When Mel Gibson got arrested for drunk driving this summer and it was revealed that he was on to the Zionist conspiracy to start all wars, lots of rumors swirled around his new movie, Apocalypto, which stars non-actors and is filmed in some language Cortez wiped out. Would Disney sell the movie off? Would they hold it for a couple of extra months to let the whole “Braveheart is an anti-semite” thing blow over?
The Mouse House’s decision: stand their ground. The film is still coming out on December 8, and it still prominently bills itself as Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto. Now there’s a full trailer out and it’s filled with some nice imagery and some exciting shots. I guess that just because a guy hates Jews doesn’t mean he can’t make movies.
But is it any good? I can’t deny that The Passion of the Christ often looks great, but I think it’s a borderline bad film. Braveheart is the sort of movie that people who don’t know as much about movies as they think they do love. And the less we say about The Man Without a Face the better for all of our mental health.
The real question will be whether Oscar goes for it. The film reeks of Oscar bait, and unlike The Passion of the Christ the subject matter won’t keep jittery academy members from going near it. If Mel hadn’t personally insulted 90% of the decision makers in Hollywood with his liquored up tirade I would say Apocalypto had a massive shot at some nominations. Now I think getting released is the film’s biggest victory.