FAQ for
Cidade de Deus (2002) More at IMDbPro »

The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags are used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for can be found here.

Yes. Cidade de Deus (City of God) is a 1997 novel by Brazilian Paulo Lins.

"Cidade de Deus" (City of God) is the name of a housing project created by the government in the 1960s, where the action take place. As it was usual with such projects, it was virtually abandoned by the authorities after its creation, becoming one of Rio's worst "favelas", or slums. That's why the name today sounds ironic in the movie.

In the Brazilian favelas, yes. These are poor communities over which drug-dealers and gangs wield a lot of control. Many large cities around the world have slums like that. However, life in Rio and in Brazil as a whole is not like that. Middle- and upper-class Rio is pretty much like any other city in the world. Although Brazil has millions living in poverty, it is one of the wealthier countries in the world. Unfortunately, the disparity between rich and poor is tremendous. The richest 1% owns over 10% of Brazil's wealth.

This references an infamous Brazilian criminal body known as Comando Vermelho (Red Command), a Brazillian crime syndicate similar to the American mafia.