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Elite Squad
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Wikipedia article
'Elite Squad' (, ) is a 2007 Brazilian crime film directed by Jos Padilha. The film is a semi-fictional account of the 'Batalho de Operaes Policiais Especiais' (BOPE), the Special Police Operations Battalion of the Rio de Janeiro Military Police, analogous to the American SWAT teams. It is the second feature and first fiction film of Padilha, who previously directed the documentary 'Bus 174'. The script was written by Padilha and Brulio Mantovani, based on the book 'Elite da Tropa' by sociologist Luiz Eduardo Soares and two former BOPE captains, Andr Batista and Rodrigo Pimentel.
'Elite Squad' was an overwhelming critical and commercial success, and became a cultural phenomenon in Brazil. The film won the Golden Bear at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival. Its sequel, 'Elite Squad: The Enemy Within', released in Brazil on October 8, 2010, holds industry records in the country for ticket sales and gross revenue.
Plot
The film opens with a narration by BOPE Captain Roberto Nascimento (Wagner Moura) explaining the illegal liaisons between Rio de Janeiro's military police force and the city's drug lords.
In 1997, novice police officers Andr Matias (Andr Ramiro) and Neto Gouveia (Caio Junqueira) use a sniper rifle telescope to watch officer Captain Oliveira (Marcelo Valle) and other policemen meet drug traffickers at Morro da Babilnia. Neto accidentally pulls the trigger, which causes a deadly gunfight between the officers and thugs; as Mathias and Neto flee the scene, Nascimento and his men head to the shootout to rescue the officers.
Six months earlier, Nascimento leads an operation to secure the Morro do Turano neighbourhood before Pope John Paul II's overnight visit at the Archbishop's home near the slums. With his wife Rosane (Maria Ribeiro) pregnant with their first child, Nascimento begins searching for a worthy successor at the unit before switching to a desk job. Meanwhile, long-time friends Neto and Matias share an apartment in Rio and have just completed the admission tests to the PMERJ: Neto begins working as a supervisor at the police auto mechanic shop, whilst Matias is responsible for registering and filing every police complaint in a small archive office. Matias also attends Law school, where he befriends classmates Roberta (Fernanda de Freitas), Edu (Paulo Viela) and Maria (Fernanda Machado); all three are members of a NGO that operates in a drug traffic area run by a major drug lord nicknamed "Baiano" (Fbio Lago), who provides marijuana to Matias' friends. He also befriends Romerito, a local boy who suffers from severe myopia.
Neto eventually applies to another department, but his transfer is denied. Disgusted by the corruption practices carried on by police officers in a routine patrol with Captain Fabio (Milhem Cortaz), he asks Matias to help stealing the drug dealers' payoff money to fix as many police cars as possible at once. Their plan is successful, but Oliveira finds out and demotes both to kitchen work as punishment, as well as ordering Fabio - whom he believes is the mastermind - to attend a false police report at Morro da Babilnia during a community funk party. Fabio realizes is a set-up to kill him and discreetly warns Neto and Matias, who rush to the location and arrive at the vantage point from the first scene. After the shootout - during which Matias is photographed by the press - both are rescued by Nascimento and, soon after, they apply for BOPE's training program motivated by their devotion to the force and eagerness for more action. At the NGO office, Baiano confronts Maria and her friends with a newspaper featuring Matias's picture and threatens to kill them if they bring policemen inside his territory.
The BOPE's training program proves to be a gruesome challenge as many candidates quit the program, including Fabio (who applied as a way to avoid Oliveira), but both Neto and Matias successfully pass the course, which Neto celebrates by having a BOPE tattoo on his arm. In college, Matias is rejected by Maria and her friends, but confronts Edu and orders him to arrange a meeting with Romerito the next day to give him a new pair of glasses. Edu reveals Matias' plan to Baiano, who sets an ambush to kill him; however, upon returning home, Neto informs Matias of a job interview in a prestigious law firm that will conflict with his meeting with Romerito, and volunteers to deliver the glasses in his place: this results in Neto being mortally wounded. When Baiano prepares to execute him, he notices his BOPE tattoo and goes into hiding for fear of retaliation.
