Mel Gibson has done it again! What started out as one scene in Braveheart evolved into a full blown torture in The Passion. And now he wants to take it further with Apocalypto where he has been accused of depicting the Maya as a mindless and bloodthirsty people who deserved to be wiped out.
I am no expert on any civilization, but I have read enough National Geographic magazines to know that the Maya belonged to a highly advanced civilization that ruled for nearly 1000 years. Yes, they did have human sacrifices, probably tortured people, but then which civilization didn't? Mel Gibson himself portrayed it so barbarously in the Passion, didn't he? Didn't the medieval church take especial joy in torturing the so-called heretics? How would it be if someone made a movie which depicted Christians as a torture happy people who loved burning people?
That said, I'll still grit my teeth during the bloodbath and watch it. Why? Because it would still be the closest I'd get to seeing a civilization that captured my imagination when I was a kid. Pity it has to be a dumb bloke whose movie gives me that chance. The Maya deserve better!
I am no expert on any civilization, but I have read enough National Geographic magazines to know that the Maya belonged to a highly advanced civilization that ruled for nearly 1000 years. Yes, they did have human sacrifices, probably tortured people, but then which civilization didn't? Mel Gibson himself portrayed it so barbarously in the Passion, didn't he? Didn't the medieval church take especial joy in torturing the so-called heretics? How would it be if someone made a movie which depicted Christians as a torture happy people who loved burning people?
That said, I'll still grit my teeth during the bloodbath and watch it. Why? Because it would still be the closest I'd get to seeing a civilization that captured my imagination when I was a kid. Pity it has to be a dumb bloke whose movie gives me that chance. The Maya deserve better!
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