The aim of this essay is to discuss the ideas of ‘cosmetics of hunger’ and ‘cosmetics of violence’ in relation to the movie City of God. The 2002 Brazilian film City of God was directed by Fernando Meirelles and co-directed by Kátia Lund. The plot is loosely based on real events as written by Paulo Lins in the novel of the same name. It depicts the growth of organized crime in the neighbourhood of the Cidade de Deus, a suburb of Rio de Janeiro between the 1960’s and 1980’s. The film was a…
One of the most interesting aspects of the involvement of youth gangs in drug trafficking relates to the role of culture in reshaping narco-trafficking as a socially tolerable activity. In Mexico, for example, as noted by Bailey, the drug-trafficking organizations recruit young men and women in part through their influence on music, popular entertainment, and other aspects of culture that appeals to youth. Youth are particularly vulnerable to the influence of popular entertainment and music,…
death, which incites revenge. Almost everyone in the favela either succumbs to violence or died at the hand of it. Young Rocket was the only individual in the film that overcame the cycle of violence and sought out his own path. We are first introduced to the favela and its residents. It was created to displace many poor or unrest citizens of Brazil on the outskirts of Rio, where the only individuals are the police. The residents of the favela are both abandoned and alienated from the rest of…
Child Of The Dark Carolina Maria De Jesus was an Afro-Brazilian woman who lived in a Sao Paulo shanty town, or Favela. During her time in the favela, she kept a dairy of her life experiences which was subsequently published in later years. Carolina De Jesus only had two years of schooling after which she dropped out. She was the mother of three illegitimate children, each born of a different father. Her diary tells the story of her life in São Paulo. This work stands as a vivid social document…
purposes of the argument that ‘Cidade de Deus’ confirms Eurocentric tendencies and ‘Diarios de motocicleta’ subverts them, this essay will focus on the notion that the first focuses on the violence, aggressiveness and underdevelopment of a Brazilian favela through a limited, privileged perspective and the latter emphasises the diversity of indigenous Latin Americans, avoiding limiting South America to quite simply, ‘non-European’ and aiming to give…
that they are the primary characteristics shaping identity construction in Brazil. Because standards of beauty based on a literal spectrum of skin color transforms sexuality in Brazilian favelas into a racial matter, race and sexuality are closely intertwined and in turn influence the social mobility in favelas of a class order based on race. Thus, conceptualizing sexuality as the only means of attaining upward social mobility, cultural constructions of race and sexuality have idealized the…
feminine empowerment, sorority, diversity, LGBTQ representativeness, trans visibility, contestation of aesthetic standards, respect, love, unity and solidarity” (G.oan). Brazilian popstar Anitta takes on the role of a favela housemother, transcending the poor communities of the favelas of Rio into imagery of bold colors, beautiful women and men, sexuality, uniqueness and inclusivity. This image from her music video represents women of all types, and yet, debate and backlash has arisen. Ditching…
This essay will focus on the notion that the first focuses on the violence, aggressiveness and underdevelopment of a Brazilian favela through a limited, privileged perspective and the latter emphasises the diversity of indigenous Latin Americans, avoiding limiting South America, ‘non-European’ and aiming to give indigenous people some form of voice. 'Cidade de Deus ' (Meirelles and Lund, 2002) is constructed in a similar way to a Hollywood 'Gangster Film ', using many of the genre 's tropes…
by. The next film watched was Violence Next Door. It showed how life is living in the lower class areas. Also referred to as ghettos and favelas. The main idea of this film was how poverty stricken areas have similar experiences with violence and how it is affecting their community's economic structure. For example, the gangs and drug dealers in the favelas created their community's economic structure and income through their illegal activity. Also, the gangs are viewed as heroes because…
the direction of the film is focused on Rocket and his storyline, the subliminal focus of this film revolves around a character called Lil Zé who is influenced by poverty and his delinquent brother to form his main goal of becoming the king of the favela. In the chosen scene, Lil Zé breaks into Blackie’s drug house for a hostile takeover. When Blackie improperly refers to Lil Zé as Lil Dice, he is irritated and corrects Blackie while he holds his chin up high to assert his dominance and this…