After Neto's funeral, Matias, Nascimento and his men make daily incursions into Baiano's slum, torturing several dealers into revealing his whereabouts. After one of them reveals Edu tipped Baiano, Matias storms in a peace walk, violently beats Edu and insults Maria and the others. The BOPE team finally locate and corner Baiano: Nascimento holds him at gunpoint as he pleads to not to be shot in the face as it would ruin his funeral. Angrily amused at Baiano's suffering, Nascimento grabs a .120 shotgun, hands it to Matias and orders him to "finish him off" as both a vendetta for Neto's death and as a final rite of passage for himself. As Baiano pleads and cries, Matias cocks the gun and the screen cuts to black as a shot is heard.
Cast
* Wagner Moura as Squad Captain Nascimento - A captain in the BOPE squad, who is awaiting a promotion that will make his job safer and enable him to spend time with his wife and newborn son. In order to move into his new position he needs to find a worthy successor.
* Caio Junqueira as Aspirant Neto Gouveia - He is a rookie police officer and Matias' best friend. Nascimento describes Neto as being similar to himself when he was younger. He is a tough man, but has a fierce temper as well, and never gives up on his mission. He later joined BOPE to seek out justice and was groomed for Nascimento's spot.
* Andr Ramiro as Aspirant Andr Matias - Another rookie police officer, he is also a law student, who wants to specialize in criminal law. He is a resourceful and calculating tactician. He joins BOPE along with Neto Gouveia.
* Maria Ribeiro as Rosane Nascimento - Nascimento's wife. They are expecting their first child. She dislikes Nascimento's frequent absence from home and the dangers associated with his job.
* Milhem Cortaz as Capito Fbio Barbosa - One of the captains where Matias and Neto work he develops a sort-of friendship with the two. A former pimp in Copacabana he also runs a protection racket scheme. After Matias and Neto stole the drug payoff he feared that Oliveira would blame him and have him killed.
* Fernanda Machado as Maria - A law student and founding member of the NGO, she is also a marijuana user. She befriends Matias and falls in love with him, but when Baiano finds out that he is a cop, she abandons him for lying to her and because she fears Baiano's retribution. She later helps Matias by giving him the name of Bainao's girlfriend. In the end, Matias insults her and her friends and walks away, ending their relationship.
* Andr Di Mauro as Pedro Rodrigues - A student who works in the favela's NGO and dates Roberta. As a punishment for bringing a cop into the drug dealer's circle of friends, Rodrigues is necklaced.
* Paulo Vilela as Edu - Nicknamed "Playboy", he is the main university drug dealer and is close to Baiano, although he is afraid of him. He despises Matias for his defense of police officers.
* Fbio Lago as Baiano - He is a ruthless drug lord who sells marijuana and heroin throughout the university using several students. Unlike many other drug lords, he hates all cops, even the corrupted ones, and avoids having business with them. Edu is his main seller on the university. He has a small auxiliary that protects the NGO.
* Marcelo Valle as Capito Oliveira - He is Fabio's rival and superior in the police force, taking over his territory for protection rackets and later allegedly setting him up to be killed.
* Fernanda de Freitas as Roberta Alunde
* Alex Avellar, as 02
* Ricardo Pagotto Piai, as 08
* Guilherme Aguilar, as 07
* Pedro Bonfim, as PM Robson
Inspiration
The movie is based on 'Elite da Tropa', a book by two BOPE policemen ('Batalho de Operaes Policiais Especiais' - Rio de Janeiro military police squads for special actions), Andr Batista and Rodrigo Pimentel, together with sociologist & anthropologist Luiz Eduardo Soares, which provided a semi-fictional account of the daily routine of the BOPE as well as some historical events, based on the experiences of the two BOPE policemen. The book was controversial at the time of release, in its description of the BOPE as a "killing machine", as well as the detailed allegation of an aborted assassination attempt on then left-wing governor of Rio de Janeiro, Leonel Brizola, and reportedly resulted in Batista being reprimanded and censured by the Military Police. The writing contained some discrepancies, however Soares did not retract his novel.Monken, Mario Hugo. [http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/cotidiano/ult95u120946.shtml Livro sobre elite da PM do Rio causou punio, diz autor]. 'Folha de S.Paulo'. April 29, 2006. Retrieved on September 5, 2007. The novel had a unique reception when it was translated in 2010. There were many fans of the original novel and film who felt that the Portuguese-English translation was poor and did not follow the film and vice versa. Ultimately the novel (before translation) was more like the film than the novel in English.
