Although reminiscent of City of God, Elite Squad is another foray into the dangerous criminal world with corrupt cops and even deadlier gang violence. The story of Elite Squad revolves around Batalhão de Operações Policiais Especiais (BOPE), the military police of Rio de Janeiro who have extensive experience in urban warfare and can be just as corrupt as the standard police force.

The story becomes more grounded when we are introduced to Nascimento, a man who is beginning to crack. For Nascimento, he is one of the best officers of the BOPE, however his home life is starting to fall apart and he is becoming tired.

Often, Nascimento takes out his frustration on his wife and the prospect of him becoming a father may change his deadly ways. As the Pope is about to arrive to Rio de Janeiro, he has the job of cleaning up the streets and also choosing his successor which may not be as easy as it sounds.

He chooses two police officers who may be worthy of his role, Neto and Matias, both clean, however both are involved in other activities that may challenge their future standing.

The movie is a very depressive and a powerful film with the country of Brazil in turmoil with gang wars quite prevalent in the streets and will give you a true insight into this third world country on the brink of disaster. At times, Elite Squad is almost like a social commentary on Brazil.

Seen through the eyes of a hardened and violent police officer and two new “rookies” who have not yet chosen which way their lives are headed, Elite Squad is definitely a gripping movie that we could recommend to those who enjoyed City of God.