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CHEETAHMEN.
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{{Unreferenced|date=January 2013}}
{{Infobox film
[[File:Cheetahmen-title-screen.jpg|thumbnail|right|The title screen for the Sega Genesis version.]]
| name = The Road to El Dorado
'''''The Cheetahmen''''' is a franchise created by Active Enterprises that attempted to clone [[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]] and [[Transformers (toy line)|Transformers]]. It debuted in 1991 on the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]]
| image = Road to el dorado ver3.jpg
multi-cart [[Action 52]]. There was also an extremely rare sequel and a [[Sega Genesis]] version.
| image_size = 215px
| alt =
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = Don Paul<br>[[Bibo Bergeron|Eric "Bibo" Bergeron]]<br>'''Additional Sequences:'''<br>[[Will Finn]]<br>[[David Silverman]]
| producer = Brook Breton<br />Bonne Radford
| screenplay = [[Ted Elliott (screenwriter)|Ted Elliott]]<br />[[Terry Rossio]]
| narrator = [[Elton John]]
| starring = [[Kevin Kline]]<br />[[Kenneth Branagh]]<br />[[Armand Assante]]<br />[[Edward James Olmos]]<br />[[Rosie Perez]]<br />[[Jim Cummings]]
| music = [[Hans Zimmer]]<br />[[John Powell (composer)|John Powell]]<br />'''Songs:'''<br />[[Elton John]]<br />[[Tim Rice]] {{small|(lyrics)}}
| editing = [[John Carnochan]]<br />Dan Molina<br />Vicki Hiatt<br />Lynne Southerland
| studio = [[DreamWorks Animation]]
| distributor = [[DreamWorks Pictures]]
| released = {{Film date|2000|03|31}}
| runtime = 89 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget = $95 million
| gross = $76,432,727
}}
'''''The Road to El Dorado''''' is a 2000 American [[Animation|animated]] [[Adventure film|adventure]] [[comedy film]] directed by Eric "Bibo" Bergeron and Don Paul, with additional sequences by Will Finn and David Silverman, starring Kevin Kline, Kenneth Branagh, and Rosie Pérez, and produced by [[DreamWorks]]. The [[The Road to El Dorado (soundtrack)|soundtrack]] features songs by [[Elton John]] and [[Tim Rice]], as well as composer [[Hans Zimmer]].

The movie begins in 16th-century [[Seville]], Spain, and tells about two men named Tulio and Miguel. During a dice game using [[Dice#Loaded dice|loaded dice]], they win a map that supposedly shows the location of [[El Dorado]], the legendary city of gold in the [[New World]]. However, their cheating is soon discovered and as a result, they end up as stowaways on [[Hernán Cortés]]' fleet to conquer Mexico. They are discovered, but manage to escape in a boat with Cortés' prize war horse and eventually discover the hidden city of El Dorado, where they are mistaken for gods. The film received mixed reviews from critics and was a [[box office bomb]].


==Plot==
==Plot==
Mad scientist Dr. Morbis kills a mother cheetah while on safari in [[Africa]], then takes her three cubs for his genetic research. Subjected to his experiments, the cubs grow into half-cheetah, half-human creatures. Once they learn of Morbis' evil plans, they turn on him, and he, in turn, creates an army of half-animal humans (known as "Sub-Species") to stop the Cheetahmen once and for all.
In [[Spain]] 1519, two [[confidence trick|con artists]], Tulio ([[Kevin Kline]]) and Miguel ([[Kenneth Branagh]]), win a map to the legendary City of Gold, [[El Dorado]], in a rigged gambling match (though ironically they end up winning the map fairly). After being accused of cheating with [[loaded dice]], the two evade capture while being chased by a bull and hide in barrels, which are shortly loaded onto one of the ships to be led by [[Hernán Cortés]] ([[Jim Cummings]]) to the [[New World]]. During the trip, they are caught as stowaways, but manage to break free and take a rowboat with the help of Cortés' horse, Altivo ([[Frank Welker]]). They land at an unknown shore at the edge of [[Mexico]], and Miguel begins to recognize landmarks stated on the map. The map leads them to a totem marker outside of a waterfall where a young woman approaches them, chased by a number of guards. The guards see the image of Tulio and Miguel riding Altivo as the same on the totem, and believing them to be gods, escort them and the woman under the falls and into El Dorado, truly a city made of gold.

