Essay: Representation of Aggressive Masculinity in 'City of God'

Film Studies Essay: 'With reference to two scenes from City of God, explore how the film represents masculinity as being aggressive'

One way 'City Of God' represents aggressive masculinity is the constant power battle to be in charge of the City of God that occurs throughout the film as Meirelles shows how the characters assert their dominance by using violence. Meirelles represents aggressive masculinity in characters from Lil Ze to Knockout Ned to the Runts in order to depict the extremes that these characters are willing to go to due to their power hungry nature, their need for revenge or their upbringing. Meirelles epitomises Lil Ze's aggressive masculinity from a young age when he goes on his killing spree by conveying to the audience that Lil Ze is taking masculinity to an extreme as he wants to prove to the 'Tender Trio' that he is more than the person watching guard and wants to be in on the action so he uses the act of killing to assert his power in the City of God. Meirelles uses camera angles to present Lil Ze's aggression by using a low angle when Lil Ze is shooting people to present his character as menacing & he uses fast cuts of Lil Ze killing his victims to present how his masculinity to be in charge is becoming more and more aggressive due to the increasing amount of violent acts he commits.

Meirelles also represents Lil Ze as an example of aggressive masculinity in the scene where he forces Steak to choose which kid he should shoot. This scene exemplifies how the film represents masculinity as being aggressive through the techniques Meirelles uses to shoot this scene as the director uses aspects such as mise-en-scene and sound to convey the harsh reality of life in the City of God. Meirelles uses mise-en-scene to portray Lil Ze's aggressive masculinity as Lil Ze is dressed in bright clothes & gold chains and has a gun which makes him superior to others in the favela's as his costume & weapon make him seem imposing; the gun represents Lil Ze's power and how he has taken masculinity to an extreme as he keeps the gun on him as a warning to other inhabitants that he will use this weapon if they try to challenge his power. This scene also exemplifies the theme of aggressive masculinity as Lil Ze decides that one of the Runts should be killed because they didn't leave straight away when Lil Ze arrived so this shows the aggressive nature of Lil Ze as he decided to kill one of them instead of giving them a warning or a talking to. The sound used in this scene conveys how the aggression in the City of God affects the people who are facing this aggressive masculinity as in this scene, you can hear the diegetic sound of the runts crying which presents their fear of the aggression that the gang are imposing on them as they are scared for their lives.

A second way the film represents aggressive masculinity is by sidelining the female characters by giving them passive and peripheral roles which allows the men to be the dominant focus of the film. However Meirelles uses the few female characters that appear in the film as examples to present the men's aggressive masculinity due to their interactions with each other. For example the characters of Bernice and Angelica reject violence and encourage their boyfriends to leave the gangs but they both lost the man they loved after they were killed as a result of their escape attempts. This also conveys to the audience that the aggressive masculinity in the men will always remain prevalent over love and peace in the City of God as both escape attempts ended with violent acts being committed by men who were willed on by their aggression at a previous incident. In the scene where Benny is killed at his farewell, Meirelles uses editing to present the aggressive masculinity by using fast cuts of shots in order to show how the fast pace of this scene juxtaposes with the aggressive nature building up inside Blacky as he wants to take his revenge on Lil Ze by proving his masculinity by attempting to kill him.

Meirelles also represents the female characters as an example for the aggressive masculinity that occurs during the film by using women such as Shorty's wife and Ned's girlfriend who are recipients of male violence and are raped or murdered. This extreme violence conveys the aggressive masculinity of men in this film as Lil Ze wants to assert his power on Ned's girlfriend to show how he can control and take anything he wants in the City of God and Shorty's outburst of violence against his wife shows how he took his masculinity to an aggressive stage as he asserted his power over his wife by beating her with a shovel and killing her. These two scenes convey how the men struggle to control the aggressive nature of their masculinity as they are used to being in power so when they are threatened by it, e.g. Shorty's wife sleeping with Goose, they lose all their moral boundaries and let the aggressive nature of their masculinity out on the women so they can stay in charge of their masculinity. For example in the rape scene, Meirelles uses mise-en-scene and sound to present aggressive masculinity by showing the male dominance in the City of God. Lil Ze stands out as he is shown in a brighter lighting which depicts that he holds all the power over the women he is raping as a dark setting is used so the reaction of Knockout Ned's girlfriend are invisible to the audience and Meirelles uses diegetic sound when Ned's girlfriend is crying out to reinforce her weakness and powerlessness in this situation as Lil Ze's masculinity makes her powerlessness to stop him committing this act. Ze's laughter in this scene also creates a harsh reality of suffering as his laughter presents his need for his aggressive masculinity as he doesn't care how much he is hurting others as it is his lust for power that rules over any other intention.

In conclusion, Meirelles uses the representation of aggressive masculinity throughout the film to convey how these characters have been shaped by their experiences and how they apply aggression to their actions in order to stay in power of the City of God. Meirelles presents City of God as a film dealing with hyper-realism which conveys that everything is taken to the extreme so he depicts masculinity as aggressive as he is breaking the ceiling of masculinity by presenting how the characters have a lust for killing and will do anything to be in charge of the favela.