N/A

Like City of God and Bus 174 before it, Favela Rising is about as raw as it comes. This is not an apologetic film, but rather one that looks for the bright side in a bleak situation.

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03/22/07

2.5/4

[The directors] junk up the telling of Sa's story with overworked editing, unnecessary graphic clutter and a confounding habit of using dubbed-over music on the live concert footage.

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08/08/06

N/A

Elevated by fantastic performance footage of Sa and his young protégés singing, dancing and rhythmically banging on cans, plastic bottles or anything else that can be fashioned into a drum -- and a cultural revolution.

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08/03/06

3/5

As a piece of documentary filmmaking, it's more a matter of excellent intentions than effective technique--a potentially powerful short doc stretched into a theatre length yawner.

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07/26/06

2/4

Favela Rising can't seem to find its center.

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07/14/06

B

An inspirational portrait of an unwanted kid who brought culture to a world that had known only violence.

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07/13/06

4/5

A movie that is compelling and moving. It's also an artfully filmed and edited study of a real 'rhythm nation.'

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07/07/06

3/4

Using a visual style of oversaturated colors that seem to leap off the screen, Mochary and Zimbalist offer an unforgettable portrait of the favelas, where young men openly polish their machine guns and a bullet-riddled body may lie around any corner.

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07/07/06

3/4

You couldn't find a setting that's more hopeless than the crime-ridden slums of Rio de Janeiro, and yet Jeff Zimbalist and Michael Mochary tell a story that's unabashedly uplifting as well as emotionally raw.

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07/06/06

5/5

Watching it all replayed is simply a life-changing experience.

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07/06/06

3.5/5

There's a raw, edgy power to this documentary, which takes a distinctly positive approach to a difficult situation.

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06/06/06

N/A

Success depicted here is sweet and inspirational. But moviegoers may long for a dramatized, less narrated picture of the process involved.

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06/05/06

3/4

Matt Mochary and Jeff Zimbalist's documentary traces the history of Grupo Afro-Reggae, a community-based action group that arose in Vigario Geral, one of the notorious favelas (slums) that ring Rio de Janeiro.

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06/02/06

3/5

An uplifting story that's well worth telling, but the directors rather lose sight of the wider sociological ramifications to iconise a figurehead whose courage is couched in almost miraculous terms.

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05/27/06