Tulio and Miguel are brought to the city's elders, Chief Tannabok ([[Edward James Olmos]]) and wicked high priest Tzekel-Kan ([[Armand Assante]]). While Tannabok warmly welcomes them to the city, Tzekel-Kan mainly sees them as a way to enhance his own standing. Tzekel-Kan also believes that with the arrival of the gods comes "The Year of the Jaguar", a year in which the city will be purged of all wicked people. Tulio and Miguel begin to argue on what to do. Everyone is convinced they are gods when as a volcano is beginning to erupt, Tulio yells at Miguel to stop, and the volcano suddenly stops. After celebrations offered by both Tannabok and Tzekel-Kan, the two are taken to private quarters along with the woman they met earlier, Chel ([[Rosie Perez]]), who has seen through their ploy but offers to help maintain it as long as they give her a share of the gold and take her with them when they leave. Tulio tells Tannabok the next day that they are only here for a visit, but will need a boat to leave the city with the gifts the city has showered upon them.

Tannabok says it will take them at least three days to construct a vessel to carry both them and the gifts given to them by the people of El Dorado. Chel encourages Miguel to continue to explore the city. Miguel finds the streets empty and sees and old man being punished by a guard, who tells him Tzekel-Kan had ordered the streets cleared to prepare for a sacrifice by gods orders. Miguel begins playing a guitar and begins to bond with the people. When Tzekel-Kan sees Miguel playing [[Mesoamerican ballgame|a ball game]] with children, he demands that the gods play against the city's best players. During the match, Tulio and Miguel are clearly over-matched, but Chel replaces the ball with an armadillo named Bibo, allowing the two to cheat and win the game. However, when Tzekel-Kan offers to have the defeated players put to death and tell them they must punish the wicked, Miguel sees that no one there is evil and orders him to leave the city saying the gods will speak for themselves.

As he is leaving, Tzekel-Kan sees a small cut on Miguel's forehead, and realizes that they are not gods because gods do not bleed. Tzekel-Kan conjures a giant stone jaguar to chase them through the city. Tulio and Miguel manage to outwit the stone jaguar, causing both it and Tzekel-Kan to fall into a giant whirlpool, thought to be the entrance to Xibalba, the spirit world. Tzekel-Kan comes to outside El Dorado, where Cortés and his men are searching for gold. Thinking Cortés is a true god, Tzekel-Kan quickly offers to lead them to El Dorado. With their boat completed and loaded with treasures, Tulio is ready to leave but Miguel announces that he will be staying because he finds the city peaceful. As Tulio and Chel start to leave, they spot smoke on the horizon, realizing that Cortés and his men are approaching the city with the help from Tzekel-Kan. To protect the city from the Spanish troops, Tulio determines they can use the boat to slam against rock formations under the waterfall path that will cave in and block access to the city.

The city residents pull down a large statue to create a wave to propel the boat, but Tulio cannot get the sails up to give the boat enough speed to avoid the statue. Miguel forgoes his chance to stay in the city and jumps into the boat with Altivo to finish hoisting the sails. The boat clears the statue in time, and Tulio's plan is successful; though the boat and its treasures are lost, the entrance to El Dorado is sealed for good. Tulio, Miguel, and Altivo hide as Tzekel-Kan brings Cortés and his men towards the waterfall. Once Tzekal-Kan finds out that the entrance has been blocked, an angry Cortés takes this as a lie. Cortés and his men then march away with a humiliated Tzekel-Kan in their hands. Tulio and Miguel though disappointed they lost their treasure, take off in a different direction for a new adventure, unaware that Altivo still wears the golden horseshoes he was outfitted with in the city.

