| The Road to El Dorado | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
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| Distributed by | DreamWorks Pictures[1][2] |
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Running time | 89 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $95 million[2] |
| Box office | $76.4 million[2] |
The Road to El Dorado is a 2000 American animatedmusicaladventurecomedy film[3] directed byEric "Bibo" Bergeron and Don Paul, from a screenplay byTed Elliott andTerry Rossio, as well as additional sequences directed byWill Finn andDavid Silverman. Starring the voices ofKevin Kline,Kenneth Branagh,Rosie Perez,Armand Assante,Edward James Olmos, andJim Cummings, the film follows a pair of con artists who, after winning the map toEl Dorado inSpain, wash ashore in theNew World; the map leads the two men to the city of El Dorado, where its inhabitants mistake them for gods.
The soundtrack features an instrumental score composed byHans Zimmer andJohn Powell, and songs written byElton John andTim Rice. John also periodically narrates the story insong throughout the film. Produced byDreamWorks Animation and released byDreamWorks Pictures, it was the third animated feature produced by the studio.
The Road to El Dorado was theatrically released in the United States on March 31, 2000. It received mixed reviews from critics and underperformed at the box office, grossing $76 million worldwide on a production budget of about $95 million. Zimmer's work on the score, however, received praise and earned him theCritics' Choice Movie Award for Best Score alongside his work onGladiator, another DreamWorks film, at the6th Critics' Choice Awards.[4] Despite its initial reception, reevaluation in later years has resulted inThe Road to El Dorado becoming acult classic.[5][6]
In 1519Spain,con-artists Miguel and Tulio win gold and a map to the legendary City of Gold,El Dorado, in a riggeddicegamble against some sailors (though they win the map fairly after Tulio was given normal dice from one of the opponents). After their con is exposed, the two evade the guards and accidentally stow away on one of the ships to be led byconquistadorHernán Cortés for theNew World. At sea, they are caught and imprisoned and are condemned toslavery inCuba, but they break free and steal a rowboat with the help of Cortés' mistreatedhorse named Altivo.
Their boat reaches land, where Miguel begins to recognize landmarks from the map, leading them to atotem marker near a waterfall that Tulio believes is a dead end. As they prepare to leave, they encounter anative woman, Chel, being chased by guards. When the guards see Tulio and Miguel riding Altivo as depicted on the totem, they escort them and Chel to a secret entrance behind the falls into El Dorado. They are brought to the city's elders, kindhearted Chief Tannabok, and wickedhigh priest Tzekel-Kan. The pair are mistaken for thetwin gods when a volcano coincidentally erupts but simultaneously stops during an argument between them and they are given luxurious quarters, along with the charge of Chel. She discovers that the two are conning her people but promises to remain quiet if they take her with them when they leave the city. The two are showered with gifts of gold from Tannabok but disapprove of Tzekel-Kan attempting tosacrifice a civilian at the gods' ritual. Meanwhile, Cortés and his men reach land.
Tulio and Miguel instruct Tannabok to build them a boat so that they can leave the city with all the gifts they have been given, under the ruse that they are needed back in the 'other world'. Chel gets romantically close to Tulio while Miguel explores the city, coming to appreciate the peaceful life embraced by the citizens; when Tzekel-Kan sees Miguel playinga ball game with children, he insists the "gods" demonstrate their powers against the city's best players. Tulio and Miguel are outmatched, but Chel replaces the ball with anarmadillo, allowing them to win. Miguel spares the ritual of sacrificing the losing team, berates Tzekel-Kan to the crowd's approval, and earns Tannabok's respect. Tzekel-Kan notices Miguel received a cut during the game and realizes the pair are not gods since "gods do not bleed", hence the reason for the sacrifices. Afterward, Miguel, who has reconsidered leaving the city, overhears Tulio telling Chel that he would like her to come with them to Spain before adding he would like her to come with specifically him and to forget Miguel – straining the relationship between the two. At a party being thrown for them, Miguel and Tulio begin to argue about Tulio and Chel's conversation and Miguel's desire to stay when Tzekel-Kan animates a giant stonejaguar to chase them throughout the city. Tulio and Miguel manage to outwit the jaguar, causing him and Tzekel-Kan to fall into agiant whirlpool, thought by the natives to be the entrance toXibalba, the spirit world. Tzekel-Kan then surfaces in the jungle, where he encounters Cortés and his men. Believing Cortés to be the real god, Tzekel-Kan offers to lead him to El Dorado.
