What's with this Apocalypto movie?

[Dr Strangelove]

It would be dificult to work in an anti-semitic theme in a film entirely about meso-americans.

[Barnabas]

According to wiki archeologists complain about mel mixing up architecture from all meso american civilization, and from different periods, but, ive seen worse anyway

[Hueij]

Comparing Gibson to Riefenstahl? He'd wish...

And also, many mainly (white) leftists are worried, not because the movie is historically wrong, but because the movie shows the killings, wars for slaves, human sacrifices of meso american civilizations, they think it implies spaniards were right in conquering them, because altough spaniards were brutal, mesoamerican civilizations were even more brutal.

I'm a white leftist and I never ever thought the Spaniards did the right thing.

[Barnabas]

You misunderstood me, white leftists dont believe that, white leftists fear "common people" will start believing that.

They fear that the next time "common people" see a bunch of natives demonstrating in columbus day against the spaniards, common people will tell the natives, why do you complain, mayas and aztecs were worse than the spaniards, you have no moral authority nor reasons to complain

[LordShiva]

Re: What's with this Apocalypto movie?

Originally posted by BeBro
What's WTF is with this Apocalypto movie?

Fixed.

[General Ludd]

Originally posted by Brachy-Pride

And also, many mainly (white) leftists are worried, not because the movie is historically wrong, but because the movie shows the killings, wars for slaves, human sacrifices of meso american civilizations

Surprisingly (or not) many amerindians dont have a problem with the movie, and you cant blame gibson, he wanted an action movie, not a documentary.

What are you basing these generalizations on?

[Barnabas]

Some discussion with aymaras I saw on tv

[Barnabas]

The main issue of complaining is that it only shows the violence and not the "glories" of maya civilization

But then, Gladiator only showed gladiator fights, and not, I dont know... Seneca

[General Ludd]

I don't think "some discussion I saw on TV" is really enough to justify such a generalization.

If I where to make a similiar generalization based on the few discussions I've heard of the movie, I would come to the exact opposite conclusion - that "white leftists" don't have a problem with the movie and many indigenous people are critical of it.

[General Ludd]

I haven't seen the movie, but if the mayans come off as especially brutal it's probably because the spaniards aren't depicted as being as brutal as they should be.



It's a rather ironic debate, actually, when you consider that the spanish burned all mayan books and then proceded to write the history we have today.

[Barnabas]

The spaniards did not write maya history, just completely ignored it, maya history was written this century, thru archeology, and the numerous inscription on temples and stones that were not destroyed, or had remained hidden, almsot nothing was known with certainty about mayas as recently as 1900.

Please dont talk out of ignorance.

[General Ludd]

Don't be pedantic, I was simply saying that history is written by the victors (and the "victor" is still around today, really).

And I'm sure that a great deal was known about the mayans - probably more than is know today. But history books aren't written by slaves and peasants.

[Jon Miller]

Originally posted by Brachy-Pride
Spoiler

Spoiler:

,Hope it works, at the end of the movie the spaniards suddenly appear (they have no role apart from that cameo, altough it is of much significance, the issue is many people thought that the movie was wrong and had mixed up 2 different periods of time, but the movie is correct, mayas did not disappear completely around 900, there were still maya kingdoms in the XVII century, so nothing historically wrong about spaniards arriving

And also, many mainly (white) leftists are worried, not because the movie is historically wrong, but because the movie shows the killings, wars for slaves, human sacrifices of meso american civilizations, they think it implies spaniards were right in conquering them, because altough spaniards were brutal, mesoamerican civilizations were even more brutal.
And they say that even if that was true Gibson should have shown more of the good things, like their alphabet, maths, calendar, art, architecture, astronomy etc and not only the violence, and that it is not considerate since mayas nowadays are just poor peasants trying to survive.

Surprisingly (or not) many amerindians dont have a problem with the movie, and you cant blame gibson, he wanted an action movie, not a documentary.

I will see the movie since it soudns very exciting, all action

Spoiler space:

Spoiler:

At the end, when the girl asks if they should go and join the Spanish, the hero says no. I tihnk this shows that the spanish aren't entirely upheld.

JM

[Jon Miller]

BTW, it seems as if ther was some effort to make it tell about guesses to Mayan culture, as there is an awful lot of the movie which is just about that.

JM

[Imran Siddiqui]

It sucked . The story was slow moving and dull until the chase scene and while it was violent, it wasn't over the top. It just wasn't that good.