==Cast==
* [[Kevin Kline]] as Tulio, one of the con artists who pretend to be gods so they can get gold. He is the planner who wanted to leave El Dorado with the treasure.
* [[Kenneth Branagh]] as Miguel, one of the con artists who pretend to be gods so they can get gold. He is the fun-loving one who wants to stay in El Dorado.
* [[Rosie Perez]] as Chel, a young native from El Dorado who discovers Tulio and Miguel's con and decides to play along.
* [[Jim Cummings]] as [[Hernán Cortés]], the merciless and ambitious leader of the expedition to find the ancient South American empires.
* [[Armand Assante]] as Tzekel-Kan, the fanatically vicious high priest who has a religious fixation for human sacrifices.
* [[Edward James Olmos]] as Chief Tannabok, the kind chief of El Dorado who welcomes Tulio and Miguel.
* [[Tobin Bell]] as Zaragoza, the original owner of the map, which he loses to Tulio and Miguel when gambling with them.
* [[Frank Welker]] as Altivo, Cortés' horse who ends up teaming up with Tulio and Miguel.

==Production==
Under the working title ''El Dorado: City of Gold'',<ref name="timrice"/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/1997/01/20/business/despite-a-sluggish-beginning-dreamworks-is-viewed-as-a-potential-hollywood-power.html?pagewanted=all | title=Despite a Sluggish Beginning, Dreamworks Is Viewed as a Potential Hollywood Power | last=Fabrikant | first=Geraldine | newspaper=The New York Times | date=January 20, 1997 | accessdate=January 19, 2014}}</ref> the film was originally scheduled for release in fall of 1999.<ref name=LATHue>{{cite news|last1=Aleiss|first1=Angela|title=Animated Features of a Different Hue|url=http://articles.latimes.com/1999/jan/24/entertainment/ca-1004|accessdate=June 24, 2014|work=Los Angeles Times|date=January 24, 1999|quote=The movie features the voices of Edward James Olmos, Armand Assante and Rosie Perez and is tentatively scheduled for a fall release.}}</ref> During production, the filmmakers drew much inspiration for the characters of Miguel and Tulio from those of the [[Bob Hope]] and [[Bing Crosby]] ''[[Road to...]]'' films. "The buddy relationship [between the duo] is the very heart of the story. They need each other because they're both pretty inept. They're opposites — Tulio is the schemer and Miguel is the dreamer. Their camaraderie adds to the adventure; you almost don't need to know where they're going or what they're after, because the fun is in the journey", remarked one of the film's producers, Bonne Radford. Unusually for an animated film, both Kline and Branagh recorded their lines in the same studio room together, in order for the two to achieve more realistic chemistry. This proved difficult for the audio team.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.roadtoeldorado.com|title=The Road to El Dorado|work=DreamWorks|accessdate=February 12, 2013}}</ref>

In late 1996, [[Tim Rice]] and [[Elton John]] were asked to compose seven songs, which they immediately worked on. In February 1999, before the release of ''[[Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida]]'', it was announced that ten songs had been composed for ''El Dorado''. It was also announced that the release date had been pushed to March 2000.<ref name="timrice">{{cite web|url= http://www.timrice.co.uk/eldorado.html | title=The Road to El Dorado | publisher=timrice.co.uk | accessdate=January 19, 2014}}</ref>

The creation of the film was a challenge for the studio because [[DreamWorks Animation]] had devoted most of its creative efforts to its previous animated film, ''[[The Prince of Egypt]]''.

==Release==

===Critical reception===
The film received mixed reviews from critics; it currently holds a 49% "rotten" rating out of 103 reviews at [[Rotten Tomatoes]], with 50 positive reviews, making this the first [[DreamWorks Animation|DreamWorks animated]] film to earn a "rotten" rating; the consensus states: "Predictable story and thin characters made the movie flat."<ref>{{rotten-tomatoes|road_to_el_dorado|The Road to El Dorado}}</ref> [[Metacritic]], which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 top reviews from mainstream critics, calculated a score of 51 based on 29 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-road-to-el-dorado | title=The Road to El Dorado | work=[[Metacritic]] | publisher=''[[CBS Interactive]]'' | accessdate=January 19, 2014}}</ref>


The NES version of the game had an intro sequence that told a story as well, where a boy called the "Action Gamemaster" is at home playing a video game when a robotic arm reaches through the screen and pulls him into the game by his leg. He meets the Cheetahmen, who then run away. The Gamemaster does not appear in the rest of the game, although the manual summary implies that he transforms into the Cheetahmen, one after another.
[[Paul Clinton]] of [[CNN]] wrote, "The animation is uninspiring and brings nothing new to the table of animation magic," praising the Elton John/Tim Rice songs, but noting the weak plot.<ref>{{cite news|last=Clinton|first=Paul|title=Review: Little gold in this 'El Dorado'|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2000/SHOWBIZ/Movies/03/31/el.dorado/index.html|accessdate=February 12, 2013|newspaper=CNN|date=April 3, 2000}}</ref>


