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Rocket/Buscape
It was like a message from God: "Honesty doesn't pay, sucker."
Portrayed By: Alexandre Rodrigues/Luis Otávio
The protagonist and narrator of the film. He struggles finding a place among the violence of the slums, before he starts moving into journalism and photography .- Abusive Parents: A case of Values Dissonance.
- Coming of Age Story: Part of his plot.
- Did Not Get the Girl: Did not get Angelica.
- Intrepid Reporter: He's the only person willing to go into Cidade de Deus and take pictures of the crime that goes on there.
- May–December Romance: briefly, with the woman who claims his virginity in what's possibly implied to be a one-night stand.
- Morality Pet: To his brother Goose, who wants him to study and stay out of criminal life, making him promise to never use his gun.
- Nice Guy: Despite his insecurities, he is a decent, well-meaning young man who is treated well by most people.
- There Is Only One Bed: How Rocket loses his virginity.
- Useless Protagonist: Though he meets and talks to several of the characters (and get in danger more than once) he doesn't interfere in any ways with the conflicts of the gangs, or even in the plot. He is meant to be nothing more than a witness of violence, and a narrator. His character is completely neutral: he doesn't act violent, but doesn't do anything against Ze Pequeno either.
Zé Pequeno/Little Ze
Where do you want to take the shot? In the hand or in the foot?
Portrayed By: Leandro Firmino da Hora/Douglas Silva
A teenage gangster who takes over the drug trade in Cidade de Deus, usually just by shooting anyone who gets in his way, as well as many people who aren't in his way as well- Arch-Enemy: To Carrot and Knockout Ned.
- Asshole Victim: Him getting mangled down by his kid-soldiers didn't elicit any public tears.
- Ax-Crazy: He's a murderer, a ruthless druglord, and later a rapist.
- Big Bad: He stands out as the most violent of the gang bosses whose ambitions for wealth and power effectively drive the plot. Though as the film points out, the gangs who oppose him aren't any better.
- Bloodbath Villain Origin: His murder spree in the hotel.
- Dissonant Serenity: His laugh as he kills innocent people in a motel is the first indicator that he's an irredeemable sociopath.
- The Dog Bites Back: A villainous example. When he was still a kid (then called Lil' Dice), he was bullied by Rocket's older brother Goose. After the motel massacre, the two bump into each other again. Goose callously takes Lil' Dice's money and slaps him for good measure. It proves to be a fatal mistake.
- The Dreaded: Only Benny isn't afraid of him.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: The only thing that keeps him from being pure evil is that he actually gives a rat's ass about Benny, with the one reason he leaves Carrot alone is because he's friends with Bené.
- Evil Is Petty: Destroyed Knockout Ned's life just because had envy of Ned's lucky with the girls.
- Forced to Watch: Lil' Ze forces Knockout Ned to watch him rape his girlfriend.
- From Nobody to Nightmare: He starts off as a Small Name, Big Ego punk who is pushed around by the older gangsters. Later - with a few years of robbery and rampant murder under his belt - he gains the fear and respect that he craves. He then decides to go the full mile and take over the drug trade, becoming the most powerful gang boss in the city. He even changes his name to "Lil' Zé" to cement the occasion.
- Gun Twirling: He does this.
- Hate Sink: Apart from his rage over Benny's death, there is nothing redeemable in this guy, who is otherwise a sadistic, petty gangster who don't even mind torturing children for his amusement.
- Laser-Guided Karma: After spending his life clawing his way to the top, he dies with nothing; his gang's defeated, he's lost all his money, and he's gunned down by the very people he abused in a filthy alley. In short, he loses it all. Now that's Karma.
- Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: A very subtle example. The "pai-de-santo"(kind of religious authority) told him that, should Zé have sex while wearing his necklace, he would lose his spiritual protection. After he rapes Ned's girlfriend while wearing said necklace, his luck started to go downhill.
- Might Makes Right: He certainly thinks so. He rises to become a powerful drug lord by murdering all of his competitors and maintains his authority via excessive violence and intimidation.
- Murder Is the Best Solution: His philosophy on life.
- Pet the Dog: He gives Buscapé the camera because Bené wanted Buscapé to have it.
- Porn Stache: Has one.
- Sadist: His maniacal laughter while massacaring the brothel is only the beginning of it.
- Psychopathic Manchild: He was already a psychopathic child, but his sadism, pettyness and immaturity didn't leave him with age.
- Scary Black Man: Many of the characters are (incidentally) black, but he stands out for being both charcoal black and having a crazed stare.
- The Sociopath: If he isn't one, no one is.
- Teens Are Monsters: Alone, he was responsible for at least hundreds of deaths.
- That Man Is Dead: After an Umbanda ceremony, he changes his nickname from Little Dice to Little Ze.
- Time-Passage Beard: He's an ambitious, heartless kid. As soon as he's old enough, he becomes a psychotic crime lord, changing his name to Zé Pequeno. He also grows a mustache for the occasion, marking his coming of age.
- Troubling Unchildlike Behaviour: Even in his youth, he was already ruthless.
- Would Hurt a Child: He has no qualms about shooting a little kid to make a point.
- You Need to Get Laid: Benny said Ze needs a girlfriend.
Mané Galinha/ Knockout Ned (Walking Spoiler)
Have you lost your mind? You are just a child!
Portrayed By: Seu Jorge
A bus worker who has previously been part of the Brazilian Special Operations Brigade. He is initially just introduced as a small side character mid way through the film, but becomes a central figure as he wages war with Lil' Ze after his girlfriend is raped and his brother and uncle are killed.- Broken Ace: Knockout Ned is handsome, charming, former military and is the best shot on the battle ground. And by the end of the movie he has traded in all of principles and virtues in the single minded pursuit of revenge.
- Chekhov's Gunman: He is initially introduced as a minor character working on the bus, although Rocket does point out he will play a larger roll later on. He ends up becoming one of the major characters in the final third of the game as is one of the key players in undoing Lil'Ze's empire.
- He Who Fights Monsters: Ned initially tries to hold onto his principles, even after he aligns with Carrot and starts his revenge against Lil'Ze. By the end of the movie he kills innocent civilians and utilizes child soldiers just like all the other power players in the drug trade.
- Laser-Guided Karma: He is ultimately killed by the son of an innocent bank guard that he killed during a robbery.
- Neutral No Longer: He tries to avoid getting in with the drug trade. Then Lil'Ze rapes his girlfriend and kills his brother and uncle.
- One-Man Army: Played with. Knockout Ned is easily the most competent solider during the drug war and is said the be worth 10 of Lil'Ze's men. But that's largely because most everyone else are just teenagers with no training and little experience, where as Knockout Ned has actually military experience.
