What do frog farms, plastic surgery, and helipads have in common? I just watched the documentary Manda Bala (Send a Bullet) that explores the links between political corruption and violent crime in Brazil and all the unbelievably odd industries that flourish in this absurd environment. Sao Paulo is home to huge private helicopter fleets and has more helipads than any city on Earth. The armored car industry is huge in Brazil and plastic surgeons in the country have pioneered new techniques for reconstructive plastic surgery: particularly that of the ear. This is all because Brazil's industrial capital, Sao Paulo, a city of 20 million people, has also become a hot zone for violent crime and kidnapping.
This documentary is pretty interesting. And crime in Sao Paulo is certainly staggering. But I have to admit that I never felt unsafe whenever I spent time in the city. However, just a few days ago, Globo was showing live footage of police climbing roof to roof looking for some criminals responsible for killing a fellow officer a few days earlier. My Brazilian brother remarked, "That stuff only happens in Sao Paulo." But whatever the case may be, the documentary is definitely worth a look. It features some very beautiful airborne shots of the city and weaves together a lot of interesting, and seemingly unrelated social and cultural peculiarities of modern Brazilian life, creating a single narrative exploring governmental corruption. Much of the film is from the perspective of federal Brazilian prosecutors who have spent much of their careers trying to bring one particularly notorious politician to justice.
I have embedded the trailer below. Definitely check it out. I watched the movie online using my Netflix subscription. Hooray technology!
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"Sao Paulo is home to huge private helicopter fleets and has more helipads than any city on Earth." for some reason, this fact really intrigues/entertains me. so some facts:
ReplyDelete6 million
Cars in Sao Paulo
70,000
Minimum number of helicopter flights within central Sao Paulo each year
11,000
Annual flights and landings at London's main heliport, in Battersea
820
Helicopter pilots work in Sao Paulo; each can earn $100,000 a year
420
Helipads in Sao Paulo - 75% of Brazil's total and 50% more than the whole UK
those plastic surgeons must be mad busy. its no wonder everyone needs ear reconstruction.
-your fav