Miguel decides to stay in the city while Tulio and Chel board the completed boat, before they see smoke on the horizon and realize Cortés is approaching. Suspectingthe city will be destroyed if Cortés discovers it, Tulio suggests using the boat to ram the rock pillars under the waterfall and block the main entrance to the city, despite knowing they will lose the gold in the process and the warriors will not last against them. The plan succeeds with the citizens pulling over a statue in the boat's wake to give it enough speed. As the statue starts to fall too quickly, Tulio has difficulty preparing the boat's sail. Selflessly sacrificing the chance to stay in the city, Miguel and Altivo jump onto the boat to unfurl the sails, assuring the boat clears the statue in time. The group successfully crashes against the pillars, causing a cave-in, while losing all their gifts in the process. They hide near the totem just as Cortés' men and Tzekel-Kan arrive. When they find the entrance blocked, Cortés brands Tzekel-Kan a liar and leaves, taking him as a slave. Tulio and Miguel, though disappointed they lost the gold, know that El Dorado is forever safe. They appreciate the thrill of their adventure and head in a different direction for a new adventure with Chel.
Shortly before the public announcement ofDreamWorks SKG in October 1994, formerDisney chairmanJeffrey Katzenberg met with screenwritersTed Elliott andTerry Rossio, whom he previously met during production ofAladdin (1992). He gave them a copy ofHugh Thomas's 1993 bookConquest: Montezuma, Cortés and the Fall of Old Mexico, desiring to make an animated film set in theAge of Discovery.[7] By the spring of 1995, Elliott and Rossio devised astory treatment inspired by theRoad to... films, which starredBob Hope andBing Crosby, with self-interested, comedic anti-heroes who would set out to find theLost City of Gold after acquiring a map to its location.[7][8]
Will Finn andDavid Silverman were originally the film's directors with a tentative release scheduled for fall 1999.[9] Originally, the story was envisioned as a dramatic film due to Katzenberg's penchant for large-scale animated films, which conflicted with the film's lighthearted elements. This version of the story had Miguel initially conceived as a raunchySancho Panza-like character who died, but came back to life so much that the natives assumed he was a god. This version also included steamier love sequences and scanty clothing designed for Chel.[10] Elliott compared their script to the 1999 war comedyThree Kings, in which the ending dealt with the destruction of theAztec Empire from Spanish conquistadorHernán Cortés.[7]
However, whileThe Prince of Egypt was in production, Katzenberg decided that their next animated project should be a departure from its serious, adult approach. Instead, he pushed forEl Dorado to be an adventure comedy.[11] Because of this, the film was placed on hold, where it was jokingly referred to asEl Dorado: The Lost City on Hold due to several rewrites.[10] Miguel and Tulio were rewritten as petty swindlers, and the setting of the film was changed to a more luscious paradise.[11] Additionally, the romance was toned down, and new clothing was designed for Chel. The film's producer Bonne Radford explained, "We originally thought it would be rated PG-13 and so we skewed it to that group... But then we thought we could not exclude the younger kids so we had to tone the romance down."[10] Finn and Silverman left the project in 1998 following disputes over the film's creative direction.[8] They were replaced byEric "Bibo" Bergeron and Don Paul.[10] Katzenberg reportedly co-directed the film albeit uncredited.[12][13]
On August 15, 1998,Kevin Kline,Kenneth Branagh, andRosie Perez had signed onto the film.[14] Because the characters and film drew from the Bob Hope and Bing CrosbyRoad to ... films, producer Bonne Radford remarked that "[t]he buddy relationship [between the duo] is the very heart of the story. They need each other because they're both pretty inept. They're opposites — Tulio is the schemer and Miguel is the dreamer. Their camaraderie adds to the adventure; you almost don't need to know where they're going or what they're after, because the fun is in the journey."[15] Unusual for an animated film, Kline and Branagh recorded their lines in the same studio room together, in order for the two to achieve more realistic chemistry. This resulted in a good deal of improvised dialogue, some of which ended up in the film.[15]
Early into production, a team of designers, animators, producers, and Katzenberg embarked on research trips to Mexico where they studiedancient Mayan cities ofTulum,Chichen Itza, andUxmal in hopes of making the film's architecture look authentic.[10] By January 1997, 100 animators were assigned to the project.[16] However, because the animation department was occupied withThe Prince of Egypt, the studio devoted more animators and resources on that film than onRoad to El Dorado.[8][10] Additional fine line animation was outsourced to Stardust Pictures inLondon andBardel Entertainment inVancouver. The creation sequence in the film, possibly the opening number byElton John, was provided with traditional animation and CGI provided byPacific Data Images.
