The director of the acclaimed documentary Bus 174- Brazil’s Jose Padilha- premiered his recent film titled Elite Squad.
Elite Squad, which Padilha wrote with former Rio police officer Rodrigo Pimentel, follows two young Rio de Janeiro police officers as their fantasy of implementing law and order disintegrates into bloodshed and corruption.
It details night raids through the makeshift homes of the city's hillside slums known as favelas, as well as the stark class differences that feed an appetite for riches among many of its poor residents.
Padilha, 39, said he had originally hoped to use the information he received from Pimentel for a documentary but quickly realized that it would not be feasible."How would I do this, go to corrupt cops with cameras?" he asks. "If I tried to make this film as a documentary, it would probably get me killed."
