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Tonight I went to an advance screening of Mel Gibson's new film Apocalypto. This is an interesting movie for many reasons, the first being its Mayan language. I am hearing that this is actually considered a foreign film by the Golden Globes because of it, regardless of the movie originating from America. This could be written off as a gimmick, but it is one of the film's strongest points, the movie looks, feels, and sounds(despite for a few lines that needed to be edited out) authentic.What this movie is is gory. It is one of the bloodiest movies I have seen and should be avoided if blood bothers you. Here is a great scenic moment from the film. If this sounds too much for you than stay away because yes, it gets much worse.The captives are brought in covered in blue paint. They look up at the top of a vast temple where an executioner is thanking the lords as he rips the hearts out and decapitates their fellow men. The heads roll down the long stair case followed soon after by their bodies. The heart is put on hot rocks and thousands up people cheer. There are hundreds of heads on steaks all around.......This is the first movie I have ever been to where people actually walked out of the theater.Getting back to the movie itself there are quite a few good qualities as well. The acting is superb all around, I actually cared about the main character and his family. The prophecy made by the sick girl is a clever piece of writing as well as the dream the main character has. The empire of the main tribe is quite amazing and will take your breath away in both its horror and its beauty.The early scenes of humor are very nice and help us appreciate the characters and a nice break from the extreme violence that follows. The movie looks amazing, the characters designs and costumes are well done as is the sets. Finally, superb direction by Mel Gibson make all of this work together quite well.My main problems with this movie are these: The movie is too long (2 and half hours) and includes some surprisingly campy scenes. The birth in the well did not work for me at all. The last chase sequence is far too long and could have been cut in half.Overall I was slightly disappointed by this film. I wanted more Mayan culture and less running through the forest. However, Mel Gibson had something else in mind and I applaud him for making the movie he wanted to make. Despite my problems the film is quite good if you can make it through the gore. I would be highly surprised if this did well at the box office due to the extreme gore, other language language(Americans don't like subtitles), long running time, and of course the now infamous name of Mel Gibson attached. However I enjoyed the movie and might want to see it again. If you can believe that.
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