The Genesis version is much different. In this one, the three Cheetahmen would need to rescue several baby cheetahs within the three levels of the game.
In contrast, [[Roger Ebert]] of the [[Chicago Sun-Times]] gave the film a thumbs up and commented that it was "bright and zesty," having enjoyed it as a simple comedic farce,<ref>{{cite news|last=Ebert|first=Roger|title=The Road To El Dorado|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20000331/REVIEWS/3310305|accessdate=February 12, 2013|newspaper=Chicago Sun-Times|date=March 31, 2000}}</ref> while [[Joel Siegel]], on [[Good Morning America]] called it "solid gold," claiming the film was "paved with laughs."{{Citation needed|date=February 2013}}


===Box office===
==Characters==
[[Image:Cheetahmen NES 2.png|right|thumb|Opening ''The Cheetahmen'' [[cutscene]]]]
The film earned $12,846,652 on opening weekend at #2, behind previous year's ''[[Erin Brockovich (film)|Erin Brockovich]]''{{'}}s third weekend.<ref>{{cite web|title=Weekend Box Office Results for March 31-April 2, 2000|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=2000&wknd=13&p=.htm|work=[[Box Office Mojo]]|publisher=[[Amazon.com]]|date=2000-04-03|accessdate=2012-02-04}}</ref> The film closed on April 29, 2001, after earning $50,863,742 in the United States and Canada and $25,568,985 overseas for a worldwide total of $76,432,727. Based on its total gross, ''The Road to El Dorado'' was a [[box office bomb]], not able to recoup its $95 million budget.<ref>{{mojo title|roadtoeldorado|The Road to El Dorado}}</ref>


The heroes included:
===Accolades===
*'''Hercules''' — named for [[Hercules]], the [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] [[demigod]], son of [[Zeus]] and a mortal woman. He is by nature a [[pacifism|pacifist]], but will fight with deadly force when the situation demands it. He does not use a weapon, but has great physical strength.
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
*'''Aries''' — named for the [[astrology|astrological]] sign [[Aries (astrology)|Aries]], that is believed to dictate impulsive behavior (as the group's combat expert he was probably intended to be named after [[Ares]]). Aries learned martial arts from movies shown to him by Dr. Morbis. He wields two wooden clubs.
|-
*'''Apollo''' — named for [[Apollo]], the Greek god. He is the leader of the Cheetahmen, and was the first to question Dr. Morbis' intentions. As his name suggests, Apollo is an archer and a scholar versed in many fields. He uses a crossbow.
! Award !! Category !! Winner/Nominee Recipient(s) !! Result
|-
| rowspan= 8 | [[Annie Award]]s<ref name=Annie>{{cite web|title=Legacy: 28th Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners (2000)|url=http://annieawards.org/28thwinners.html|publisher=The Annie Awards|accessdate=October 13, 2012}}</ref>
| Animated Theatrical Feature || || {{nom}}
|-
| Individual Achievement in Storyboarding || Jeff Snow (Story supervisor) || {{nom}}
|-
| Individual Achievement in Production Design || Christian Schellewald (Production Designer) || {{nom}}
|-
| Individual Achievement in Character Animation || David Brewster (Senior Supervising animator - Miguel) || {{nom}}
|-
| Individual Achievement in Character Animation || Rodolphe Guendonen (Supervising Animator - Chel) || {{nom}}
|-
| Individual Achievement in Effects Animation || Doug Ikeler (Effects Lead - Crashing the Gate) || {{nom}}
|-
| Individual Achievement in Voice Acting || [[Armand Assante]] ("Tzekel-Kan") || {{nom}}
|-
| Individual Achievement in Music || [[Hans Zimmer]] (Music)<br>[[John Powell (composer)|John Powell]] (Music) || {{nom}}
|-
| [[6th Critics' Choice Awards|Critics' Choice Awards]]<ref>{{cite news|last=Armstrong|first=Mark|title=Broadcast Critics Eat Crowe|url=http://uk.eonline.com/news/40898/broadcast-critics-eat-crowe|accessdate=January 4, 2014|newspaper=E! Online UK|date=December 19, 2000}}</ref>
| Best Composer
| Hans Zimmer
| {{won}}
|-
|}


