Motorcycle Diary Questions

The Motorcycle Diaries​ follows Ernesto ¨Che¨ Guevara and his friend Alberto Granado as they rumble
around 1950´s South America on a beat up old motorcycle. After the motorcycle breaks down they
continue their journey on foot and hitchhiking, encountering people from different backgrounds, cultures,
and social classes. The film is adapted from Che´s book by the same title and visually records the events
from their journey. Their experiences on the road have a profound effect on them, and they finish their
journey as different people than when they started. In a sense, it is a coming of age journey as they leave
behind the comforts of home and their privileged positions in life.
Answer the following questions as we watch the film?
1. Viewers are given brief bios of the main characters. What info are we given and why?

2. How are Ernesto´s girlfriend, Chinchina, and her family portrayed? Why is this seemingly minor stop
given ample screen time?

3. What is the mood in the early stages of the film? What places do we see? How are cinematography,
sound, and lighting used in this phase of the film? What is the director trying to convey?

4. As the film progresses, the mood gets more serious. Is there a turning point for this change? What
is it?

5. What aspects of Ernesto´s character become more prominent as the film progresses?

6. What film techniques and/or narrative devices are used to portray the changes Che undergoes in the
2nd half of the film?