Mel Gibson's Apocalypto (2006)

Synopsis: The Mayan civilization has been characterized as the most tragic extinction of a people in history. And yeah, it's pretty grim. But this story doesn't follow a Mayan like I thought it did. Instead, it follows Jaguar Paw, some dude in the forrest tribe. His village gets plundered and his friends and family captured. They're dragged through the forrest and across mountains where they are sold as slaves to the Mayans. So now the question is what do Mayans do with these slaves? They got enough man power as it is. So they're probably like, "You know what, since we're having such a tough time getting by you know, with technology and foreign invasion, let's kill these slaves as sacrifices for our god, and maybe he'll spare us." But not Jaguar Paw. Oh no! he's intense. They'll have to chase him down if they want his heart.

Should You Watch It? This movie is 100% grim. Crap man, I couldn't believe the stuff that they were showing. I mean, it wasn't so much gore as you might see in a horror film but everything was very... authentic. But among all the heart eating, testical pulling, brain bashing fun, there is a very deep moral story woven into the frantic action. This movie, in a sense, has it all. In fact, it might have too much for some people's liking.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie has some pretty tight writing. Everything that's introduced gets paid off in the end, so pay attention from the get go. The environment plays a big part in the movie, and Mel Gibson really brings the jungle to life. And yeah, if you're not a gore fan, or a fan of graphic violence and well, heart eating, then you might wanna get a blanket ready.

Things You Don't Expect: The music is expected to be awesome and it is. The mood fit for an extinction of a civilization. The only problem with the production was during the beginning sequence, the quality film slipped a bit. I don't know if they just couldn't use proper cameras in jungles or what? But it felt like a documentry at times. But, the problem is fixed quickly and the rest of the movie feels like a master piece.

Final Comments:
Story: 8.8 (Mel Gibson & Farhad Safinia)
Direction: 8.5 (Mel Gibson)
Acting: 7.8
Cinematography: 8.0
Music/Sound: 8.6

Final Score: 8.4