Apocalypto Review: Despite His Comments, Gibson Still Makes Good Movies

With the recent controversy surrounding Mel Gibson's anti-semetic sentiments during his drunk-driving arrest, many people are debating whether or not they should see his new film, Apocalypto. But, since I used common sense to realize that the two weren't correlated, and paying to see the movie wouldn't support Mel Gibson's personal holocaust since he isn't starting one, I decided to see the movie. Over a week later I am still happy with my decision. The guy may have some issues with Jewish people that he needs to get over, but he is still one of the world's finest directors.

Apocalypto is Mel Gibson's fourth directing project, following The Man Without A Face, Braveheart, and The Passion of The Christ. As a director I have found Mel Gibson to be a master storyteller. And after reading many of his interviews, I get the sense that he really wants to tell these specific stories for a purpose. It also seems that his methods often evoke strong emotions, and even controversy. Passion of the Christ grossed over $300 million domestically and garnered the world's attention for it's content. The theme of the film and the portrayal of the society that sent Jesus Christ to his grave sparked many arguments questioning the possible element of anti-semetic tones in the movie. While Mel Gibson has denied such allegations, the remark he made about one of the Jewish officers who recently arrested him for driving while under the influence seemed to solidify his critics' points. Also, during a recent interview about his arrest, he did mention that he didn't think that Jews were to blame for the world's problems, but did say that they "weren't blameless". A psychologist was quick to point out that during the interview he seemed somewhat genuine and didn't seem to hold any true hatred for other cultures, but that he wasn't saying everything that he really felt like saying. Now it isn't so much a question of whether or not he has a problem with Jews, but really of how big the problem is and why he feels the way that he does. But even so, I think it's safe to say that he is not a blatant bigot, and aside from Passion of the Christ, there should be no controversy involved when giving credit where it's due for his achievements.

Regardless of Gibson's feelings or attitude, all of his movies have significant value as films and are overall stunning both in the visual aspect and the storytelling aspect. In fact, Gibson's passion (no pun intended), for telling a story about ancient Mexican culture made me feel a lot less like Gibson was a racist altogether. I felt that Apocalypto was a heart warming, thrilling, compelling story of struggle and survival. If anything, Gibson has shown himself to be a rebel of oppressing cultures. Perhaps Gibson's feelings towards Jews is that they are oppressors in some ways, but I needn't remind you that Hitler said the same thing, which sparked the Holocaust. Mel Gibson's views may be incorrect and unfair, but they don't make him a bad person. And they certainly don't make him a bad director.

Gibson's willingness and dedication to capturing the ancient Mayan culture as accurately as possible is amazing., but not surprising. Gibson spent a lot of time researching the culture through artifacts and other historically proven evidence. He spent the time to resurrect a dead language as best as possible, and used unknown actors to help paint a more fundamentally true story. He did the same thing for the most part with Passion of the Christ. This is a man who truly cares about his projects and breaks barriers to bring out the best in every aspect of the film making process.

Apocalypto is an amazing film. The acting was amazing, especially since most of the actors were never trained and/or didn't speak English. The costume design and settings are incredible. Somehow Gibson took a basic story and made it into another epic thriller. Gibson's initial motivation for even dreaming up the story was to make a chase movie. He decided to do something different and make it a foot chase, which logically had to be set in older times. Then, he took the Mayan story and instead of making it about a struggle with white settlers, he made it a story about the decline of the Mayan Empire before the settlers even first touched the shores. It takes guts to tell a new story in a unique way and to actually succeed is a testament to his skills. Anyone who refuses to see the movie is just missing out on a great story and a stunning film. I personally don't like the fact that Roman Polanski was involved with a 14 year old girl, but that didn't stop me from watching The Pianist, which was another great film. I think Michael Moore is a pompous liar that fills his films with propaganda and cleverly edited scenes to make people look bad, but I don't ban his films from my house. I listen and watch what these people have to say without passing judgment on their work based solely on my personal feelings towards them. Think about how many people have read Machiavelli's The Prince and Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf. We all hate their mentalities but we still read their work for knowledge and insight don't we? I promise you that Apocalypto isn't filled with biased propaganda. It is simply a beautiful story wrapped in a suspenseful thriller filled with visually stunning costumes and sets. The story is rewarding and optimistic at the end. It is very bloody and graphic, but not without purpose. I believe that a fair depiction of the declining Mayan empire was made and Gibson didn't stretch anything too out of proportion. Although, he did adapt the translated dialogue for comedic effect sometimes to provide breaks during the drama, and he did use some very relatable situations in the beginning to make the audience feel close to that ancient culture in a way. It was carefully done and fits in well. If you don't go and see this movie it is truly your own loss. A few dollars won't make a difference to Mel, but he can use it to help produce other important films and probably donate it to charity. So please don't cut him off for his misguided views. Instead encourage him to keep those feelings to himself, but keep making compelling films for the world.