  
Well here is another animated feature from Dreamworks that will inevitably be compared to Disney.
Is it as good? Well no it is not as good as Tarzan but way better than others. THE ROAD TO EL
DORADO is okay for children but I feel it is geared more to adults. The animation is much more
adult. You will see some bare bottoms and probably one of the sexiest woman in a animated feature
of this type. Chel a young schemer voiced by Rosie Perez has a unique charm, a very
interesting figure and just the right pouty mannerisms. Considering the film deals with Cortez and the
decimation of an entire race, there is very little violence. El Dorado, the City Of Gold is a mythological
place so the realities of the destruction that the Spaniards rained on the Azetecs and Mayans is
avoided in this film. Otherwise it would be difficult to turn this historical situationinto a musical comedy.
Cortez was in no way depicted as a nice person. His entire appearance was nasty. The native Mayans
on the other hand were portrayed as kindly peaceable people except for Tzekel-Kan voiced
by Armand Assante.
  
The animation was top notch and the music and songs by Tim Rice and Elton John were superb as well.
It is a film of beautiful colours, scenery, beauty and grace. The bold colurs are stunning.
The funny animals are kept down to just Ativo, the horse
and a cute armidallo. Now, if you are old enough, you will see the three main characters of Tulio
(Kevin Kline), Miguel((Kenneth Branagh) and Chel (Rosie Perez) amazingly resemble
three other characters from early road shows. All it needed was a patty cake routine and you would have
had Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour. Unfortunately, I do not believe this film will not linger in your
memory as long as those old movies.
  
We first meet Tulio and Miguel, a pair of two-bit con men, they win a map that could lead to fortune and
glory . The map is for the fabled city of El Dorado, the legendary City of Gold. They accidently stow away
on a ship headed for the new world. They wind up locked in the brig of the ship of Spanish explorer
Cortez. After a daring escape, with the help of a clever war horse named Altivo, they manage to survive
on the ocean through sharks, hunger and some of the most beautifully rendered ocean storms seen in
an animated feature. As luck would have it they land alive and somehow stumble onto El Dorado. The are
considered to be the gods that these natives have been waiting for. That is when the trouble begins.
The High Priest Tzekel-Kan who proclaims them to be gods, plots to use their fortuitous arrival to take
power from the Chief voiced by Edward Olmos. Tulio and Miguel realize that they have a good
thing going especially when they are offered tribute of gold. Chel quickly cuts herself into their schemes.
She will help them in exchange for gold and a way out of the city. Chel is a schemer and a naughty
young lady who slowly falls for Tulio. She can match them con-for-con.
  
The high priest realizes eventually that their is something wrong and he uses his magical powers to
bring the Jaguar god to life to destroy the fake gods. These are some excellent scenes. But time is running
out, for as they fulfill their dreams of gold, their friendship is falling apart and the very
fate of El Dorado hang in the balance as Cortez marches on to the city. The film has a good climax and is
quite satisfying. I've left lots out so that you can go enjoy it yourself. What I find is a real shame, is me going
on a Thursday night early show and watching this movie with two adults and their two children. That was
it, just five of us. When will people learn that not all good animated films for families have to come from
Disney. I have to give Jeffrey Katzen berg and Steven Speilberg credit for making some excellent animated
features. If they stick it out, someday, they will give Disney some real competition. Their animated films
deserve much better.
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