The enemies included:
===Video game===
* '''Dr. Morbis''', an evil geneticist. His ultimate goals are never made clear.
{{Main|Gold and Glory: The Road to El Dorado}}
* '''Cygore''', Dr. Morbis' assistant with a robotic arm. Sketches of him showed a number of weapon attachments, including a hammer and buzzsaw.
The video game tie-in, released on [[PlayStation]], [[Game Boy Color]], and [[Personal computer|PC]], was named ''Gold & Glory: The Road to El Dorado''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Gold and Glory: The Road to El Dorado|url=http://www.gamespot.com/gold-and-glory-the-road-to-el-dorado/|publisher=Gamespot|accessdate=October 13, 2012}}</ref>
* '''White Rhino''', a Sub-Species based on a rhino.
* '''Scavenger''', a Sub-Species based on a vulture.
* '''Hyena''', a Sub-Species based on a hyena.
* '''Man-Ape''' (or '''Ape-Man'''), allegedly the most powerful of Dr. Morbis' Sub-Species.


== ''The Cheetahmen'' ==
===Home media===
Released on the ''Action 52'' cartridge, ''The Cheetahmen'' was Active Enterprises' attempt to compete with the success of franchises such as ''[[Battletoads]]'' and ''[[List of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles video games|Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]''. The ''Action 52'' cartridge came with a twelve-page [[comic book]] providing the Cheetahmen's backstory.
''The Road to El Dorado'' was released on DVD and VHS on January 20, 2001.<ref>{{cite news|last=DeMott|first=Rick|title=The Road To El Dorado Leads To Home Video|url=http://www.awn.com/news/home-entertainment/road-el-dorado-leads-home-video|accessdate=November 14, 2013|newspaper=Animation World Network|date=December 13, 2000}}</ref> However as with many of Dreamworks early animation, it has yet to be released Blu-ray.


''The Cheetahmen'' consists of six levels, two for each of the three Cheetahmen. The second level includes a boss battle. Other than the bosses, all of the other enemies are characters from the other games, including [[Saddam Hussein]] parody Satán Hossain from ''Storm over the Desert'', a simple overhead tank game where running over Hossain, who appears very frequently, gives the player another life.
==Soundtrack==
{{Infobox album <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Albums -->
| Name = The Road to El Dorado
| Type = Soundtrack
| Artist = [[Elton John]]
| Cover =
| Released = March 14, 2000
| Recorded =
| Genre = [[Rock music|Rock]], [[Pop music|pop]]
| Length = 62:14
| Label = [[DreamWorks Records]]
| Producer = [[Patrick Leonard]]
| Last album = ''[[The Muse (soundtrack)|The Muse]]'' (1999)
| This album = '''''The Road to El Dorado'''''<br>(2001)
| Next album = ''[[Elton John One Night Only – The Greatest Hits]]'' (2000)
|Misc = {{Singles
| Name = The Road to El Dorado
| Type = soundtrack
| Single 1 = Someday Out of the Blue (Theme from El Dorado)
| Single 1 date = 2000
| Single 2 = Friends Never Say Goodbye
| Single 2 date = 2000
}}}}


==''Cheetahmen II''==
'''''The Road to El Dorado''''' is an album released by singer [[Elton John]] to accompany the [[DreamWorks]] animated motion picture ''The Road to El Dorado''. The songs were composed mainly by John with lyricist [[Tim Rice]], with score contributions by [[Hans Zimmer]] and [[John Powell (composer)|John Powell]]. John and Rice had previously collaborated on the soundtrack to ''[[The Lion King (soundtrack)|The Lion King]]'', another animated movie. Zimmer had previously composed the music score to ''[[The Prince of Egypt (soundtrack)|The Prince of Egypt]]''.
There were plans for a sequel, ''Cheetahmen II'', but it wasn't completed (6 of 10 proposed levels were made) and was never officially released. In 1996, however, 1,500 copies of the game were located in a warehouse, and eventually put on sale on the secondary market. All copies of the game were reused ''Action 52'' cartridges, some with a small gold sticker reading "Cheetamen II". This cartridge is now very rare and hard to find, though numerous [[ROM image]]s exist on the Internet.