Production leak
In August 2007, prior to the movie's release to theaters, a preliminary cut of the film was leaked and made available for download on the Internet. The cut, which included English title cards but no subtitles, was leaked from the company responsible for subtitling the film, resulting in one person being fired and a criminal investigation. It was estimated that about 11.5 million people had seen the leaked version of the movie in 2007.
Reception
Popularity and box office
'Tropa de Elite' became one of the most popular Brazilian movies in history. According to Datafolha, 77% of So Paulo residents knew about the movie. The word of mouth was also important for the disclosure of the film, with 80% of the people rating the movie as "excellent" or "good", according to the same poll.The movie was released in Rio de Janeiro and So Paulo on October 5, 2007 (with the intention of being considered by the Ministry of Culture to compete as the Brazilian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar). It was released nationwide on October 12, 2007. By January 2008, 2.5 million people had seen it in theaters. In Rio and So Paulo, with no promotion other than billboards, 180,000 people saw the movie during its opening weekend.
The movie was also the cover issue for the two Brazil's most important weekly magazines, 'Veja' and 'poca'. In the beginning of 2008 it was confirmed that Rede Globo would produce a TV series based on the movie. In 2011 Rockstar Games recommended 'Elite Squad' to fans of its video game 'Max Payne 3', which is set in Brazil and depicts battles between special police units and favela gangs.
Outside Brazil reviews of the film were initially mixed, but after time the film was received more positively. Based on 34 reviews, the film received a 53% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with its critics' consensus calling it a "brutal, action-heavy Brazilian cop film with a pointless voiceover. Lacks flair, overdoes the violence and is never quite sure where its morals lie".
Criticism
When the first version of the film leaked, it caused a major controversy for its portrayal of Captain Nascimento's unpunished police brutality in slums (favelas); some saw it as glamourizing police violence. After its exhibition in Berlin Film Festival, critic Jay Weissberg, in a 'Variety' article, called the movie "a one-note celebration of violence-for-good that plays like a recruitment film for fascist thugs".Weissberg, Jay. [https://www.variety.com/review/VE1117936168/ "The Elite Squad Review"], 'Variety', February 11, 2008. Accessed May 8, 2009. Michel Misse, a researcher of urban violence in the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, in an article by 'Carta Capital', tried to explain why some people cheered at Captain Nascimento's actions: "as the judiciary system cannot keep up with the demand for punishment, some may think civil rights leads to unpunishment. And then, they want illegal solutions. That's why Captain Nascimento is called".Sousa, Ana Paula. [http://cartacapital.com.br/2007/10/465/heroi-torturador "Heri torturador"], 'CartaCapital'. Accessed May 8, 2009.Awards
On February 16, 2008, 'Elite Squad' won the Best Movie award of the Berlin International Film Festival, the Golden Bear.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack of the film was a collection of popular hits, but even the soundtrack would not escape controversy as the Brazilian authorities demanded the removal of MC Leonardo's "Rap das Armas" from the film, because of alleged promotion of violence like use of illegal arms and drugs. The filmmakers complied two weeks after the official release.
#"Rap das Armas" - Bateria da Rocinha, MC Leonardo
#"Tropa de Elite" - Tihuana
#"Rap da Felicidade" - MC Cidinho, MC Doca
#"Passa Que Teu" - Pedro Bromfman
#"Brilhar a Minha Estrela" - Sangue da Cidade
#"Ktia Flvia, a Godiva do Iraj" - Fausto Fawcett
#"Teatro de Bonecos" - Guilherme Flarys, Pedro Guedes
#"Polcia" - Tits
#"Invaso do BOPE" - Pedro Bromfman
#"Lado B Lado A" - O Rappa
#"Andando Pela frica" - Barbatuques
#"Nossa Bandeira" - Bateria da Rocinha, MC Leonard
#"Rap das Armas [Funk]" - MC Leonard
Sequel
A sequel, named 'Tropa de Elite 2: O Inimigo Agora Outro', was released in Brazil on October 8, 2010, and in the U.S. on November 11, 2011.
See also
* Batalho de Operaes Policiais Especiais
* 'Bus 174'
* 'City of God'
References
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