A companion piece to Fernando Meirelles's excellent City of God, this crime drama is once again set against the backdrop of a poverty-ridden Rio de Janeiro shanty town where gang warfare is rife, and features some of the same young actors. The focus is on teenage friends Ace (Douglas Silva) and Wallace (Darlan Cunha), who, despite the responsibility that comes with impending adulthood, find themselves taking different paths following the revelation of a shattering event that connects their families. More a tale of hope in adversity than rage in chaos, this is not the cinematic kick in the teeth that City of God was, but the performances still have an authentic and compelling feel about them. One constant in both films is the staggering social and visual contrast between the wealth of Rio's waterfront, and the poverty of the shanty town that rises threateningly above it.

Best buddies Acerola and Laranjinha, about to turn 18, discover things about their missing fathers' pasts which will shatter their solid friendship, in the middle of a war between rival drug gangs from Rio's favelas.