Elite Squad, The - Aka: Tropa De Elite Reviews

Real life in the slums of Rio

I saw this film in Brazil last year when it came out there. I only understand basic portuguese and there were no subtitles but i was still glued to the story all the way through.

In my opinion, this is better than 'City of God'

It gives a real and pretty honest look at the situation in the favelas in Rio, allowing you to take a look at things from both the perspective of the 'traffickers' or drug dealers, and the police, who risk their lives for a job that pays pennies.

Amazing.

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Seen City of God NOT this

I have seen City of God and I thought it was O.K. it's just I think people are more attraced to it more because of the violence rather than the realism of the film. It's just that same all stuff you will find these day like drugs, money and guns there's nothing new even though this film (Elite iSquad) is seen on the perspective of the police film which I think is better mainly it's on the side of somebody doing something about it not like violence just spreading and somebody gets out of it and is seen as the hero even though it was the same individual who was in those gangs.

I did want to watch this film at the cinema but never got to as the local wasn't showing it.

That's one thing about some cinemas they don't really show foreign films I'm sure my local did not even show The Orphanage.

Subtitals

truely aweful film....... if I wanted to read my way through a film, I would have bought a book!

[Highly rated reviewer]

Awesome

What can I say, dont miss that one mate, is creative, original, violent, catching and most important, not an american blockbuster!!

horrific

Not very interesting but horrific

Great Movie

A excellent film from the start to the end. Far better than I expected.

Highly recommended...

do not rent

this is boring dont rent dont buy dont even bother

Elite Squad

Another gritty, real life snippet from down-town Rio - just needed more of a story to carry it along. Not a patch on City of God.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Halfway through at the moment

... and it's a good movie thus far. The main protagonist is one of the player's from Carandiru, a fantastic film if you haven't seen it, and is an officer in the Tropa De Elite, units in South America who venture into the slums to clean up problems that the police won't or can't touch. Shaping up very nicely!

[Highly rated reviewer]

Brazilian SS

From early on we are told that Elite Squad are a bunch of toughnuts . We are meant to root for them taking on the bad guys. Trouble is they seem to be a bunch of brazilian nazi stormtroopers shooting at will. They just aren't very likeable. The main character, the captain who is aiming to retire, is an *bleep*-hole in particular.

It tries to treat the corruption of the police as a serious epidemic but the corrupt officers are comedy cardboard cut-outs. There are some horribly clunky scenes where one of the cops (who is an awful actor) debates with his law school classmates about the rights and wrongs of the police - it's sub A-level debating society.

2 plus points - the unintentionally hilarious boot camp scenes and Rio itself, looking as gorgeous as ever on film.

'spose the film passed a horrible rainy evening indoors