Posted on 12/01/2006 3:38:06 AM PST by AmericaUnited
'Apocalypto' Is More 'Mad Max' Than Mayan
With the subtlety of several thousand flying mallets and arrows, here comes Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto," a two hour plus torture-fest so violent that women and children will be headed to the doors faster than you can say "duck" when the film opens on Dec. 8th.
Indeed, 'Apocalypto' is the most violent movie Disney has ever released, with so much blood spurting out of orifices that even Martin Scorsese would blush. If you've ever wondered what it would be like to see heads and hearts removed without anesthesia, then this is the movie for you. "Grey's Anatomy" it is not.
...
"Apocalypto" surpasses "The Passion" in every way as a movie about pain, flagellation and wounding. The grotesqueries are almost numbing, and at some point they become laughable. But all the while, you're thinking, what's the point here? If "Apocalypto" was supposed to be about that transitional civilization, where is it? After two hours and several minutes of squirming and covering eyes, you start to think that "Apocalypto" exists just to show violence for itself. The point is lost.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Gibson is basically right. The Mayans were incredibly violent. Put "Bonampak + Mayans" in your Google or Yahoo search and read what you find. The Mayans delighted in torture to almost the extreme. And yes, the city states were involved in civil wars. Tikal, the greatest city state of them all, has no stelae honoring leaders with the dates from 562 a.d. to around 692 a.d. and a stelae in Belice commemorates a victory over Tikal in 562 a.d. so the answer is somewhat obvious as to what happened. Pretty interesting stuff.
True, but that's my point! That's why Gibson chose to do a whole movie about them. There's something mentally unbalanced upstairs.
---I don't want anything to do with it.---
Amen.
I'm not expecting much from Apocalypto, but that was terrible preview
Are you thinking about the Aztecs? The Aztecs were more humane than the Mayans. At least the Aztecs made it quick. The Mayans were in to torture for enjoyment before dispatching their victims.
No. Oh I'm sure it's some 'cinematic masterpiece', but that's not my point of contention. It is Mel's sick facination...
Mel seems to be a poster boy for the fact that getting to the top and having money does not guarantee happiness. He was probably better off when he had to struggle some. Now he seems to indulge his dark side. He needs to get right with God, come to terms with his age, and use his talent to benefit mankind. He might find some joy in his own future.
You cannot take anything Friedman writes or says seriously. He is a modern day Louella, complete with shameless ass kissing and character assassination where desired. He probably owns a collection of flashy dresses and hats also.
True... One gets hundreds of millions of dollars, total film director/producer freedom, and what kind of movie is the first one to pop out? Very telling indeed!
There's no question that Mel wouldn't have chosen this subject if there wasn't gore, bloodlust, impalement and torture involved. Dude's got issues, face it.
What's the over/under on decapitations, impalements and spurting blood this time around? Seek help, Mel.
That being said, the subject matter doesn't interest me, and realistic violence on screen has no benefit. More drama was created when the violence was merely suggested.
I don't feel like seeing this bloodbath. I'll go and see "The Nativity Story."
I like action movies. At least when Arnold is blasting hundreds with some machine gun on steroids, there is some 'redeeming value' that bad guys are being eliminated. But what is the redeeming value in this movie?
Somehow they squeezed in between their otherwise nonstop programing on Hitler and Nazis. (joke)
Click on the link and there's a picture, not of a scene from the movie, but of Mel Gibson.
---What it is, Gibson says, is the story of a civilization in transition, as the Mayans 500 years ago fought among themselves until visitors from Europe arrived by ship and spelled their doom. ---
This is complete misinformation. Mayan civilization was gone long before Europeans happened along.
The dialogue spoken in Yucatec Maya, with English subtitles.
Hollywood did not choose the theme for this movie. Hollywood did not Make Gibson make some phony claim as to why he's making it (See#38). Mel did both.
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