Elite Squad
Directed by José Padilha · 2007 ·
Elite Squad (2007) earns a 67% Celluloid Score — Recommended. Recommended — recommended by most critics and audiences.Audiences (89%) responded more warmly than critics (54%).
Averaged from five public sources (critic, audience, Metascore, Letterboxd, IMDb). See how we calculate scores.
Five-source breakdown
Universal Pictures Why this score?
- Critics were divided or negative (54%).
- General viewers mostly liked it (89%).
- Letterboxd diarists rate it highly (4/5).
- IMDb users score it 8/10.
- Celluloid Score 67% averages all five public rating sources — our own composite, not a third-party trademark score.
Best for
- Crowd-pleaser seekers — audiences liked it more than critics
Not ideal for
- Viewers who only watch top-tier, 90%+ rated films
Scores reflect data indexed at build time. Component sources are shown on this page; Celluloid Score is our composite, not a third-party trademark. Scoring policy
Is Elite Squad worth watching?
Yes — Elite Squad earns a 67% Celluloid Score. Recommended — recommended by most critics and audiences.
Critics Consensus
Padilha's controversial hit exposed Brazil's police violence to record domestic audiences.
Celluloid Critics Consensus
Audiences (89%) responded more warmly than critics (54%).
What is Elite Squad about?
A captain in Rio's BOPE special forces prepares for promotion while planning a raid to clear a favela before the Pope's visit.
