Bueno dias, my friends.

This is your friendly Man Undercover here, who has decided to try to give this group more life by contributing some posts perfect for this group.

And today, I thought I'd show you guys my very first review on a film by Dreamworks Animation by reviewing "The Road to EL Dorado".

Here's the summary of this film:

Set in 1519 Spain, two con artists that go by the names Miguel (voiced by Kenneth Branagh) and Tulio (played by Kevin Kline) come across a very interesting map. What catches their attention the most about the map is that it leads to the lost city of EL Dorado.

After the two manage to escape Spain with the map, they unwittingly go on an expedition to Central America, lead by Hernan Cortes (voiced by Jim Cummings). Another escape later, Miguel and Tulio arrive on the shores of Central America, where they go off in search of EL Dorado.

Arriving to the lost city, they pull the ultimate con on the natives by pretending to be gods in order to steal the city's gold. Along the way, Miguel and Tulio gain an unexpected alliance from a surprisingly beautiful and clever native woman named Chel (voiced by Rosie Perez).

As the days go by, though, Miguel and Tulio begin to question their friendship and trust in one another.

Will the two of them ever be able to keep their friendship alive? And how long can they keep up their acts as gods before someone discovers who they really are?

I know that this isn't one of Dreamworks's most successful animated films, but in all honesty, this was actually a really enjoyable movie.

The story and plot line of the film, for instance, was excellently done and creatively thought. Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio's ability to make something all over the place tie together so well, as seen in "Aladdin (1992)" and the Pirates of the Caribbean series, apparently doesn't know when to stop. With the characters holding firmly to the wheel, particularly Tulio and Miguel, the common goal that helps everything make sense is the search for EL Dorado and the mission to exploit the city of its gold. But, the story's heart and soul is most definitely the friendship between Tulio and Miguel. As well as the conflicts that come and try to break the twosome up. Their amazing knack for dialogue and character personality also hasn't restrained itself here, that's for sure.

The characters, character development, and voice acting were pretty top-notch too.

Kevin Kline and Kenneth Branagh's performances as Tulio and Miguel were amazing! I'm not sure how many say this, but the two actors make such a terrific comedy duo. The chemistry between their characters was all-out fun to watch. The two characters themselves were likewise extremely likable and a really great focus, despite the two of them being con men. Their character developments and the tests thrown at them concerning their friendship were similarly full of heart, and they made the two of them all-the-more interesting.

One thing I suddenly can't help but wonder is if Rossio and Elliot based Miguel and Tulio off of themselves, with Branagh and Kline adding their own flair into them.

Rosie Perez and her character of Chel were also elements that made this film so darn intriguing. Perez gave her character an excellent sense of humor, mischievousness, and sass with just her voice alone. Chel's personality also made her far from an unbright defenseless damsel. What made Chel so intriguing in addition was her love for adventure, and the caring side she developed towards Tulio and Miguel made her even more filled with life.

Armand Assante and his character of Tzekal-Kan were likewise quite the attention grabbers. Assante gave such an outstandingly committed performance to his his character. As a matter of fact, his performance was so great, it was as if his own heart and soul was put into Kan. Every line he said, he said them in ways that were so distinct, classical, and memorable. Everything he said even matched his character's body language and expressions, as if he was able to get inside of that character. It takes a great actor to be able to do that, and Assante should totally do more voice roles at some point. Kan himself was also quite an excellent villain, and his wants for humanity to be 'cleansed' made him all-the-more human and alive.

The direction by Eric "Bibo" Bergeron and Don Paul, as well as the animation, was likewise over-the-top fantastic. The two directors did a brilliant job at capturing the comedic tone the film was aiming for, and they even gave a sense of seriousness here and there to help things be taken seriously. Along with the animators working under them, they also made everything a beautiful visual pleasure that could very well have been award worthy.

Finally, the music by the ever talented Hans Zimmer and John Powell, and the songs by Elton John and Tim Rice, were absolutely stunning. I know I haven't reviewed John and Rice's previous collaboration in "The Lion King (1994)" yet, and I apologize for that, but I really must say that just like their work in that film, their songs were brilliantly thought and memorable, with beautiful melodies to go with them. As always, Zimmer's work as composer continued to be full of emotional impact. This time, however, there was also this sense of significant boost in that section, with John Powell's contributions apparently being the source. Who would've ever thought that Zimmer and Powell would be such a terrific music duo? I do now, that's for sure.

Before I conclude this post, though, there's something I'd like to be honest about.

Despite how much I commend this movie, I don't think it's something suitable for children under eleven. It's mainly because of some of the humor it has, which is admittedly not
appropriate for them. That, and the concept may not be something children will understand, and the characters may be hard for them to connect with and relate to. There is also a rather risqué moment.

To clarify, there's this one scene where Tzekal-Kan is coming to visit Tulio about Miguel not doing what is expected of him as a god. On his way, though, and before he arrives at the entrance of where the two con artists are staying, Tulio and Chel were apparently making out.

It wasn't visibly shown, the directors and animators did a remarkable job concealing it, but when Chel hears the high priest coming, we also see Tulio looking out-of-it and his hair being messed up.

As a PG film, this is something that I recommend more for pre-teens, teens, and adults more than children, because I find it to be more suitable for ages 11 and up.

In conclusion, however, "The Road to EL Dorado" is quite frankly an underestimated and overlooked effort done by Dreamworks. It has great humor, exceptional voice talent and acting, an excellent story by Elliot and Russio, everything! I'm proud to be making my debut on reviewing films by DWA by reviewing this film, that's for sure.

So, I rate "The Road to EL Dorado" five out of five stars. I know, there is that scene where Tulio and Chel are making out, but it's not visible, so everything should be okay.