Two friends with diverging attitudes towards social interaction with the world battle out their world views amiably while crossing Argentina into Chili and Peru by motorcycle attracting considerable attention along the way.
Let the world change you... and you can change the world.
In January 1952, the almost 30-year-old biochemist Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna) and his younger friend, the 23-year-old student close to finishing his medical degree, Ernesto Guevara de la Serna (Gael García Bernal), set off from Buenos Aires on an old but treasured Norton 500 for an adventure through Latin America. The first part of their journey is more or less as they expected, although the arduous trip takes it toll on La Poderosa, The Mighty One as they nicknamed the motorbike, and it gives up the ghost in Chile, after a nasty encounter with a herd of cows. By the time they get to Machu Pichu, the middle class young men have begun to see Latin America through eyes that have been opened to poverty and oppression, high-handed big business and the sheer hardship of daily life. They find themselves at a leper colony in the Peruvian Amazon, and Guevara, whose speciality is leprology, realises that something fundamental deep inside his being has changed.
The story of Che (Ernesto) Guevara and his trip through Latin America. Stunning landscape and a true cultural film, it details the plight of a human soul to find humanity.
Viva La Vida
A great film about a widely misunderstood individual. He was truly a man of the people, which was why in the eyes of the moneyed elite, he had to die. :-(
Damn near perfect telling of the journey of Ernesto Guevara and Alberto Granado in the 1950s. Exquisite location cinematography only further enhances the beauty of this film. Highly recommended.
The cinematography is amazing in this movie. Just the sheer variety of all the different places the characters go to makes it breath-taking. The different peoples of South America they meet and sometimes help is very touching. And Gael Garcia Bernal is sexy as hell! Very good movie.
Gael Garcia-Bernal is Hot! haha, meski ini film tergolong 'berat',tapi gw suka. nyeritain asal usul Che Guevara sebagai mahasiswa kedokteran yg sangat free-spirited sebelum menjadi pahlawan revolusi Kuba (ato kolombia??haha..). sapa bilang film itu tidak mendidik?
the real time diarie of a true patriot ..it show the start of a revolutionist starting to study his country ...
More than the movie it is shown like a documentary ..
A look at the early years in the life of Ernesto 'Che' Guevara, the radical idealist who led parts of the Cuban Revolution, 'The Motorcycle Diaries' is a poignant and interesting tale charting a road trip he and his best friend, Alberto, took in 1952 - the one that supposedly caused him to change his outlook on the world. Like most on-the-road films this picture has an episodic narrative that begins as we would expect, but eventually tumbles onto more socially sensitive ground of inequality, poverty and isolation. It moves from the comfortable to uneasy; from convention to innovation. Gael Garcia Bernal delivers an oustanding performance as the young student, gently embodying innocence and excitement at the beginning of the film and portraying an unearthing of understanding with sensitivity and realism. The director's stance is mostly observation, but he uses a montage of those in need of help to ensure the audience realise the harsh honesty of such suffering; the shots are moving images, but could just have easily been photos - instead we understand the director means to illustrate that such poverty is in the present, not the past. Still, such a heavy message never stifles the joys we previously encounter; the mischief of picking up girls in bars, the rows, tribulations and fun the boys share on a year's long journey. Although the eponymous bike fails to grace the screen for the duration of the film, it is easy to see the friends' journey as a homage rather than a failure - the bike is almost a friend whom they lost, yet must finish for, resulting in this engaging picture overlaid with beautiful cinematography and authentic music. 'The Motorcycle Diaries' is funny and charming, but has an extra layer of meaning to lend depth and resonance; despite exposing such a harrowing world it remains a testament to youth, and dreams. You don't have to have knowledge of or agree with Che's politics to enjoy this journey - it's often emotional and turbulent, not quite straightforward, but well worth the ride.
Here is the men Ernesto Che Guevara. This movie worth something extra for me, because of the subject which is the motif for which Guevara turn to revolution. The landscapes are incredible, in contradiction with the life of peoples. All is simple, and going on with the story. La Poderosa is a symbol for his fight. Even is broken and abandoned, the idea of it remains! The camera moves adjacent to the bike giving the realistic effect of the bike moving fast along the empty roads, gaining a sense of freedom and enjoyment. Bernal is one of my favorite and this movie demonstrate me that I have a very good reason.
