Consider all the violence in the movie though the Maya practiced warfare and treated their prisoners harshly, the depiction of wall paintings of blue-painted and decapitated prisoners is just wrong. But the distorted story of the Maya is likely the only exposure a generation of moviegoers will get to the ancient civilization, and the film does the Maya a disservice.Īs researchers who have spent our lives studying and teaching about the Maya, we cannot help but be disappointed, and even outraged, by the movie. True, a movie is a fictional account that, in most cases, places the drama ahead of the historical verisimilitude. The inaccuracies have sparked protests by Native Americans - in the United States, Mexico and Guatemala - as well as by researchers who study the ancient Maya, all outraged by the film's portrayal of the Maya as violent and depraved. Movie reviewers, however, have noted the film's inaccuracies, though at the same time they have granted the director considerable latitude with a common plea from the movie world: It's just entertainment. The promotion for Mel Gibson's new film, “Apocalypto,” points out all of its realistic touches: It was shot on location in Mexico, it stars Native American actors and its dialogue is not in English but Yucatec Maya. The following editorial was written by Mary Weismantel, professor of anthropology, and Cynthia Robin, associate professor of anthropology.
Although the film has been nominated for three Academy Awards - in makeup, sound editing and sound mixing - it has received mixed reviews from critics and scholars.
Among the villagers is Jaguar Paw, who has hidden his wife and child from the attackers with a promise that he will return for them. Villagers who survived a savage attack are taken by their captors through the jungle to the central Mayan city.
Mel Gibson's latest film, Apocalypto, tells a story set in pre-Columbian Central America, with the Mayan Empire in decline. Commentary by Mary Weismantel and Cynthia Robin The method by which they catch the animal is ingenious but also rather crudely violent and as soon as they sit down to cut out its organs, the script turns crude in other ways, too. This is a chase movie with an environmental theme, and the footsteps that momentarily block our view of the foliage bring to mind the opening shot of the similarly-titled Apocalypse Now, in which helicopters whirred by in front of us just before laying waste to the jungles of Vietnam.īut it turns out the main chase has not yet begun the feet that rush by are actually those of a Mayan forest-dweller who, together with other men from his tribe, is hunting a tapir (an animal related to the horse and the rhinoceros). But that means Gibson's weaknesses are just as evident in these films as his strengths.Īpocalypto begins with a shot that brilliantly distills the essence of the movie, as the camera slowly moves in on some bright green forest plants, and a pair of feet suddenly rush past in the foreground. Gibson also made both films with his own money, so for better or for worse, they truly represent his personal artistic vision, unlike many so-called "independent" films that are tweaked by their distributors. His skills as an auteur have become especially apparent over the course of his last two films, The Passion of The Christ and now Apocalypto, both of which feature mostly unknown actors speaking ancient languages the absence of big stars and readily intelligible dialogue keeps us focused on the visuals, which are bold and unsettling throughout.
APOCALYPTO WHERE TO WATCH HOW TO
Say what you will about Mel Gibson, but there's no denying the man knows how to use a camera-which is more than can be said for many other actors who have turned to directing.
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