The 2006 Mel Gibson movie "Apocalypto" concerns the demise of what ancient empire?

Apocalypto is a 2006 American epic adventure film directed and produced by Mel Gibson and written by Gibson and Farhad Safinia. Set in Guatemala around the year 1511, Apocalypto depicts the journey a Mesoamerican tribesman who must escape human sacrifice and rescue his family after the capture and destruction of his village at a time when the Mayan civilization is about to come to an end. The film was a box office success, grossing over $120 million worldwide, and received mostly positive reviews, with critics praising Gibson's direction, the cinematography, and the performances of the cast, and the portrayal of Mayan civilization was generally praised.

Gibson and Safinia researched ancient Maya history, reading both creation and destruction myths, including sacred texts such as the Popul Vuh. In the audio commentary of the film's first DVD release, Safinia served as a dialogue coach during production. As they researched the script, Safinia and Gibson traveled to Guatemala, Costa Rica and the Yucatán peninsula to scout filming locations and visit Maya ruins.

The filmmakers intended this depiction of the Maya collapse to have relevance for contemporary society. The problems "faced by the Maya are extraordinarily similar to those faced today by our own civilization," co-writer Safinia stated during production, "especially when it comes to widespread environmental degradation, excessive consumption and political corruption".

More Info: en.m.wikipedia.org

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30 Comments

Todd Nolte

It was the Aztecs, not the Mayans. The Mayans were long gone by the time of Spanish contact.

Val Wilkinson

Jas Newman, Mel Gibson is good at getting history wrong

walter howard

It was the Aztecs, not the Mayans, but hey, what's the difference right?

Peter Bergman

I wonder were in Guatemala the Spaniards were supposed to have come ashore?

John McLardie

Spanish conquest of the Maya started in 1502, with first contact, and finally ended in approximately 1696. The Mayan homeland comprising southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador and Honduras was achieved piecemeal over virtually 2 centuries. As with all mesoAmerican civilisations the Maya DID practice human sacrifice. Incidentally the language spoken in 'Apocalypto' is Yucatec Maya - the language of the Maya of Yucatan and Northern Belize. Cf: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_conquest_of_the_Maya; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocalypto and, on Mayan human sacrifice, https://cuni.cz/UKEN-943.html

Jas Newman

Todd Nolte, —Right. The Mayan empire fell in the 9th century AD. At the end of the Apocalypto movie, Spanish galleons are shown offshore. The timing for Spanish presence would coincide with the Aztec fall. Thank goodness, Aztec was not an option. That would have created confusion about what answer was wanted.

John W Shreve

Watched it with my (24-year-old) son. We couldn't believe how good it was.

Joel Sace

Mel Gibson is a genius film maker.

Shields Kevin

Edie Koller, and what's wrong with Evil?! Good is just a lesser Evil, we learned that in grade school.

Shields Kevin

Peter Bergman, The Yucatan.

Char

John McLardie, that's what I thought..

Char

Vincent S., I'm sorry we since when? Yet the Aztecs did introduce it I think. Yet I thought they did the other ball game you lose and die and the drowning In the pool place whose name escapes me at the moment.