In June 2000 in Rio de Janeiro, a homeless adolescent attempts to rob a bus and ends up taking the passengers hostage. The bus was rapidly surrounded not only by police but several television crews. the resultant footage provides much of the material for this dramatic account which results in one of the most engaging documentaries of the year. The backdrop of interviews, visits to prisons where he grew up, and factual information about the policing in Rio provide an emotional involvement and realism that is so often lacking. There is barely a moment in the whole two hours of the movie where the audience isn't on the edge of its seat. The resolution, botched by the authorities, shows up the terrible inadequacies not only of the Brasilian police system but of the social structure and inequalities it is unequipped to deal with.
Review of Bus 174
