"Apocalypto": Bloody and beautiful
Mel Gibson recently stated that the stressful production of "Apocalypto" may have contributed to his recent DUI arrest and anti-Semitic tirade. Whatever the reasons for Gibson's infamous rant, "Apocalypto" surely posed a major challenge, and Gibson has delivered an impeccably crafted action-adventure that starts fast and never lets up.
Bolstered by the triumph of "The Passion of the Christ," Gibson can afford the risky prospects of a brutally violent film about the demise of ancient Mayan culture, circa 1517 A.D. But where an eccentric genius like Werner Herzog might have opted for a more mystical approach to this rarely filmed Meso-
american subject matter, Gibson (with co-writer Farhad Safinia) has leveraged his commercial instincts with a pulse-pounding tale that anyone can relate to. The visceral manhunt of "Apocalypto" could be easily adapted to any contemporary action genre, and Gibson's purely visual emphasis adds another layer of universal appeal.
Granted, "Apocalypto" isn't for everyone. The unflinching brutality of "The Passion" is intensified here with vivid images of jungle savagery, ritual decapitations and torn-out hearts, and a perspective on death as primal as it is poetic. There's more than a little "Braveheart" in Gibson's embrace of gory survival instinct.
For all its bloodiness, however, "Apocalypto" (roughly meaning "A New Beginning") is an arrestingly beautiful film with a minimum of computer-assisted artifice. It begins by playfully establishing the hunting routine of Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) and his fellow villagers. But their intimate peace is soon shattered by a band of fearsome marauders, headed by Zero Wolf (Raoul Trujillo) and his sadistic scout Snake Ink (Rodolfo Palacios), who lead their captives to slavery and death in a corrupted Mayan city.
With his pregnant wife (Dalia Hernandez) and young son in hiding, Jaguar Paw escapes into the jungle, and "Apocalypto" turns into a relentless chase movie as he survives spearings, a treacherous waterfall and a hungry jaguar, with Zero Wolf and his warriors in constant pursuit. Given his established penchant for violence, one wishes Gibson had devoted more time to a deeper appreciation of Mayan culture. But the film's authentic detail speaks for itself, and breathless pacing compensates for Gibson's relative gloss on anthropology.
Filmed in Mexico with Panavision's state-of-the-art Genesis digital cameras, "Apocalypto" (like "Superman Returns") expedites the end of analog film as we know it. Dean Semler's cinematography is nothing less than stunning, James Horner's exotically nuanced score is one of his finest and the performances by an all-indigenous cast are uniformly engaging.
But the greatest cause for celebration is Gibson's ongoing defiance of Hollywood expectation. A lesser director would remain comfortable within established boundaries, but for all its familiar elements of story, action and character, "Apocalypto" is anything but safe. Gibson may be a flawed human being (who isn't?), but his passionate talent is undeniable.
Jeff Shannon: j.sh@verizon.net
"Apocalypto," with Rudy Youngblood, Raoul Trujillo, Rodolfo Palacios, Dalia Hernandez. Directed by Mel Gibson, from a screenplay by Gibson and Farhad Safinia. 137 minutes. Rated R for scenes of graphic violence and disturbing images. In Yucatec Maya dialogue with English subtitles. Several theaters.