this era the favelas were, while rough around the edges, places where wonder can be found if one looks in the right places.  As well as this imagery, the shots themselves are much wider, the director favouring long and medium shots over more claustrophobic angles. This choice accommodates the wide open spaces and smaller housing of the minimal shanty town.

In comparison, the 1970s is much more varied in colour. Nevertheless, this section of the film is predominately blue. This produces a much colder, sterile atmosphere around a community at one time optimistic for the future. It’s an area filled with tall buildings and enclosed spaces, owing to this feeling of paranoia emphasised by an obscured camera and much tighter framing on the part of the director. This produces a much more claustrophobic atmosphere in the favelas. However, there is still the odd longer shot, positioned from above looking down so to reinforce a sense of fear and paranoia. Increasingly so, there is a suggestion these people are being watched.

Now, in the 1980s, there is another stylistic shift from the director. The favela is now unrecognisable from the early 1960s coda in City of God’s opening. It’s a cold, barren place almost entirely in darkness, with connotations of fear and danger lurking even without the threat of violence from the warring sides of Lil Ze and Knockout Ned. We are focused entirely on this violent dispute and less time is spent on showing the people affected who are uninvolved in the conflict. It’s a disparate community, barely shown together or enjoying each other’s company, a far cry from the beginning of the film. The representation here is clear; there is no hope left in the favela, with certainly no optimism for the future and shots are even more obscured here. However, by the end of the conflict, neutral colour returns to the film, signifying a return to equilibrium. Yet in the City of God, equilibrium is never so sure a thing.