Dead End
A previous post about Brazilian TV series City of Men was partly inspired by an article that I wrote back in 2004 about violence in Latin American cinema. The idea was to discuss the mythology of violence [true lowbrow semiotics] as well as some of its main drivers through reviewing three great contemporary films: Cidade de Deus [City of God], Huelepega [Glue Sniffer], and La Virgen de los Sicarios [Our Lady of the Assassins].
The three films dealt with violence in some of the most dangerous cities of the region: Caracas, Medellin, and Rio de Janeiro. Despite differences in language and culture, these cities share a few traits [from topography since the three are valleys with Favelas dominating the mountains, to their citizens' love for well-known brands] that make the comparison relevant, these similarities become evident when analyzing popular culture in general and these films in specific. The prevalence of this unfortunate circumstance position this analysis in a more significant context today than three years ago.
Here is the link to the article; it might be useful for people studying the subject matter. If you are interested in a deeper examination check out this 2006 Spiegel article which offers interesting insights on the situation.
An ever-growing Caracas’ Favela. Picture grabbed from Google Earth.