History YMMV / TheEliteSquad

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: In the movie there are only two kinds of police, Fascist cops and corrupt cops.

** [[spoiler:And Matias's. And Nascimento's son in intensive care after being shot.]]

* AwardSnub: Fans of the first movie were shocked that it was passed over by the Ministry of Culture as the country's Best Foreign Picture submission (not that ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Year_My_Parents_Went_on_Vacation The Year My Parents Went on Vacation]]'' is bad, it just never reached ''The Elite Squad''-levels of popularity; although given ''Film/CityOfGod'' was passed over by the Academy, the Ministry had a reason to not put their bets on a gritty movie). The second one being the Brazilian entry and still not making the final shortlist was also an unpopular moment.

* CompleteMonster: Major Rocha of the sequel ''The Enemy Within'' begins his reign of terror in Rio's slums by forming a militia and slaughtering anyone who won't give his men a cut of the profits. Any who resist the militia are executed, along with any witnesses. When Mathias, one of the CowboyCop heroes is [[JackBauerInterrogationTechnique getting info from a drug dealer]], Rocha murders the dealer- and then shoots Mathias in the back. When two journalists get too close to the truth, Rocha tortures them, kills one, then has the other raped and killed before burning the bodies. when the main AntiHero gets too close, Rocha tries to kill him as well. A brutal thug of a human being, Rocha eclipses anyone else in the films for his violence and corruption.

* HarsherInHindsight: Beto's funeral becomes even more sadder in retrospective after his actor Caio Junqueira died in a car crash in 2019.

* EarWorm - Besides the Tihuana song, the song from the opening, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlJ2AZxIOiM Rap das Armas]]" (although a version [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZthNYozVwNM not in the film]] [[CoveredUp became the real hit]], [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff even in Scandinavia!]])
** Try listening to that last one while playing the ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare2'' levels set in the favela. Can't get any more appropriate than this.

* InternetBackdraft - Go to some Brazilian online community and comment that you think Captain Nascimento is a bloodthirsty fascist. If you survive, go to some other and say he is exactly what society needs. Then tell us the results.
** This is mostly due to the Brazilians' growing frustation with the ever-present corruption, not only on the Government, but in its police force as well. Nascimento's radical hate of corruption makes him admirable.

* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: The corruption themes in the sequel are a lot more relevant as it is one of Brazil's main issues. Both films also dealt with InherentInTheSystem of political corruption that resulted in that the main characters having to deal with DirtyCop and SleazyPolitician that tends to leave BOPE as OnlySaneMan.

* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: The corruption themes in the sequel.

* InternetBackdraft - Go to some orkut community and comment that you think Captain Nascimento is a bloodthirsty fascist. If you survive, go to some other and say he is exactly what society needs. Then tell us the results.

** There's also the fact that, while the film tried to criticize the BOPE for police brutality, it led the audience in his country of origin to admire the force even more. Somewhat comprehensible considering that the criminal justice in Brazil is usually inefficient and/or crooked and cases of impunity are far from uncommon, so the whole brutality felt like a CatharsisFactor for several brazilians.

* CrowningMomentOfAwesome - Regardless of what you think of Captain Nascimento's techniques, he definitely qualifies as a walking one.
** The sequel offers one for everyone. For example, [[spoiler:Matias's plan to clean the slums, Fraga managing to start a CPI against the rampant corruption in Rio and Nascimento's shootout with the corrupt cops.]]
* CrowningMomentOfFunny - Many of the jokes are lost for non-Portuguese speakers, but some, such as the grenade scene, definitely qualify.
** The pundit, Fortunato, in the sequel. Then he becomes involved with the corruption and crosses it.
* CrowningMusicOfAwesome - "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajRMjErXIS8 Tropa de Elite]]", the movie's main theme by Brazilian rock band Tihuana (although it wasn't even written for the film).

** There's also the fact that, while the film tried to criticize the BOPE for police brutality, it led the audience in his country of origin to admire the force even more. Somewhat justified considering that the criminal justice in Brazil is usually inefficient and/or crooked and cases of impunity are far from uncommon, so the whole brutality felt like a CatharsisFactor for several brazilians.

* MemeticBadass: Nascimento received his own version of ChuckNorrisFacts in Brazil.

** Try listening to that last one while playing the ''ModernWarfare 2'' levels set in the favela. Can't get any more appropriate than this.

* NobleDemon: Fabio has some shades of this. While he's still a DirtyCop, he's never shown doing the horrible atrocities that the corrupt cops and the militia in the second film do. He's still quite the slimeball, but he was a true friend to Matias and Neto. The closest thing to a MoralEventHorizon he has is [[spoiler: killing Rocha(Possibly, as it's unknown who really shot him]], [[AssholeVictim but no one is sad about it]]. As a whole, Fabio also seems be a ButtMonkey to the other corrupt cops BECAUSE he's not as cruel and monstrous as they are.

** [[spoiler:And Matias's. And Nascimento's son in intensive care after being shot.]]
* UnfortunateImplications: Abundant.

* CompleteMonster: Baiano, the villain, certainly qualifies.
** In the sequel, Rocha.

** The pundit, Fortunato, in the sequel. Then he becomes involved with the corruption and [[CompleteMonster crosses it]].

* SpiritualSuccessor: Given director José Padilha had done before the documentary ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bus_174 Bus 174]]'', some consider the films an attempt for Padilha to do a trilogy of crime films.

* SpiritualSucessor: Given director José Padilha had done before the documentary ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bus_174 Bus 174]]'', some consider the films an attempt for Padilha to do a trilogy of crime films.

** In the sequel, Rocha and the rest of the corrupt cops are this taken to eleven. In fact, pretty much everyone in the sequel other than Nascimento (who is much less brutal in this movie, but still awesome) and Fraga. They are ''horrible, horrible'' people, not much unlike reality.

* EarWorm - Besides the Tihuana song, the song from the opening, "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDvX7rM8tro Rap das Armas]]" (although a version [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZthNYozVwNM not in the film]] [[CoveredUp became the real hit]], [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff even in Scandinavia!]])

** Does it bothers anyone else that all comments in the video section [[CompletelyMissingThePoint are from Portuguese and Brazillians arguing whose country is better?]]