In ''Cheetahmen II'' the player again assumes the role of one of the three Cheetahmen (Aries, Apollo and Hercules); after defeating a boss at the end of the second level, they switch to the next Cheetahman for the following two levels, as in the ''Action 52'' version. Due to a bug, it is impossible to get to the levels in which one plays Cheetahman Aries without altering the ROM image or experiencing a glitch that very rarely starts the game on these two levels.
In some instances (such as "The Trail We Blaze"), the songs have been altered musically and vocally from the way they appeared in the film.
A "[http://www.hans-zimmer.com/index.php?rub=disco&id=318 Cast & Crew Special Edition]" recording of the soundtrack exists, but was never released to the public. It includes the theatrical versions of the songs, including "It's Tough to be a God" recorded by [[Kevin Kline]] and [[Kenneth Branagh]], and several of the score tracks by [[Hans Zimmer]].


A patch fixing all the game breaking bugs was made freely available by romhacking.net member PacoChan in July 2011.<ref>{{cite web|title=Cheetahmen II - Bugfixed version 2.1|url=http://www.romhacking.net/hacks/778/}}</ref> Subsequently, a "fixed" version of the game titled ''Cheetahmen II: The Lost Levels'' is being developed by Greg Pabich. The new version of the game will be released on an actual NES cartridge and is intended to fix the glitches found in the original game. To fund the game, Pabich started a [[Kickstarter]] program in which donors would be given rewards depending on the amount of money pledged. The program started on August 6, 2012 and is expected to last until September 6, 2012. To tie in with the project, a short video was filmed with [[The Angry Video Game Nerd]], Pat the NES Punk, The Game Chasers, and Pabich himself advertising the game.
[[Backstreet Boys]] provided backing vocals on "Friends Never Say Goodbye",<ref>{{cite web |title=The Road to El Dorado |url=http://www.tbook.com/rock/Elton_John/The_Road_to_El_Dorado_B00004RCW6.htm |publisher=Tbook.com| accessdate=November 18, 2011}}</ref> but were uncredited due to record label problems.{{citation needed |date=November 2011}} The group is "thanked" by John following the credits in the CD booklet. [[Eagles (band)|Eagles]] members [[Don Henley]] and [[Timothy B. Schmit]] are credited as background vocalists on the song "Without Question".


However, this fixed version of the game seems to use PacoChan's patch without his permission. Although they removed some graphical modifications found in PacoChan's version, they forgot to remove some not so obvious changes. For example, PacoChan fixed some spelling errors in the intro, although not all of them. Greg Pabich's version contains exactly the same fixes and mistakes.
===Track listing===
{{tracklist
| collapsed =
| headline =
| total_length =
| writing_credits = yes


''Cheetahmen II'' is famous for its music and for its lack of quality in all other areas. Like ''Action 52'', it was not licensed by Nintendo.
| title1 = El Dorado
| writer1 = Elton John, [[Tim Rice]]
| length1 = 4:22
| title2 = Someday Out of the Blue (Theme from ''El Dorado'')
| writer2 = Elton John, Patrick Leonard, Tim Rice
| length2 = 4:48
| title3 = Without Question
| note3 = featuring [[Don Henley]] and [[Timothy B. Schmit]]
| writer3 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length3 = 4:47
| title4 = Friends Never Say Goodbye
| note4 = featuring [[Backstreet Boys]]
| writer4 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length4 = 4:21
| title5 = The Trail We Blaze
| writer5 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length5 = 3:54
| title6 = 16th Century Man
| writer6 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length6 = 3:40
| title7 = The Panic in Me
| writer7 = Elton John, Hans Zimmer, Tim Rice
| length7 = 5:40
| title8 = It's Tough to Be a God
| note8 = Duet with [[Randy Newman]]
| writer8 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length8 = 3:50
| title9 = Trust Me
| writer9 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length9 = 4:46
| title10 = My Heart Dances
| writer10 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length10 = 4:51
| title11 = Queen of Cities (El Dorado II)
| writer11 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length11 = 3:56
| title12 = Cheldorado
| note12 = Performed by [[Hans Zimmer]] with [[Heitor Pereira]]
| writer12 = Hans Zimmer
| length12 = 4:26
| title13 = The Brig
| note13 = Performed by Hans Zimmer with Triology
| writer13 = Hans Zimmer
| length13 = 2:58
| title14 = Wonders of the New World
| note14 = Performed by Hans Zimmer
| writer14 = [[John Powell (composer)|John Powell]]
| length14 = 5:56
}}


