Mel Gibson's Blood, Sweat and Tears: A Fugitive Civilization on the Run
PopcornReel.com Film Review: "Apocalypto"
By Omar P.L. Moore/December 5, 2006
Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" is
spectacularly violent, phenomenally well-made and endlessly entertaining.
It leaves you breathless, on edge and sometimes speechless throughout its two
hours and 18 minutes. The film is a text-book example of terrific
filmmaking. There is scope (if not sufficient depth), but there is an
inevitability to the film and the plight of its characters that is nothing short
of compelling.
Extreme violence is a theme in the inhumanity Mr. Gibson portrays in some of the
films he has starred in and others he has directed. In Roland Emmerich's "The
Patriot", in Mr. Gibson's Oscar-winning 1995 film "Braveheart", in his "The Passion of The
Christ" and now "Apocalypto". At some points the violence evokes cries of
horror from the audience. Not only does "Apocalypto"'s violence reflect
man's inhumanity to man, it might also reflect the inner turbulence of the
amazingly proficient and talented filmmaker directing it.
"Apocalypto" stars the aptly-named Rudy Youngblood as Jaguar Paw (nickname
"Almost" by a rival tribe member who will threaten the Mayan culture's very
existence in short order) -- a prideful, resilient and fearful man whose father
is always warning him about the damage that fear can do to the heart. The
heart is a recurring theme and many a heart beats in this film -- both the
audience's and the characters' -- with suspense, fear, dread and excitement.
The story of the wise old father and the stubborn son has been a part of movie
lore forever, but it has never been dramatized or shot quite like this.
Dean Semler's cinematography is outstanding. He captures the forests of
Mexico in stunningly colorful camera shots.
Jaguar Paw has premonitions about the day that the land he and his family and
kinsfolk own and inhabit will be destroyed -- and within ten minutes thereafter
the premonition comes to pass. The revolution begins. For a short
while the audience has acquainted itself with the intimacies and practical jokes
the group of Mayan tribe members play on each other, especially on one man who is
always gullible to being fooled. There is the mother who desperately wants
her son-in-law to help make a child with her daughter so that she could have
grandkids. There are some exceptionally funny moments early on, and also
later on, in lulls after the more serious and tensely violent events occur.
One of the few weaknesses of the film is that it does not spend nearly enough
time emotionally investing in its characters before launching into the
inevitably downfall of empire with violence that has come throughout history.
In fact, for all the huffing and puffing that Rudy Youngblood (a real-life
Native American dancer) does onscreen,
there is a distinct lack of sincere emotional investment in him from an audience
perspective other than for his obvious escape and survival. In other words,
there is an emptiness
that lingers at times -- whether this is because of the violence -- be warned, this
film is stupendously violent at times -- or because of a very short time bonding
with the characters -- this reviewer is not distinctly certain.
Be that as it may, the violence is not cartoonish, it is real, authentic, and
apart from some specific point of view shots which may be a tad unnecessary --
watch the movie to understand this -- it is worth reminding readers of this
review that history and revolutions were not fought with rubber bands or staple
guns. Violence was and continues to be graphically real. In any war,
whether portrayed on the big screen or in news headlines, gore and bloodshed are
inevitable. With this in mind, "Apocalypto" becomes more bearable to
watch -- in fact, more bearable to watch than say "The Empire of Africa", a film
documentary that shows real killings and dismemberments -- a film about real
events that happened only seven or eight years ago.
The vast majority of Jaguar Paw's fellow kinsmen and women meet their fates, and
soon as in great Hollywood tradition, he is the only one left standing after a
timely (and fortunate) natural event that has been prophesied by various people
in various forms during the film. For the final 40 minutes of the film it
seems, Jaguar Paw is running, running, running, running . . . and running . . .
endlessly. Running for his life and the very existence of the civilization
he is part of.
"Apocalypto" presents palpable suspense -- and Mr. Gibson is adroit at
presenting dilemmas and situations that compel the lead character to not only
make split-second decisions thinking on his (running) feet, but also risking his
life and the life of his pregnant wife and their son, who have been forced by
circumstance into a deep well which fills up with water, endangering their
lives. Youngblood (pictured in ubiquity here), bears a faint resemblance
to the Brazilian football star Ronaldihno. Youngblood's acting is all done
with his eyes. English is not his first language, and nor obviously is it
the film's. The subtitles are in English and the language is in Yucatec Mayan.
All that there is left to say is that surprises await Jaguar Paw. His
defiance is legendary, as is Mr. Gibson's.
"Apocalypto" is rated R for
sequences of graphic violence and disturbing images. The film's duration
is two hours and 18 minutes. It is one of the year's best and most
confidently-directed films. The film is written by Mr. Gibson and Farhad
Safinia. (Note: Some have asserted that the portrayals of Mayans in "Apocalypto"
are negative and racist. Watch the movie and decide for yourself on
whether you agree.)
Copyright 2006. PopcornReel.com. All Rights Reserved.