Apocalyto is in no way an original movie in the story telling standpoint. The whole your tribe gets killed, and you rise up to fight the bad guys plot has been around for a while. What makes Apocalypto special is that it does something with this. That's not to say that it changes up the formulaic plot that I described earlier,but it definitely brings a vibe in it's esthetic, and scary as hell violence. Apocalypto is about the Mayans. You know the guys that cut out peoples hearts as a sacrifice (hint hint It's a Mel Gibson movie you see that) guys. Our hero who I actually forgot the name of ( it's all in subtitles was swept up in the film) is living with his tribe in prosperity when one day another tribe attacks them in one of the most heart-breaking raid scenes I have ever seen. See the film spends a good 20 minutes just on the development of the people. Sure they're not incredibly smart,but they know how to hunt, and get around, and we get to see the family dynamics. It is then that we get to see this ripped apart quite literally, and it really is baffling. That's not to say that it's bad. I have found this shocking,but it ups the level of intensity which is one of the things that hold the film together. What the film also brings. A wide range of things that you have not seen before in other films. The colors, the costumes, the way that the tribe acts, it's all very interesting. The battle is exciting as well as I said before. So then the main character is taken with the captives across the forest with the other captives. This is the part where I think that the film finds itself falling short. The captives are all arranged in a way as well as shot in a way that seems to relish the suffering that they are having. I mean sure the esthetic keeps up, and it has you on the edge of your seat, but you wonder "Jut how messed up is this, and the is making me uncomfortable." It doesn't last that long anyway. The film starts to work it's magic when they get to the enemy camp. Now I am not a worshiper of violence, but I do think that in a film taking it to the extremes can be used to shock, as well as put the audience in the position of the characters. And what a position this is. This is the scene that I was ultimately dreading in the film really, and I'm not saying I was wrong to. I am going to say that the fact that it was so effective is not a bad thing. This is the sacrifice scene, and the incredible slow pace as well as the somewhat first person view of the characters escalates this scene to a heart pounding tension. These people are going to be executed no matter what, and they can do nothing to stop it, you feel all of that. Again that doesn't mean I wasn't disturbed I'm just saying that wasn't a bad thing. Then character escapes. We get awesome fight sequence, and happy ending. That ending fight scene is really something though. Now when I was saying that the costumes, and look of the film was fantastic. I was not kidding. The film has a very authentic look to it, and if not for all the bloody violence could have been something very educational on the Mayan culture. But you have to have a movie so there's the violence. The film is also shot very well, capturing the beautiful forests that the people used to live in. Alright so pretty great. Violent as hell, but also extremely riveting. Great cinematography,and technical work. Great stuff. I give Apocalypto a 9 out of 10.
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December 2017
CategoriesAuthorHello welcome to FilmAnalyst. My name is Stephen Tronicek, and I really like movies. This is a way to get my opinions out to people. Thank you for visiting. |