Full Movie Reviews
Rating of
1.5/4
A disgusting perspective.
memento_mori - wrote on 08/20/2013
The main character of the story - Jaguar Paw - is so dumb that he becomes unlikable. During the raid of his village, he not only gives away the fact that the person next to him is his father, but gives away his wife and sons hiding position as well. He basically gave up his whole family within the span of five minutes of the movie.
I was very irritated with the was Mayans were depicted in this film.
Mel Gibson and Farhad Safinia themselves stated they wanted to revolutionize the adventure genre, making a foot chase seem like a car chase.
That's the problem. Gibson and Safinia wanted to make a movie with thrills and adventure, not one depicting a fascinating ancient culture. That's why there is so much violence in this film in the first place. They were only looking to channel their …
Rating of
4/4
Apocalypto review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 08/11/2012
Clearly one of the most realistic and violent films created that is not for everybody. Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) with his father Flint Sky (Morris Birdyellowhead) and friends discover another tribe being vanquished. Zero Wolf (Raoul Trujillo) led the raiders in abducting the village of Jaguar Paw. This picture was engaging from start to finish. Cinematography and locations were breathtaking. Action sequences were authentic and brutal. Make-up, costumes and screenplay were incredibly creative. Amazing sequences were the usage of the "poison frog darts" with a leaf, symbolism of Jaguar Paw to a jaguar, and Seven's (Dalia Hernández) ways of surviving. Special features were insightful. One of the best lines from the movie: - "We are a people of destiny. Destined to be the …
Rating of
3/4
"Apocalypto" by Yojimbo
Yojimbo - wrote on 01/30/2012
A Mayan tribe is raided and captured by a rival civilisation but young hunter Jaguar Paw escapes in an effort to reach his pregnant wife, still perilously concealed at their village. Anyone expecting (as I was) Dances With Lemurs is in for a big shock; Mel Gibson's name being attached to the project evokes certain preconceptions, but this gritty historical drama shatters them all. For a start, in a brave move, the entire film is subtitled which no doubt wrecked a lot of its box office appeal to the hicks but adds an awful lot to its authenticity. I'm no anthropolgist but to me this film had an intense realism to it I've rarely seen; at no time was it conspicuous that I was just watching actors acting. It all seemed brutally, bloodily real and Gibson certainly didn't shy away from the …
Rating of
4/4
Just wow!
Epic Fan - wrote on 02/19/2008
I wanted to see this movie from the moment I saw the previews. For one the culture is not one used much in movies and I really was intrigued. Now it doesn't quite follow accurate history and Gibson uses his poetic license to bend the real culture facts to better suit his tale and as long as you take this as periodical fiction then I don't see how you could have a problem with it's setting. Another complaint people sometimes has is the fact this movie is subtitled. This is because Gibson wanted the movie to actually be in the correct real tongue. However this movie has very few words and mostly at the first. This movie is brilliantly almost all visual and atmospheric so don't let subtitles turn you away. The movie does a very good job of quickly introducing the tribe you will be …
Rating of
2.5/4
Josh C - wrote on 01/07/2007
First off, this movie is beautiful to watch and for the most part, Mel Gibson does a great job with the film. For me, the movie misses on a few huge aspects and we are left with a movie that should have been great but ends up being humorous at times.
It is a story about the Aztec civilization and there quest to appease the gods with human sacrifice. They seek out the natives in the forest to enslave and kill them. This is the first part of the movie where Mel starts messing up. The Aztec?s behead their slaves, but this beheading is not only humorous, watching the heads bounce down the stairs, but it ruins the drama and brings the tension back to square one. So while the tension of the prophesy coming true is beginning, the audience is laughing at the head with the body following it …
