Mel Gibson has done it. Apocalypto is the comedy to see this holiday season. Contrary to what you’re undoubtedly thinking, not all of the comedic moments are unintentional. This is a drama that consciously contains sex jokes, Mayan profanity, and a man eating a boar’s balls (it’s practically a money shot).
Despite the obvious comic relief, this is still a Mel Gibson film. It’s beautifully filmed, accurately costumed, and totally full of itself. Think The Passion of the Christ on steroids.
Apocalypto is, I suspect, the result of a brainstorming session that went something like this: “What could I possibly do to top brutally beating and sacrificing the savior on screen? Brutally beating and sacrficing an entire ancient civilization on screen. And bonus! After that anti-Semitic ordeal it’ll be good to focus on a group of people who aren’t around to complain anymore.”
And that’s essentially what is: two hours of brutality. The blood, gore and violence are so realistic that a disclaimer at the beginning of the film would be comforting. Something like, “No human beings were harmed, maimed, or killed in the making of this movie,” would do the job. Couple that fabulous violence with the mostly sexual humor and Apocalypto really is a great movie. Take into consideration the expert filmmaking, and it may very well be an Oscar contender. Is it worth seeing though? Well that all depends if you can get over the fact that the second creepiest man in America was behind the camera.
