I had an unexpected free night last night and dashed off to see it. Gripping story. Brutal world. Buttery popcorn thank goodness.
it definately wasnt a king cobra. dont know where they got that from. overall, it was a good movie. i was definately entertained for 2 hours and that is all you can ask for out of a movie. the plot and story were kind of weak and required some of suspension of belief. however, as an action adventure movie it was just awesome. and the sets/costumes were really cool. getting an idea of what those cities might have looked like was really neat. if you are looking for a movie about mayan history or culture, this isnt it. it is simply an action movie set during that period. the story could have fit into a number of different historical settings. there are no references to real historical figures, places or events. rudy youngblood, although there wasnt alot of dialogue, is a really good actor who i would expect to see more of. one of those people who can convey alot just thru his eyes and facial expressions. the blood and gore was pure "gibson". if you have seen braveheart than you know what to expect. some of it was just so over the top that even the most gruesome scenes had the audience laughing at it. Spoiler blood squirting out of dudes brain like a lawn sprinkler (would that really happen?) or the jaguar eating the guys face they did actually toss the bodies down the pyramid steps after cutting out their hearts, but i never heard of them decapitating them first. not sure if that was a mel-addition or if there is any true historical background to that. i thought the ending was pretty weak too (unless mel is trying to set it up for a sequel - apocolypto II - electric boogaloo) - "jesus is back...and this time he's pissed!" i didnt get the feeling that gibson was trying to convey some larger message about how the mayans were all a bunch of heathens and only the europeans and jesus could save them. i think some people are reading too much into it there. i didnt see some underlying theme about how societies destroy themselves or whatever, as gibson claims - it was just a movie. one of my jewish friends got upset w/ me when i told him i was going to see the movie. at first he was just kidding around and said "you know he hates my people" and than it turned into the 10 minute discussion about gibson and what a nut he is and how you can seperate a work of art from the artist. he is interested in the film, but straight up refuses to see it. overall, very entertaining movie - i was on the edge of my seat for most of it. i give it 3 1/2 stars out of 5.
i saw it today and thought it was great, it was really original and it entertained me the whole time....plus it was gory as hell
good flick, saw it at the alamo drafthouse tonight.... i too didn't see this as gibson attempting to take a jab at mayan culture. the movie was just your typical action/adventure, albeit a very good one. this is the first movie i can recall really depicting ancient mayans, and that in and of itself made this movie very intersting, to me at least. 4 outta 5.
I double majored in Latin American studies @ UT-Austin and though my concentration wasn't in ancient history I studied enough of the Mayan civiliztion to know that there were no major dramatic liberties so as to be offended. The movie is very impressive and detailed. The action is suspensful and viceral. As for the gore.. well that's just Mel being Mel. If you like seeing soemthing new and don;t mind subtitles I recommend this movie.
Did anyone catch the SNL skit. I was making Tara laugh repeating the skit during the more serious parts!
after a couple days the movie is still sitting pretty well w/ me. infact, i think i am liking it more now that right after i saw it. it is one of those rare movies that just sucks you into that world. it was almost like apocalypse now, in that the movie was just so trippy and surreal. further proof that crazy people usually make the most interesting art.
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I finally got a chance to see this movie and I enjoyed it so much I dug up this thread to share my opinion. This is world that sucks you in from the very beginning. I was entranced and at the edge of my seat from the beginning of the film. It was violent but I didn't feel that it took anything away from the film as others did. Almost like the excessive violence in Braveheart didn't take away from the film either. Basically this movie was a chase movie from beginning to end, mix in a little rambo first blood and you have an adreniline pumping thriller. Its been a few days since I've seen it and the movie is still with me. My two cents, GO SEE THIS FREAKING MOVIE. 4.5 out of 5 stars.
I saw this tonight...really liked it. Good story. To repeat some themes that have been expressed here already: - Great acting in the movie. Considering the new language and all, everyone had me sucked in as to truly representing their character. If there was any "overacting" it was probably from mean dude and some of his clan. - I didn't really come away with any underlying message about Mayans, Jesus, civilizations, etc. However, I could see how some would come away with that message. You do have to wonder if the movie would have been any worse without the intro quote and the "twist" in the end, and those are the only 2 portions of the movie, really, which speak to some kind of larger message. - I took a few Mayan classes in college as an anthro minor. A few classes come nowhere close enough to telling me how much attempted to be realistic. You can only guess that they tried to represent a culture as best they could, while remaining a viable and entertaining movie. Whatever the case, the landscapes, characters and city scenes were definately new, and you could see how they could be representatitve of Mayan life. The one drawback here was the animals, which really seemed fake... - I really don't like Mel Gibson and his antics. But I think you can seperate the man from the movie, especially considering Mel is nowhere to be seen in this one. I've watched a bunch of movies the past week. I'll rank them as follows: 1. Blood Diamond 2. Apocalypto 3. Munich 4. Deja Vu I was tempted to put Munich 2nd. It was also really really really well acted, it certainly is more current and relevant, etc. I just found it a little too long and somewhat unfocused..
I saw this awhile back, and I didn't think this was some justification for Indian enslavement. I think the theme, if there was one, was that people will always be brutal to each other and the victims are the ones who try to live in ignorance to the world outside their bubble. Otherwise, it's a typical Gibson blood fest that had really interesting moments of visual entertainment you haven't seen before.
Had to bump as I just saw this movie...I thought it was awesome, from storyline to visuals...It wasn't as gorry (msp?) or brutal as I heard it was... They were some brutal mofos...The characters really suck you in and you want Jaguar Paw to beat the crap out of them...The ending was cool to...
