Apocalypto(2006)




The movie starts by quoting this "A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within.—W. Durant
If you want to see a MelGibson's shear piece of love in versatile film making then Apocalypto is an evident and treat for your eyes.But it fails in explaining it and the presentation.The Life of Mayan and the pre Colombian culture are very interesting in many ways .The movie rides on the Mayan Culture .
Apocalypto begins with a hunt by villagers(Not Mayans) in the outskirts .The movie uses Mayan language for conversation .The villagers innocent frolicking comes to an end when the evil Mayans capture them and take them to a Mayan city.From here onwards the blood thirst , sadistic massacres and mass rapes continue to drag the movie .Our hero is Jaguar Paw who lets his pregnant wife and kid inside a deep tunnel to save them from the raiders.He escapes from the Mayans .The Mayans chase him ,He succeeds in saving the life of his wife ,Kid and water born child.The movie ends as Jaguar Paw and his wife movie away from Spanish soldiers in to forest.
The blood flows, drips, squirts, gushes and sprays through out the movie which can not to be enjoyed at any moment in spite of artistic Cinematography.

Mel Gibson is after blood is the one word on this ,which is very evident from the previous movies of him.He has failed to educate both himself and viewers.I am not disappointed by the movie as a whole .Some extensive studies on this movie is so explicit right from the weapons to studds used in the ears.But Mayans re known for their Astrological and mathematical skills which are not even taken as a tint but shown as a savage blood splashers. I am not a Mayan scholar but when I went through the Mayan culture you find these very apparent.Viewers who enjoy the careful and thorough documentation of a bygone era this will be a movie to throw the critics .The end of a civilisation could have been handled on different way than this .

Mel Gibson wanted to make a Chase genre movie set in a Pre Columbian period as a historic thriller.If you don't involve in study of the plot then this movie is different in many kinds .It excites you and shocks you at the same time ,The breath taking chase when the Mayans searching Jaguar paw is one exciting scene for the way its filmed and edited.I was expecting the birth of Jaguars second child right from the moment he hides them in the cave.As expected it was a brutal way of imagining a birth .Mel Gibson's team has worked on the action chases relentlessly to give it a look of a action shade.But when you see the movie in the outset you can feel the human sacrifices are over loaded in MelGibsons imagination ,which plays around in this movie through out.
MelGibson splashes more blood behind the camera than being in front of..

Comments

nav said…
Quite convincing review. But then let me add up to it.
I fail to understand why the movie starts with the quote "A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within". It actually sets an expectation that the Mayan culture was destroyed by an insider element while the end is different.
Makes us believe tht Jaguar Paw will by himself bring unto the demise of the Mayan city, but then u get disappointed. Renders the whole plot negligible, coz the Apocalypse is no where in the movie.
And quite gross in a few scenes - the Mel Gibson way.
Good screenplay and cinematograpy. Though I would not label it must watch movie.
Karthik said…
i agree navaneeth...there is no where a justification why the quote was made.Good screen play but that could have been told ina different way in the Mayan base.I will not agree that mayans capturing the villagers a act of destroyal.

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