| The Road to El Dorado | ||||
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| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | March 14, 2000 | |||
| Recorded | 1997–99 | |||
| Studio | Various
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| Genre | Rock,pop,Latin pop | |||
| Length | 62:14 | |||
| Label | DreamWorks Records | |||
| Producer | Patrick Leonard,Hans Zimmer,Gavin Greenaway | |||
| Elton John chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Road to El Dorado | ||||
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| Review scores | |
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| Source | Rating |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |   [17] |
Marylata Jacob, who startedDreamWorks' music department in 1995, became the film's music supervisor before the script was completed. Consulting with Katzenberg, Jacob decided the musical approach to the film would beworld music.[18] In 1996,Tim Rice andElton John were asked to compose seven songs which they immediately worked on.[19] Their musical process began with Rice first writing the song lyrics and giving them to John to compose the music. John then recorded a demo which was given to the animators who storyboarded to the demo as the tempo and vocals would remain intact.[18]
Eventually, the filmmakers decided not to follow the traditional musical approach by having the characters sing. Co-producer Bonne Radford explained, "We were trying to break free of that pattern that had been kind of adhered to in animation and really put a song where we thought it would be great... and get us through some story points."[18] On February 20, 1999, before the release ofElton John and Tim Rice's Aida, it was announced that ten songs had been composed forEl Dorado, and the film's release date had been pushed to March 2000.[20]
The instrumental score was composed byHans Zimmer andJohn Powell. John, Rice, and Zimmer had previously collaborated on the soundtrack toDisney'sThe Lion King, another animated film. Zimmer had also previously composed theinstrumental score toDreamWorks Animation's previous filmThe Prince of Egypt.
In some instances (such as "The Trail We Blaze"), the songs have been altered musically and vocally from the way they appeared in the film. A "Cast & Crew Special Edition" recording of the soundtrack exists, but was a promo-only release. It includes the theatrical versions of the songs, including "It's Tough to Be a God" recorded by Kevin Kline and Kenneth Branagh (performed on the soundtrack by Elton John andRandy Newman), and several of the score tracks by Hans Zimmer. TheBackstreet Boys provided uncredited backing vocals on "Friends Never Say Goodbye",[21] the group is "thanked" by John following the credits in the CD booklet. TheEagles membersDon Henley andTimothy B. Schmit are credited as background vocalists on the song "Without Question".
ABest Buy exclusive included a limited edition bonus CD with two additional songs, "Perfect Love" and "Hey, Armadillo".
All lyrics are written byTim Rice; all music is composed byElton John, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "El Dorado" | 4:22 | |
| 2. | "Someday Out of the Blue (Theme from El Dorado)" |
| 4:48 |
| 3. | "Without Question" | 4:47 | |
| 4. | "Friends Never Say Goodbye" (featuringBackstreet Boys) | 4:21 | |
| 5. | "The Trail We Blaze" | 3:54 | |
| 6. | "16th Century Man" | 3:40 | |
| 7. | "The Panic in Me" |
| 5:40 |
| 8. | "It's Tough to Be a God" (duet withRandy Newman) | 3:50 | |
| 9. | "Trust Me" | 4:46 | |
| 10. | "My Heart Dances" | 4:51 | |
| 11. | "Queen of Cities" | 3:56 | |
| 12. | "Cheldorado" (featuringHeitor Pereira) | Zimmer | 4:26 |
| 13. | "The Brig" (featuring Triology) | Zimmer | 2:58 |
| 14. | "Wonders of the New World" a. "To Shibalba" b. "Save El Dorado" c. "The Ball Game" | John Powell | 5:56 |
| Total length: | 62:14 | ||
The film was first revealed in a double trailer withAardman Animations' animated featureChicken Run on the home video release ofThe Prince of Egypt. It was accompanied by a promotional campaign byBurger King.[22]
The Road to El Dorado was released on DVD and VHS on December 12, 2000. There was also an event held inEl Dorado,Kansas in which a parade was held and the streets were painted gold in celebration of the film's home video release.[23] The DVD release includes an audio commentary, behind-the-scenes featurettes, music video of "Someday Out of the Blue", production notes, interactive games, trailers and television spots.[24]
In February 2006,Paramount Pictures acquired the rights to all live-action films DreamWorks had released between 1997 and 2005, followingViacom's $1.6 billion acquisition of the company's live-action film assets and television assets.[25][26] Additionally, Paramount signed a six-year distribution agreement for past and futureDreamWorks Animation films, with DreamWorks Animation having spun off into a separate company from the live-action division in 2004.[27][28][29]
