City of God (2002 film)

City of God (Portuguese: Cidade de Deus) is a 2002 Brazilian epic crime film directed by Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund. The screenplay, written by Bráulio Mantovani, is adapted from the 1997 novel by Paulo Lins, though the plot is also loosely based on real events. The film portrays the rise of organized crime in the Cidade de Deus suburb of Rio de Janeiro between the late 1960s and early 1980s, culminating in a war between drug dealer Li'l Zé and vigilante-turned-criminal Knockout Ned. Its tagline is, "If you run, the beast catches you; if you stay, the beast eats you."

The film features a cast including Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino, Jonathan and Phellipe Haagensen, Douglas Silva, Daniel Zettel, Seu Jorge, and the film debut of Alice Braga. Most of the actors were actual residents of favelas such as Vidigal and Cidade de Deus itself.

City of God received widespread critical acclaim and earned four nominations at the 76th Academy Awards: Best Cinematography (César Charlone), Best Director (Meirelles), Best Film Editing (Daniel Rezende), and Best Adapted Screenplay (Mantovani). At the previous 75th Academy Awards, it was Brazil's submission for Best Foreign Language Film but was not selected as a finalist. In 2015, the Brazilian Film Critics Association (Abraccine) ranked City of God 8th on its list of the 100 greatest Brazilian films.

Following the success of City of God, Meirelles and Lund created the City of Men TV series and its 2007 film adaptation. Both projects share some actors (notably leads Silva and Darlan Cunha) and the same setting as City of God.