Analyse the thematic aspects of the opening sequence to Cidade de deus
Commentary Essay James Cadenhead
Analyse the thematic aspects of the opening sequence to Cidade de deus
The opening sequence to Cidade de deus is of thematic significance. It introduces to the viewer many of the themes that will be explored in the film. An analysis of the initial scene tells us that some of the main themes of Cidade de deus are escape, poverty, violence and death. It also becomes clear from this sequence that the film will deal with the issue of corruption and the significance of a breakdown in society. The directors, Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund, convey these themes through the use of a variety of cinematic techniques.
One of the most obvious themes that emerges from the opening sequence is poverty. The film plunges us straight into the heart of a favela. The close camera work that is used immediately gives a sense of cramped and claustrophobic living condition. Close-ups of people’s bare feet and ragged clothes as well as the make-shift roofs and terraces of the favela emphasis peoples struggle to find such basic things as proper clothing and shelter, and help to convey the theme of poverty in the film. The fact that they are killing and plucking their own chicken also somehow conveys a sense of an impoverished society. It could be seen as symbolic of the fact that people in the favelas are never far from death. It is certainly a stark contrast to a European society where almost everyone, regardless of class, would go out and buy meat ready-prepared from a supermarket or butchers. The theme of poverty is also evoked by the desperate chase to catch the escaped chicken and by the chicken itself; which seems skinny and malnourished.