==References in mass media==
{{tracklist
In October 2007, it was reported that ''Cheetahmen II'''s in-game music was being sampled and remixed or arranged for use in [[Nico Nico Douga]] videos. Remixes and arrangements included classical, ballad, and heavy metal styles. More than 100 videos had been posted to the [[Nico Nico Douga]] site within only a few days of the first one appearing.
| collapsed = yes
| headline = Best Buy exclusive tracks
| title15 = Perfect Love
| writer15 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length15 = 4:09
| title16 = Hey, Armadillo
| writer16 = Elton John, Tim Rice
| length16 = 3:46
}}


==References==
== See also ==
* [[Action 52]]
{{reflist}}
* [[List of commercial failures in video gaming]]
* [[List of video games notable for negative reception]]


==External links==
== References ==
<references />
{{Wikiquote}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20000510135638/http://www.roadtoeldorado.com/index_main.html Official website] archived from [http://www.roadtoeldorado.com/ the original] on May 10, 2000
* {{IMDb title|0138749|The Road to El Dorado}}
* {{bcdb title|7486|The Road to El Dorado}}
* {{amg title|184313|The Road to El Dorado}}
* {{mojo title|roadtoeldorado|The Road to El Dorado}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|road_to_el_dorado|The Road to El Dorado}}


== External links ==
{{Tim Rice}}
* [http://www.cheetahmengames.com/ cheetahmengames.com]
{{DreamWorks animated films}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Road To El Dorado, The}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheetahmen, The}}
[[Category:2000 films]]
[[Category:Nintendo Entertainment System games]]
[[Category:2000s adventure films]]
[[Category:Sega Genesis games]]
[[Category:2000 animated films]]
[[Category:Fictional cats]]
[[Category:2000s comedy films]]
[[Category:Video games featuring anthropomorphic characters]]
[[Category:2000s fantasy films]]
[[Category:American films]]
[[Category:American adventure comedy films]]
[[Category:American animated films]]
[[Category:American children's fantasy films]]
[[Category:English-language films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Bibo Bergeron]]
[[Category:Animated duos]]
[[Category:Buddy films]]
[[Category:Films featuring anthropomorphic characters]]
[[Category:Films set in Mexico]]
[[Category:Films set in Mesoamerica]]
[[Category:Films set in Seville]]
[[Category:Films set in the 16th century]]
[[Category:Indigenous cinema in Latin America]]
[[Category:Musicals by Tim Rice]]
[[Category:DreamWorks films]]
[[Category:DreamWorks Animation animated films]]
[[Category:Directorial debut films]]
[[Category:2000s American animated films]]
[[Category:Film scores by Hans Zimmer]]

Revision as of 01:09, 4 July 2014

File:Cheetahmen-title-screen.jpg
The title screen for the Sega Genesis version.

The Cheetahmen is a franchise created by Active Enterprises that attempted to clone Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Transformers. It debuted in 1991 on the Nintendo Entertainment System multi-cart Action 52. There was also an extremely rare sequel and a Sega Genesis version.

Plot

Mad scientist Dr. Morbis kills a mother cheetah while on safari in Africa, then takes her three cubs for his genetic research. Subjected to his experiments, the cubs grow into half-cheetah, half-human creatures. Once they learn of Morbis' evil plans, they turn on him, and he, in turn, creates an army of half-animal humans (known as "Sub-Species") to stop the Cheetahmen once and for all.

The NES version of the game had an intro sequence that told a story as well, where a boy called the "Action Gamemaster" is at home playing a video game when a robotic arm reaches through the screen and pulls him into the game by his leg. He meets the Cheetahmen, who then run away. The Gamemaster does not appear in the rest of the game, although the manual summary implies that he transforms into the Cheetahmen, one after another.

