Hollywood wonders about Gibson's future as "Apocalypto," first film since anti-Semitic tirade, opens

[DeepModem Mom]

NYT/Reuters: Hollywood Bets on Mel's Future as "Apocalypto" Opens
By REUTERS
Published: December 8, 2006

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Apocalypto,'' Mel Gibson's first film since his anti-Semitic tirade last summer, opened on Friday as Hollywood wondered whether his career, like the Mayan civilization the movie depicts, is doomed to collapse or poised for resurrection.

Ushered into a crowded holiday-season marketplace with largely favorable reviews and ample media buzz, "Apocalypto'' has defied easy predictions by industry analysts seeking to forecast its commercial potential....

***

As a hyper-violent, R-rated movie with subtitles and a cast of unknown performers, the movie hardly fits the profile of a typical Hollywood blockbuster.

Many reviews have praised "Apocalypto'' as a gripping and visually spectacular work, though one with an exceedingly high quotient of blood and guts.

Film critic Joe Morgenstern of the Wall Street Journal on Friday called it "the most obsessively, graphically violent film I'd ever seen.'' But he went on to hail it as "a visionary work with its own wild integrity.'' Yet he added: "seeing it once is enough for one lifetime.''...

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/arts/entertainment-apocalypto.html

[NVMojo]

1. we are going to see it tomorrow ...I hope it's not as bloody as Braveheart

[Bobbieo]

2. NVMojo - Heard from Jeanne Bedell about ' Apocalypto'

She sent a review that I am going to run in Native Unity as soon as I get the credits confirmed. The review claims the film is extremely violent. "By not choosing one Maya for a featured role, Gibson has made a film tha reinforces the prejudice against the Maya."

"Blood, more blood!", Gibson shouted out during the filming of one scene..

[brucefan]

4. Seen it last night

It makes Braveheart look like Happy Feet

[POAS]

3. All I know is that Gibson will never see a dime of mine. n/t

[robcon]

5. The NY Times review is moderately positive

"...Violence has become the central axiom in Mel Gibson's practice as a filmmaker, his major theme and also his chief aesthetic interest. The brutality in "Apocalypto" is so relentless and extreme that it sometimes moves beyond horror into a kind of grotesque comedy, but to dismiss it as excessive or gratuitous would be to underestimate Mr. Gibson's seriousness. And say what you will about him, he is a serious filmmaker.

Which is not to say that "Apocalypto" is a great film, or even that it can be taken quite as seriously as it wants to be. Mr. Gibson's technical command has never been surer; for most of its 2-hour 18-minute running time, "Apocalypto," written by Mr. Gibson and Farhad Safinia, is a model of narrative economy, moving nimbly forward and telling its tale with clarity and force. It is, above all, a muscular and kinetic action movie, a drama of rescue and revenge with very little organic relation to its historical setting..."

http://movies2.nytimes.com/2006/12/08/movies/08apoc.html?8mu

I may see it next Saturday, depending on what other movie choices there will be.

[ClintonTyree]

6. Rest assured....

if there's an over abundance of "blood and guts" the christian right will be flocking in. They love their blood and guts and Mel is their man, anti-semitic or not. Count how many times the word 'blood' is mentioned in the bible. It'll amaze you. I guess that's where the fundies derived their obsession with "blood and guts".
Myself? I wouldn't be caught dead watching it. That's just a matter of personal preference.