set to a bossa nova musical score, mostly set in swinging 1960s rio (the alto da boa vista and the dona marta   being the main filming locations), the film has a glamorous feel, complete with beautiful women in stylishly patterned mini-dresses, theatrical stunts, and ludicrous characters.

city of god (cidade de deus), a 2002 film directed by fernando meirelles, tells the often harrowing story of organized crime in rio de janeiro, and the city's surrounding suburbs, between the end of the 1960s and the beginning of the 1980s.

the film received four academy award nominations and was praised among critics - there are many great scenes showing ipanema and copacabana beaches, not to mention the favela cidade de deus (ciity of god), where much of the action takes place.