The Genesis version is much different. In this one, the three Cheetahmen would need to rescue several baby cheetahs within the three levels of the game.

Characters

Opening The Cheetahmen cutscene

The heroes included:

  • Hercules — named for Hercules, the Greek demigod, son of Zeus and a mortal woman. He is by nature a pacifist, but will fight with deadly force when the situation demands it. He does not use a weapon, but has great physical strength.
  • Aries — named for the astrological sign Aries, that is believed to dictate impulsive behavior (as the group's combat expert he was probably intended to be named after Ares). Aries learned martial arts from movies shown to him by Dr. Morbis. He wields two wooden clubs.
  • Apollo — named for Apollo, the Greek god. He is the leader of the Cheetahmen, and was the first to question Dr. Morbis' intentions. As his name suggests, Apollo is an archer and a scholar versed in many fields. He uses a crossbow.

The enemies included:

  • Dr. Morbis, an evil geneticist. His ultimate goals are never made clear.
  • Cygore, Dr. Morbis' assistant with a robotic arm. Sketches of him showed a number of weapon attachments, including a hammer and buzzsaw.
  • White Rhino, a Sub-Species based on a rhino.
  • Scavenger, a Sub-Species based on a vulture.
  • Hyena, a Sub-Species based on a hyena.
  • Man-Ape (or Ape-Man), allegedly the most powerful of Dr. Morbis' Sub-Species.

The Cheetahmen

Released on the Action 52 cartridge, The Cheetahmen was Active Enterprises' attempt to compete with the success of franchises such as Battletoads and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The Action 52 cartridge came with a twelve-page comic book providing the Cheetahmen's backstory.

The Cheetahmen consists of six levels, two for each of the three Cheetahmen. The second level includes a boss battle. Other than the bosses, all of the other enemies are characters from the other games, including Saddam Hussein parody Satán Hossain from Storm over the Desert, a simple overhead tank game where running over Hossain, who appears very frequently, gives the player another life.

Cheetahmen II

There were plans for a sequel, Cheetahmen II, but it wasn't completed (6 of 10 proposed levels were made) and was never officially released. In 1996, however, 1,500 copies of the game were located in a warehouse, and eventually put on sale on the secondary market. All copies of the game were reused Action 52 cartridges, some with a small gold sticker reading "Cheetamen II". This cartridge is now very rare and hard to find, though numerous ROM images exist on the Internet.

In Cheetahmen II the player again assumes the role of one of the three Cheetahmen (Aries, Apollo and Hercules); after defeating a boss at the end of the second level, they switch to the next Cheetahman for the following two levels, as in the Action 52 version. Due to a bug, it is impossible to get to the levels in which one plays Cheetahman Aries without altering the ROM image or experiencing a glitch that very rarely starts the game on these two levels.

A patch fixing all the game breaking bugs was made freely available by romhacking.net member PacoChan in July 2011.[1] Subsequently, a "fixed" version of the game titled Cheetahmen II: The Lost Levels is being developed by Greg Pabich. The new version of the game will be released on an actual NES cartridge and is intended to fix the glitches found in the original game. To fund the game, Pabich started a Kickstarter program in which donors would be given rewards depending on the amount of money pledged. The program started on August 6, 2012 and is expected to last until September 6, 2012. To tie in with the project, a short video was filmed with The Angry Video Game Nerd, Pat the NES Punk, The Game Chasers, and Pabich himself advertising the game.

However, this fixed version of the game seems to use PacoChan's patch without his permission. Although they removed some graphical modifications found in PacoChan's version, they forgot to remove some not so obvious changes. For example, PacoChan fixed some spelling errors in the intro, although not all of them. Greg Pabich's version contains exactly the same fixes and mistakes.

Cheetahmen II is famous for its music and for its lack of quality in all other areas. Like Action 52, it was not licensed by Nintendo.

References in mass media

In October 2007, it was reported that Cheetahmen II's in-game music was being sampled and remixed or arranged for use in Nico Nico Douga videos. Remixes and arrangements included classical, ballad, and heavy metal styles. More than 100 videos had been posted to the Nico Nico Douga site within only a few days of the first one appearing.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Cheetahmen II - Bugfixed version 2.1".

External links

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