City of God
“If you run, the beast catches you; if you stay, the beast eats you.”
In the poverty-stricken favelas of Rio de Janeiro in the 1970s, two young men choose different paths. Rocket is a budding photographer who documents the increasing drug-related violence of his neighborhood, while José “Zé” Pequeno is an ambitious drug dealer diving into a dangerous life of crime.
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Cast
150 people
Alexandre Rodrigues
Buscapé
Known for
City of God: The Fight Rages On
Mexico 86
Leandro Firmino
Zé Pequeno / Dadinho
Known for
Impure
Beast Race
Phellipe Haagensen
Bené
Also in
City of Men
Máncora
Douglas Silva
Dadinho
Known for
City of Men
Blindness
Jonathan Haagensen
Cabeleira
Known for
Call Me Bruna
The Mechanism
Matheus Nachtergaele
Sandro Cenoura
Known for
A Dog's Will
Central Station
Seu Jorge
Mané Galinha
Known for
Pelé: Birth of a Legend
Elite Squad: The Enemy Within
Jefechander Suplino
Alicate
No other roles listed
Alice Braga
Angélica
Known for
I Am Legend
Soul
Emerson Gomes
Barbantinho
Known for
Elite Squad
Edson Oliveira
Barbantinho Adulto
Known for
City of God: The Fight Rages On
Michel Gomes
Bené Criança
Known for
3%
Last Stop 174
Fernando Meirelles Director · Bráulio Mantovani Screenplay Paulo Lins Author
Worldwide gross $31M · Budget $3.3M · United States release January 17, 2003
Box office
Budget
$3,300,000
Worldwide gross
$30,641,770
Gross vs. budget
9.3×
Production
O2 Filmes
Production
VideoFilmes
Production
Wild Bunch
Production
Hank Levine Film & Music
Production
Globo Filmes
Production
Lumière
Production
Miramax
Studio
Hank Levine Film
Production
Lumiere
Production
Brazil · France · Germany
Produced in
Languages
Original title
Cidade de Deus
Original language
Portuguese
Spoken on screen
Portuguese
Release dates
France · May 18, 2002
Premiere · Cannes Film Festival
Brazil · August 30, 2002
Theatrical
United States · January 17, 2003
Limited theatrical
United States
August 31, 2002 · Premiere · Telluride Film Festival
February 13, 2004 · Theatrical
Argentina
March 6, 2003 · Premiere · Mar del Plata Film Festival
March 20, 2003 · Theatrical
Australia
March 13, 2003 · Theatrical
Austria
May 9, 2003 · Theatrical
Belgium
May 7, 2003 · Theatrical
Brazil
February 6, 2004 · Theatrical · Re-release
Canada
September 6, 2002 · Premiere · Toronto International Film Festival
China
April 18, 2015 · Premiere · Beijing International Film Festival
Colombia
February 1, 2003 · Premiere · Cartagena Film Festival
Croatia
February 5, 2004 · Theatrical
Cuba
December 1, 2002 · Premiere · Havana Film Festival
Czechia
July 7, 2003 · Premiere · Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
July 10, 2003 · Theatrical
Denmark
July 11, 2003 · Theatrical
Finland
September 12, 2003 · Theatrical
France
March 12, 2003 · Theatrical
November 6, 2003 · Physical · DVD
October 14, 2009 · Digital · VOD
October 14, 2009 · Physical · Blu-Ray
October 15, 2021 · Digital · Prime Video
Germany
May 8, 2003 · Theatrical
Greece
January 31, 2003 · Theatrical
Hong Kong SAR China
April 10, 2003 · Premiere · Hong Kong International Film Festival
May 8, 2003 · Theatrical
Hungary
March 13, 2003 · Theatrical
Iceland
November 28, 2003 · Theatrical
India
January 18, 2007 · Theatrical
Indonesia
January 31, 2021 · Physical · Blu-ray
Ireland
January 3, 2003 · Theatrical
Israel
March 27, 2003 · Theatrical
Italy
May 9, 2003 · Theatrical
Japan
October 30, 2002 · Premiere · Tokyo International Film Festival
June 28, 2003 · Theatrical
Lithuania
April 30, 2004 · Theatrical
Mexico
March 1, 2003 · Premiere · Guadalajara International Film Festival
May 1, 2003 · Theatrical
Morocco
September 1, 2002 · Premiere · Marrakech International Film Festival
Netherlands
January 27, 2003 · Premiere · International Film Festival Rotterdam
February 6, 2003 · Theatrical
April 10, 2008 · Physical · DVD
May 9, 2008 · TV · Nederland 2
May 16, 2024 · Theatrical · 21st Anniversary Event
New Zealand
July 19, 2003 · Premiere · Auckland International Film Festival
August 14, 2003 · Theatrical
Norway
July 4, 2003 · Premiere · Filmquart Film Festival
Peru
August 1, 2003 · Premiere · Lima Latin American Film Festival
August 14, 2003 · Theatrical
Philippines
August 1, 2003 · Premiere · Cinemanila International Film Festival
October 8, 2003 · Limited theatrical
Poland
June 29, 2003 · Premiere · Latin America Film Festival
January 9, 2004 · Theatrical
Portugal
March 21, 2003 · Theatrical
Romania
July 18, 2003 · Theatrical
Russia
February 5, 2003 · Theatrical
April 13, 2023 · Theatrical · Re-release
Singapore
June 26, 2003 · Theatrical
Slovakia
October 2, 2003 · Theatrical
Slovenia
March 20, 2003 · Theatrical
South Korea
November 3, 2005 · Theatrical
July 9, 2020 · Theatrical · Re-release
Spain
January 31, 2003 · Theatrical
Sweden
October 17, 2003 · Theatrical
Switzerland
March 12, 2003 · Theatrical · French
May 8, 2003 · Theatrical · German
Taiwan
April 4, 2003 · Theatrical
Türkiye
April 13, 2003 · Premiere · Istanbul Film Festival
July 18, 2003 · Theatrical
United Arab Emirates
July 6, 2008 · TV
United Kingdom
November 8, 2002 · Premiere · BFI London Film Festival
January 3, 2003 · Theatrical
February 23, 2024 · Limited theatrical · 21st Anniversary Re-Release
Uruguay
April 1, 2003 · Premiere · Uruguay International Film Festival
April 12, 2003 · Theatrical
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Some details come from TheTVDB.