DISCUSSION QUESTIONS - ELDORADO
1. Discuss the film’s ending. To what extent does the ending reflect the themes brought out during the film’s duration?
2. Discuss the director’s choices in cinematography and music in the film. How do these stylistic elements affect the tone?
3. How does ELDORADO compare with the prototype of the following three film genres: the Western, the Road Movie, and the Buddy Picture? How is it similar and how is it different from each of these three kinds of films?
4. Who is the man shown at the very beginning of the film? How does what he says about ‘being Christ’ comment on the film’s larger themes?
5. Describe the relationship between Yvan and Elie. What does the night spent in the trailer symbolize for the relationship between these two men? How does their relationship change over the course of the film?
6. Compare the scenes during which Elie wants to smoke a cigarette in the trailer, and when Elie convinces Yvan to take gas, food, and drinks without paying. How do these scenes reflect each man’s values? What do they learn from each other in these scenes, and overall? What kinds of values do the characters in ELDORADO espouse?
7. Which scene (or scenes) do you think serves as the film’s emotional center, and why? What kinds of actions take place and what decisions are made here?