More about this DVD  •  DVD Info  •  Movie Main Page  •  Message Board

Walter Salles filmed his acclaimed and quietly powerful movie Central Station prior to this film. The tone of salt-of-the- earth life, and a strange sense of time ruthlessly moving forward that permeated that film is stronger in this fascinating road movie. The brutal weather is unforgiving, and Granado, to avoid starving, often has to use his wily wits to get women to purchase some food for them. Some of the mountainous landmarks they encounter are beautiful and inspiring, but the men press on with their travels. The injustices they witness of oppressed indigenous folks stops Che in his tracks; he processes . . . how he's going to make it stop someday soon. Actor Gael Garcia Bernal may look like a GQ model, but he comes from acting parents and seems to empathetically channel how Che silently but fully absorbs another person's pain. Rodrigo De la Serna generously plays Granado's witty, sassy mouthed friend; he fibs with great aplomb and tries to keep heavy situations light. Though for some, he cannot overcome the gravity of the injustices.

This is a strong film that might not feel like the seamless, superb masterpiece that some have proclaimed it to be. While the scenes soak up each moment, I sometimes didn't feel like I knew where they were travelling. And I have to admit that I found the people's stories so interesting, I wanted to hear more - which very well could have been the filmmakers' intent. This can account for an emotionally fragmented resonance in this road movie.

Still, it's hard not to be touched by the deep sense of justice and compassion Che feels for humanity. And his intuition with all kinds of people is heartwarming. One of the most touching scenes is when they come into contact with people suffering from leprosy. When the events of this film took place in the 1950s, it was understood that a simple handshake would not transmit the disease. But the nuns taking care of the people with leprosy demanded that they wear gloves. The young men refused and heartily shook hands with the surprised afflicted, which inspired the nuns and other medical folks to separate the disease from the person. After watching this award winning film, it makes me want to discover more about this driven revolutionary.

The Video: How Does The Disc Look?

This film is presented in its theatrical 1.85:1 widescreen ratio in anamorphic video. Despite their low budget, Salles and cinematographer Eric Gautier captured the dominating exterior shots very well. Most scenes are slightly more saturated than others given the varying weather conditions, making this realistic endeavor look fresh. When the sun is out, the greens are vibrant and varied, the blue sky is rich with the white dappled clouds, and other primary colors are strong and well defined. Solid lighting reveals finer textures of clothing variations, soil and skin definition. And when it rains somber shades of grays wash out the colors to an extent. Blacks are deep and pure most of the time, as one will notice nice gray scale gradations into the widescreen bars. Sometimes there is some fading, and that usually happens during the notoriously grainy night scenes. Otherwise, grain is very tight, consistent and very pleasingly film- like. Whites are well managed, too, and often look crisp in good lighting. Otherwise, whites can be a tad dull, for instance during some rainy sequences. I noticed the faintest edge halos against a few hard, curved lines, but for the most part, there are no other compression problems. Thankfully, the print has been kept quite clean and there are no noticeable blemishes. This is a strong transfer.

The Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?

The audio is presented in 5.1 Dolby Digital. This pleasant mix might not be a knock out, but delivers quite well. The fronts display a nice soundstage with some surprising imaging at times. Dialogue is fairly clear. The .1 LFE is active on occasion and provides a strong foundation for the rest of the mix, though it doesn't ever reach stunning punches as one might expect. The surrounds are often active and are well balanced with the front channels; with a broad frequency range they provide a nice enveloping atmosphere. The score typically brings the best out of all the speakers. Surrounds didn't seem discreet at first, though a few effects, such as a birdcall, proved otherwise. This is a respectable mix that shouldn't draw any complaints.

A Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital mix is included. English closed captions, and English and French subtitles are included.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

There are three Deleted Scenes. The first one (4:00) has the guys doing some extra work for some people to try to get some wine and ends with a bit of comedy. The second scene (3:12) has the men talking about birthdays with a truck driver that gives them a ride. The third deleted scene has Che talking with villagers with leprosy (1:10). I liked this scene, in particular, and thought it should have been left in the film; it gave the villagers a voice and a clear interest to communicate.

The next supplement is a featurette called A Conversation with Alberto Granado (3:20); the real man reminisces about his times, and it's great to see him as vibrant as ever.

The third bonus is The Making of The Motorcycle Diaries (22:02). Sadly, more than half of this featurette is simply composed of clips of the film. Still, one gets some behind the scenes footage, and lots of interviews with the director and other film producers including Robert Redford. Talk of Che dominates, rather than the process of making the film. Here the director terms the film "A love story to Latin America."

A Moment with Gael Garcia Bernal (2:54) interviews the star and his thoughts about the film and his role. A nice interview.

"Toma Uno" ("Take One") with Gael Garcia Bernal (2:19) is another interview with the young star and how he prepared himself for the role.

Music of the Road: Interview with the composer, Gustavo Santaolalla (3:13) interviews the film's composer; he really enjoyed the process of the film and wrote the music before even seeing it. He even played most of the instruments himself. An interesting and endearing interview with someone who really believed in this project.

Last are Cast and Crew Biographies, which include a bit more biographical information than expected.

Exclusive DVD-ROM Features: What happens when you pop the disc into your PC?

No DVD-Rom features are included on this DVD.

Final Thoughts