Mel Gibson’s “Apocalypto”: a Critical Analysis

Mel Gibson’s 2006 film Apocalypto serves as a gateway in exploring civilizations and their comparable demise. The rich and vibrant culture of Mayan civilization have been under much academic scrutiny about its shortcomings and collapse. In an attempt to preserve the authenticity of the culture, Mel Gibson took inspiration from ruins such as the Tikal Temple rather than computer-generated designs to construct set designs. Although murals were altered for the sake of aesthetics, it showed the underlying success of a culture with tremendous social and technological advancements perceivable on the Bonampak murals.

In this paper, I will analyze the extent of Gibson’s job in presenting the arrival of change ranging from agricultural to sociopolitical influences.

Apocalypto follows the adventures of Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) whose village is raided and survivors taken captive to the Mayan city. Following his lucky escape from ritual sacrifice for the sake of appeasing the gods, Jaguar Paw runs away into the forest to find his lost family. The film features a cast of Native Americans and Indigenous Mexican actors speaking in the Yucatec Maya language. In an effort to present an authentic view of Mayan culture, buildings used in the set follow correct architectural designs although the city layout takes inspiration from different locations and eras. As Jaguar Paw gets closer to the city, evidence of razed villages, crop failure, and unknown diseases exhibit signs of demise. The striking differences between the city and the forest emphasize the magnitude of collapse. Lastly, the ending scene of the movie shows Spanish conquistadors landing on the shores of South America. The arrival of the Spanish heralds “a new beginning.” Although the film portrays the event as peaceful, the Maya would die in the hundreds of thousands as European diseases and colonial exploitation took root.

The vibrant culture of the Mayans has much to do with agricultural practices and the development of its cities. The Tikal Temples show how forest management and agricultural practices employed by the Lowland Maya led to the rise and fall of the complex social order supporting a large population (Douglas 2015). Traces of early agriculture at this site dates as far back as 1000 BC through the use of carbon dating of plant biomass and ceramics (Webster 2003). However, the classic period of the ancient Maya is characterized as the rise of the city. Archaeologists consider environmental collapse as one of the causes for the demise of civilization. According to research by Richard D. Hansen, employing quicklime to reinforce buildings resulted in droughts and other agricultural changes. One calculation estimates that five tons of jungle forestry make one ton of quicklime. The glory and culmination of Mayan lifestyle, portrayed by the vast wealth of the upper class, has a clear-cut contrast with environmental degradation prevalent throughout the film.

Predominantly, Apocalypto portrays the Mayans before colonial contact accurately. Draughts and recurring themes of agricultural proliferation are foundations for the storyline of the movie. Furthermore, the contrast of development such as the Tikal Temple and consumption provides viewers with another viewpoint on how the Mayan went through a decline. However, Gibson’s portrayal of the Spanish seem inaccurate to the actual proof. The filmmakers intended to depict the Mayan collapse in a relevant way to contemporary society. The problems faced by the Mayans are similar to those faced by our own - environmental degradation, excessive consumption of resources, and corruption of outside sources are but a few. Perhaps Gibson hopes to emphasize the parallels between the fall of a great empire to those of the modern world to remind us the constant pressures we face.

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