This one might have fallen short for me largely because of a confusion in expectations. From all accounts, I’d heard Elite Squad was a nonstop action thrill ride. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. This is a Brazilian indie-film focusing mostly on the broken elite police system in Rio De Janeiro and how it effects two rookie cops.
There’s some cool moments to be sure like when we see crooked cops fighting over protection money and territory or when an undercover cop has to reveal himself to murderous drug dealers. There’s some interesting stuff here but a lot of it comes off boring. The acting was good but I just didn’t have a connection to the main characters and wasn’t captivated by their storyline. I also hated the action sequences which were all shot using handheld shaky cams. I wouldn’t recommend this one.