A likeable and accomplished addition to the Latin American new wave.
Comment
09/28/06
Rate this Movie 
Lower City (2006)
60
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work
Reviews Counted:53
Fresh:32
Rotten:21
Average Rating:6.2/10
Consensus: This familiar story of a tension-fraught love triangle wavers between brutality and steamy sex.
Theatrical Release:Jun 16, 2006 Limited
Synopsis: Steamy sex, glistening sweat, dark photography, grungy ghetto colors, and sudden violence pervade this Brazilian feature from director Sergio Machado. Alice Braga (CITY OF GOD) stars as Karinna, a... [More]
Starring: Alice Braga, José Dumont, Wagner Moura, Lazaro Ramos
Director: Sérgio Machado
Get This Movie
Reviews for Lower City
Brazilian filmmaker Sergio Machado scores a strong debut with this look at young hustlers in a lovers' triangle.
07/28/06
As universal as the plot may be, it must be said that Karinna, Deco and Naldinho's longings, resentments, economic desperation and confusions are unnervingly palpable throughout.
06/30/06
Lower City is essentially an intimate, well-observed, compassionate film about what happens when lust gets in the way of friendship.
12/06/05
Though the storyline is dirt simple (can friendship outlive jealousy?) and not particularly meaningful or involving, the action in this character-driven film is scintillatingly sexy.
02/18/06
Another fine example of Brazilian cinema at its best.
06/15/06
This is nothing really special, but it gets the job done.
06/17/06
'Hot' is the word for this look into the less touristy parts of Brazil.
05/30/06
The setting is far more enticing than the story. Sometimes, that's enough.
08/18/06
Brazilian director Sergio Machado once worked as an assistant to Walter Salles, but fortunately, his new film as director, Lower City is alive in ways that Salles could not conceive.
08/18/06
Machado allowed his actors plenty of space to internalize and create their moments, which consist of rage hidden behind subtleties, libidinous pressure at the edge of containment.
07/06/06
A gritty, Brazilian drama which called for Alice Braga to be naked and in heat nearly non-stop, whether in a bed with a boyfriend or one of her assortedy Johns.
06/16/07
The themes are all familiar and the plot unfolds slowly and in predictable ways, but there's plenty of heat generated by the three leads.
06/29/06
A pleasurably swollen Brazilian soap opera.
06/14/06
Top CriticThree potent performances readily compensate for the familiar plot.
08/18/06
The toastiest summer on record is but an intermittently flickering 40-watt bulb when held up to the positively incendiary sexual firestorm that is Brazilian import Lower City.
08/26/06
Brazilian actress Alice Braga (niece of legendary Sonia Braga) is something special: beautiful and innocent without make-up, seasoned and hard in a pair of short shorts and a gold push-up bra.
06/23/06
Enjoyable drama that is like a cross between City of God and Y Tu Mama Tambien, with lashings of sex and violence and even the odd bit of ****-fighting thrown in.
12/06/05
Tells a familiar story with an emotional intensity and a high eroticism that makes a lacerating impact.
07/28/06
Top CriticMachado ... saturates his directorial debut with rich, golden color, defining it with close, handheld shots that accentuate the feeling of skin on skin.
07/27/06
What’s Hot On RT
Fresh Links
Featured
MSN's Year in Review 
Take a look at MSN's choices for the Top 10 films of 2009.
40 Best Films of the 2000s
Last week, Moviefone offered us their worst films of the 2000s. Now see their 40 best!
Tarantino's Characters
Hollywood.com explores why QT's characters resonate so well with audiences.
10 Questions For Zac Efron
The Me and Orson Welles star answers reader questions on TIME.com.
Top 20 of the Decade
Click through to see which movies BuzzSugar placed in their Best-of-Decade list!
Promos
Follow RT on Twitter
Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!
IGN RSS Feeds