Slow-burning but gorgeously photographed with engaging central performances... but going back to the look of the film - it's beautiful, filmed in such a way you almost feel like you're on the journey too! Breathtaking!
A stunning expression of humanity at its most generous. Empathy grown through experience in the wider world at large. I relate a lot to this, and yet there is so much more I wish to see in this world, and if this hasn't adjusted my already socially-dominated views on the world, then it's certainly sold South America to me as a travel destination.
I'd like to start first by saying I'm not at all a fan of Che Guevara.. but this film is pretty damn awesome. Guevara's friend, Alberto, is hilarious. The landscapes are absolutely wonderful and the story line is pretty much kick ass as we see the Che changing slowly but surely as he travels to desolate regions of South America to become the revolutionary we all know him for. Highly recommended.
This one was great. Wonderful shots of the landscape mixed with a great story about Ernesto "Che" Guevara. No... it's not about the revolution but about his journey around South America!
It's not just another road movie that deals with the early years of Che Guevara's short life...It's the accurate depiction of a whole period in latin america,through the eyes of a man whose destiny was to change the history of a continent!!!
a profound, thought-provoking film. beautiful cinematography, capturing not only the characters but the beautiful South American settings with intimate ease. terrific acting as well. a story of two friends who discover their parallel lives and have to branch off and grow, as well as a story that humanizes (however truthfully or fictionally) che guevara in a poignant, empathetic way. the music was great too. really a wonderful movie.
A small sequence in the life of Che Guevara ! He and his friend take a tour across the South America on a motor cycle.. The poeple they meet and the life he discovers.. It his transformation.. his emergence.. his determination.. his choices.. him becoming the person that millions adore.. It more like a documenary coz its all real life events.. Gael Gracia Bernal has done justice to this role, ofcoure there is striking similarity between him and Che..
there are some striking scences in this movie for which you will simply love Che.. His friendship with Alberto is so good..
If you are his fan you definetily need to watch this one..
Ernesto Guevara de la Serna: This isn't a tale of heroic feats. It's about two lives running parallel for a while, with common aspirations and similar dreams.
The film recounts the 1952 journey, initially by motorcycle, across South America by young Ernesto "Che" Guevara and his friend Alberto Granado. As the adventure centered around youthful hedonism unfolds, Guevara discovers himself transformed by his observations on the life of the impoverished indigenous peasantry. Venturing across mountains, deserts, and down rivers, the pair encounter and are forever changed by witnessing the social injustices of exploited mine workers, persecuted communists, ostracized lepers, and the tattered descendants of a once-great Incan civilization.
Directed by Brazillian director Walter Salles, this is a very good looking film, using the actual locations traveled to as a beautiful back drop to what is essentially a road trip movie, backed by an undercurrent that would lead to Guevara's eventual revolutionary ideas.
Gael Garcia Bernal and Rodrigo De la Serna make a very good team together, working as an entertaining pair to see cross through South America. The characters they meet along the way are good as well.
The soundtrack, as with the scenery, is very fitting in an elegant sort of way to back up what is going on in this film.
It works as a comedy-drama, depicting the lives of these younger men, backed by a road adventure setting to make it very watchable.
Ernesto Guevara de la Serna: Mother. Mother Sister Alberto: Yes? Alberto Granado: We want to eat. Ernesto Guevara de la Serna: We deserve to eat like everyone else. Mother Sister Alberto: Yes, but you didn't go to mass. Ernesto Guevara de la Serna: No. Mother Sister Alberto: Then, how do you expect to feed the body if you didn't feed the soul first? Alberto Granado: Er, denying food is not very Christian-like. Ernesto Guevara de la Serna: Yes, I doubt Jesus would act like this. Mother Sister Alberto: In this house, we have a set of rules that have to be followed. Ernesto Guevara de la Serna: [to Alberto now, as she turns away] I haven't read any rule book. Alberto Granado: Neither did I. I think that if I find it I would eat it.
MCT:August 29, 2008
MCT:August 1, 2008
MCT:June 25, 2008
MCT:June 19, 2008
