“The Elite Squad,” directed by Jose Padilha, won the Golden Bear award for the best movie at the 58th Berlin International Film Festival.

The movie, a hit in Brazil, is a realistic epic about police violence in Rio de Janeiro which looks at the violence and murder within a crack squad of Rio policemen battling armed drug dealers in the city slums.

Director Padilha said:

“This is a prize for Brazilian film, not just for me. This is a recognition I did not expect. It is an incentive to make new, critical films that are very important for our country.”

The film was selected from 21 films by a six-member international jury led by movie director Constantin Costa-Gavras (”Missing.”)

Academy Award nominee “There Will Be Blood,” which was among the 21 films in competition in Berin was expected to win the top prize, but ended up instead with 2 Silver Bears – one for Best Director (Paul Thomas Anderson) and the other for Best Sound (Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood.)