Apocalypto

What’s the Story?

Young, optimistic 15th-century Mayan tribesman Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) confronts real fear for the first time after he and his hunting party come across a band of terrified, homeless villagers seeking "a new beginning." Jaguar Paw soon has his own reason to be afraid, when a band of fierce Holcane warriors attack his village: They pillage, burn, rape, and murder, taking the able-bodied young adults away to their festering city, where they sell the women as servants and plan to sacrifice the men atop a pyramid overlooking the town square. Unexpectedly escaping this terrible fate, Jaguar Paw spends the rest of the movie trying to save his pregnant wife, Seven (Dalia Hernandez), and young son, whom he hid from the marauders in an empty well. Pursued by vengeful Holcane leader Zero Wolf (Raoul Trujillo) and his second, Snake Ink (Rodolfo Palacios), along with a crew of fleet runners and ferocious killers, Jaguar Paw has his work -- survival -- cut out for him.

Is It Any Good?

Another adventure in spectacular physical abuse directed by Mel Gibson, Apocalypto combines gorgeous imagery and stunning brutality. Even as bodies are falling and crashing, bleeding and drowning, Dean Semler's cinematography is breathtaking and the compositions ravishing, whether they're lush forest backgrounds or fascinating faces in close-up.

Jaguar Paw's story is an occasion for imagining what happened to the Mayan civilization. Assuming the Spanish "explorers" didn't destroy the Mayans in one fell swoop, Apocalypto offers up an assortment of explanations, both material and spiritual, for their downfall. The start of the collective fall, the film suggests, comes with assaults on individuals. While it's clear that the hero not only endures, but also exacts vengeance when he must, the film doesn't ever get around to considering consequences for all the mayhem.