No Ordinary Fool

In the first of several plodding sequels to the magnificent Dirty Harry, Callaghan takes on a team of vigilante motorcycle cops who are intent on administering violent summary justice. In one scene, he is told by one of these cops that his no-nonsense approach to crime-fighting was their inspiration. Callaghan is then given the chance to join forces with them. He, naturally, dismisses the offer and eventually brings them all to justice Dirty Harry-style. Famously, he says of one of the dead villains at the end of the film,

A man’s got to know his limitations.

However, Callaghan also had limitations as to what he was prepared to do. Nevertheless, this was also in the knowledge that he could still put away the bad guys despite these restrictions.

Elite Squad tells a story based on the real-life BOPE, an elite Brazilian cadre of police who do not carry handcuffs. This is simply because they have no need for them. Portrayed here as being armed to the teeth and mercilessly trained to shoot first and ask question later, they are sent in to deal with crime in parts of Rio de Janeiro where ordinary police will only dare frequent if they are engaged in corrupt activity.

One team within this cadre is led by Captain Nascimento (Wagner Moura). A ferocious leader in the field, he is increasingly showing signs of severe mental stress as he tries to balance the brutality of his day job with the prospects of shortly becoming a father for the first time. It is time to get out and, to do so, he must find the right replacement to lead his men on their dangerous missions.

There are the two new officer recruits to the BOPE that he sees the most potential in. Both are friends since childhood – one impetuous and utterly driven (André Ramiro), the other more thoughtful and idealistic (Caio Junqueira). The opening third of the film follows the two rookies through their initial assignments as officers in the regular police force. Both are appalled by the naked corruption and chaotic inefficiency that plagues the force. Before long, they take matters into their own hands and the fallout from what they do brings them to the attention of the ruthless Nascimento.

The film treads a narrow path between two opposing points of view. On the one side, it looks to put the need for the BOPE into context, as well as not wanting to paint the individual officers as simply being mere fascist thugs. On the other, the film does not flinch from showing the shocking violence of their approach and the manner in which it divides them from the law-abiding citizens whom they ultimately protect. Crude torture techniques, shoot-to-kill policies, and revenge missions are all stock-in-trade for these black-uniformed men with their skull-embossed emblems.

There is also the black irony running through the film that most of the events that take place are done in anticipation of the arrival of Pope John Paul II. He wishes to sleep “near the people”, so the BOPE are discretely charged with clearing the gangsters out of the nearby neighbourhoods beforehand so that the Pope will get a night’s sleep left undisturbed by even a single gunshot.

The standout performance comes from Junqueira, who runs through an entire gamut of emotions over the course of the film. Reminiscent of a young Denzel Washington, his character is the best drawn of the three central roles, as he copes with his transition from cop and part-time legal student to a fully-fledged officer of the BOPE.

This is a fine cinematic work from director José Padilha – coupling some strong oppositions and thought-provoking ideas with violent, pulsating, no-holds-barred action scenes. The result ideally elicits a complex reaction in the viewer. On the one hand, this is a horrendous portrayal of justice as administered by almost Judge Dredd-like figures. On the other, you are agog with the fast-paced, unsentimental depiction of men taught to be disciplined yet remorseless in taking back neighbourhoods lost to vicious lawlessness.

It is The Wire with none of the shackles of procedures, evidence-gathering, court orders, and respecting long chains of command. It is undeniably quite the compulsive watch for that.