Diarios de Motocicleta (The Motorcycle Diaries)

2 years after I first visited South America, Diarios de Motocicleta (The Motorcycle Diaries) popped up on cinema everywhere to near universal acclaim, and some controversy. The movie is based on Ernesto Guevara' travelogue of same title. In 1952, the 23 years old medical student Ernesto "Fuser" Guevara and his friend Albert Granada decides to leave Buenos Aires behind, and go on a trip around South America on a motorcycle. Wonderful directed by Walter Salles and well acted by especially Gael García Bernal, the movie tells a story about friendship and hardship in a beautiful scenery. It also shows situations that would form Guevara for rest of his life. As some may understand this young medical student would end up as the world most famous revolutionary, but the movie tries not to focus on that at all.

Some bash the movie because they in the end realize they have been cheated into watching a movie about "the evil" Che Guevara. This is just as stupid as all those people walking around with a t-shirt with the iconic Che Guevara picture without knowing anything more about his ideas, beliefs and reasons. In my opinion, this movie is mostly about two young people discovering the world around them for the first time. As a traveler 60 years on you still experience the same things like impoverished indigenous peasants, and huge difference between social classes.

Gustavo Santaolalla playing short snippets on his charango gives a very Latin feeling to the movie, but it was the main song of the movie "Al Otro Lado del Rio" (On the other side of the river) by Jorge Drexler (from Uruguay) which was nominated to an Oscar for best original song. It won that category, but because Jorge Drexler (then) was not very well known, the producers would not let him play his own song on the show. They decided Antonio Banderas should sing instead, and let Carlos Santana play the guitar. One can only guess the (stupid) reason behind that decision. Anyway, Jorge Drexler accepted the award by singing some lines a cappella, and then said goodbye.

Just as Jorge Drexler, this movie deserves a much better fate, and I would recommend anyone to give it a shot.