"...and they call us...Miguel and Tulio!"

THE ROAD TO ELDORADO (PG)

Reviewed April 8, 2000 - Check out The Road to Eldorado Website.

Studio Synopsis: Tulio (Kevin Klein) and Miguel (Kenneth Branagh), a pair of two-bit con men, believe they have found their path to fortune and glory when they win a map to El Dorado, the legendary City of Gold. There’s only one problem they’ve wound up locked in the brig on a ship of the Spanish explorer Cortes. After a daring escape, with the help of a clever war horse named Altivo, they manage to stumble onto El Dorado only to find their troubles are just beginning. The High Priest Tzekel-Kan (Armand Asante) proclaims them to be gods, plotting to use their fortuitous arrival to take power from the Chief (Edward James Olmos). To sustain the ruse and get the gold, Tulio and Miguel must enlist the aid of the beautiful native Chel (Rosie Perez), who matches them con-for-con. But time is running out, and even as they fulfill their dreams of gold, their friendship and the very fate of El Dorado hang in the balance.

Fuzzydog Review: From a technical perspective, feature-length animated films have certainly come a long way.  The combination of hand-drawn character work and computer-animated scenes/backgrounds makes for some wonderfully rich images which, for me at least, is almost half the fun of going to see these films in the first place.  In The Road to Eldorado, the latest animated feature from Dreamworks, the technical aspects of the work are most definitely top-notch.  This film is alive with color, sumptuous in detail, and ranks right up their with the best of them in terms of the "eye candy" factor.  The story, about two con-men mistaken as Gods in a "City of Gold", is also not a bad one.  Filled with adventure, laughs and lots of mayhem, it definitely has the potential of being quite the tale for young and old alike.

Unfortunately, The Road to Eldorado falls just a tad short on its quest for greatness.  Even though it is in fact a generally entertaining film, I couldn't help but think that, as animated films go, this one would not go down as a classic (or even a memorable) effort by the folks at Dreamworks.  Perhaps partly to blame are the voiceover performances by Klein, Branagh and Perez.  Klein, who seems to have gone for a reaaaally b-r-o-a-d voice performance, occasionally overwhelms the tall, skinny cartoon character he portrays on-screen.  And Branagh, who has a great acuity for accents, distractingly slips back and forth from American to English accents for his character (who is, after all, a Spaniard named Miguel).  Oh, and then there's Rosie Perez, who's overly-distinct voice is...well...just too Rosie Perez. 

Maybe it's just me being overly nitpicky (which is entirely possible), but my take on this film as I left the theatre was that it was "okay, but not great."  Don't get me wrong, The Road to Eldorado isn't bad, but with the awkward voiceovers and the bland Tim Rice/Elton John musical score, it's definitely not a first-tier production from the wizards over at Dreamworks.

Responses from cyberspace--thanks for writing!

Happy gives this movie  stars: "This movie was great. It was funny, interesting and very gripping. I bought the Gameboy game for it too as I loved it so much. It was really cool and brilliant." (7/1/01)

Leisha Brady gives this movie  star: "It was great." (9/17/00)

jabel@mail.global.net.mt gives this movie  stars: "My kids loved it. That means it's great." (9/7/00)

rubenzer@lineone.net gives this movie  stars. (8/16/00)

blckcat013@aol.com gives this movie  stars: "funnyfunny hahahahaha miguel is cool tulio is cool lotsa adventure! cant beat adventure! yeah dude tzekel kan is sooooooo hot (yeah right)" (8/14/00)

doggieee54@aol.com gives this movie  stars: "FUNNY! FUNNY! Migueal and Tulio are coooool! Some cheesy scenes but other that that EXCELLENT!!!!!!!" (8/14/00)

paffomiloff@journalist.com gives this movie  stars: "Wonderful animation, nice screenplay and sexy Chel." (7/30/00)

Girl gives this movie  stars: "Wonderful and funny" (7/11/00)

Taylor Marshall gives this movie  stars: "I liked Migel" (5/8/00)

anonymous entry gives this movie  stars. (4/25/00)