On December 31, 2012, DreamWorks Animation's distribution agreement with Paramount officially ended.[27][29] In July 2014, the distribution rights to the DreamWorks Animation catalog were purchased back by DreamWorks Animation from Paramount[30] and transferred to new distribution partner20th Century Fox. Fox's distribution rights reverted toUniversal Pictures in 2018, two years afterComcast/NBCUniversal's $3.8 billion acquisition of DreamWorks Animation in 2016. Because of this new ownership,Universal Pictures Home Entertainment subsequently released the film onBlu-ray on January 22, 2019.[31]
The film grossed $12.9 million on opening weekend ranking second behindErin Brockovich's third weekend.[32][33] The film closed on June 29, 2000, after earning $50.9 million in the United States and Canada and $25.5 million overseas for a worldwide total of $76.4 million. Based on its total gross,The Road to El Dorado was acommercial failure, unable to recoup its $95 million budget.[2]
OnRotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 50% based on 107 reviews and an average rating of 5.50/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Predictable story and thin characters made the movie flat."[34] OnMetacritic, the film has a score of 51 out of 100 based on 29 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[35] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.[36]
Reviewing for theChicago Tribune, Michael Wilmington summarized: "This movie is fun to watch in ways that most recent cartoons aren't. It's also more adult, though it's the same cartoonish sensuality as the originalRoad movies, with their heavily coded prurience. It's a high-spirited movie, though it's not for all tastes. The John-Rice score isn't as rousingly on-target asThe Lion King. The script, while clever, often seems too cute and show-biz snazzy, not emotional enough."[37]
Lisa Schwarzbaum, reviewing forEntertainment Weekly, remarked that "this trip downThe Road to El Dorado proceeds under the speed limit all the way. Our Tulio and Miguel aren't big enough, nor strong enough, nor funny enough to buckle any swashes. They're as lost to us as the lost city into which they stumble."[38] Similarly, animation historianCharles Solomon remarked on the lack of character development writing "Tulio and Miguel move nicely, but the animators don't seem to have any more idea who they are than the audience does. Kevin Kline and Kenneth Branagh supply their voices, but the characters say and do similar things in similar ways. Who can tell them apart?"[39]Paul Clinton ofCNN wrote, "The animation is uninspiring and brings nothing new to the table of animation magic." He unfavorably compared the Elton John–Tim Rice songs to those inThe Lion King and called the plot "uninspired".[40]
Among the film's more positive reviewers wasRoger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times, who gave the film three stars out of four. He acknowledged that althoughThe Road to El Dorado is not "as quirky asAntz or as grown up asThe Prince of Egypt", it is "bright and has good energy, and the kinds of witty asides that entertain the adults in between the margins of the stuff for the kids."[41]Joel Siegel, reviewing on the television programGood Morning America, called it "solid gold," claiming the film was "paved with laughs."[42] Jay Boyar of theOrlando Sentinel stated "The Road to El Dorado is borderline entertaining, I suppose, with animation that is, at times, truly impressive. And if the six Elton John/Tim Rice songs are thoroughly forgettable, they lack sufficient distinction to actually become annoying."[43]
Indigenous rights organizations criticized the film for its sexist and racist themes, and for its lack of historical sensitivity. Olin Tezcatlipoca, director of theMexica Movement, argued that the movie portrays Chel as a "sex toy" for the two Spaniards, and that the representation of them as saviors from the barbarity of human sacrifices and from indigenous collaborationism withHernán Cortés "has no respect for history."[44]
Petrana Radulovic, writing forPolygon in 2020, praised the characters of Miguel and Tulio, as well as the "hilarious scenes and quippy dialogue". She concluded, "While the adventure and the plot's historical aspects aren't perfect, the characters' dynamic has transcended the pacing issues and other irritations.El Dorado's reputation has been reclaimed by generations of people who've recontextualized the movie outside of the Disney shadow it was stuck under in 2000."[6] Caroline Cao of/Film said, "the songs by Elton John feel phoned in, and the treatment of indigenous people is troublesome, particularly the film's reliance onwhite savior tropes and its sexualization of an indigenous woman. Still, many feel that its good parts outweigh its faults."[45]
Twenty years after the film's release,The Road to El Dorado had an unexpected rise in popularity as anInternet meme. Radulovic noted a range of memes andGIFs of moments from the film, writing that it "found a second life and a long-lasting legacy, since it came out at the perfect time to make it a nostalgic movie for people who grew up with the internet."[6]
Gold and Glory: The Road to El Dorado is an adventure video game developed byRevolution Software forMicrosoft Windows andPlayStation. TheGame Boy Color version was developed by Planet Interactive.
The movie features the voices of Edward James Olmos, Armand Assante and Rosie Perez and is tentatively scheduled for a fall release.
