The movie, ‘Apocalypto’ (2006), co-written, produced and directed by Mel Gibson, tells the story of Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood), a young man living in a village bordering the place where Mayan civilization thrives. The purported civilization, in fact, is already degenerating into a killing field where human captives are sacrificed by decapitation for appeasing the Mayan gods besides being a platform for slave trading. This film, brilliantly and brutally portrayed with graphic violence is also a saga of unbridled love of a man and his quest for survival.
The movie also illustrates how one’s fear provides him the means to survive and shows the extent to which a human can possibly push himself to overcome that fear. There is no denying the fact that ‘Apocalypto’ depicts violence and a weak hearted person might not be able to watch all those horrific details of carnage and mayhem.
As the story progresses, one can easily recognize the indirect references to political and social inequities that run as strong undercurrent throughout the film and its significance remains till the end. However, these factors seem less significant when one views the movie from the perspective of its main theme, love. The protagonist proves that true love will make a person capable of accepting any challenge by surviving any ordeal, and it becomes evident that the film’s appeal mainly stems from the strong emotional impact it creates on its audience.
It is the simple story of a tribal village boy who only wants to lead a normal life and live happily with his family and friends. He hunts in the forest, cracks jokes, makes fun of his friends has strong affection for his pregnant wife and young son. “Gibson succeeds in forging a strong bond between the audience and the protagonist. This is done quickly and economically. We are shown the love Jaguar Paw has for his wife and son and the lengths to which he will go to keep them safe.” (Tooze).
On the other hand, he is quite apprehensive of the dangers that stalk them and sometimes he acts strangely, being alert to his surroundings. His suspicious nature and fear for the unknown becomes evident in the opening scenes of the movie itself when his hand moves to the knife when he notices the strangers who want passage through the village. His father recognizes Jaguar paw’s fear and counsels him, “Do not bring fear into the village,” and to get rid of it before it spreads like disease in the whole village. (Gibson). However, his fear derives from his concern for others and this fear is the very element that helps him save his wife and kid from raiders who spring a surprise attack.
Another point that makes Jaguar Paw’s character appealing to the audience is his care and concern for others in his tribe and even those who are entirely strangers. This can be evidenced from the fact that after he ensures the safety of his wife and kid, he goes back and fights the raiders in an attempt to save others. He could have simply remained in the pit and avoided getting caught. But he risks his life by involving in the fight as he wants to save the other villagers as well.
Another sequence in the movie, where his glance lingers on the girl who says the omen, also portends his love for humanity. From the way he looks at the girl, the audience can discern his deep yearning to help the girl. However, from the mood and actions of this character, one question may nag the viewer’s mind as to how the basic instinct of survival could be interpreted as fear.
As the story unfolds, the audience slowly understands that it is not the mortal fear but the fear of failing that haunts Jaguar Paw. His escape from the clutches of an imminent brutal death does not guarantee him any safety and, instead, it draws him deeper into a vortex of danger as he decides to fight his pursuers and switch his role from that of the hunted to the hunter. Again, his necessity to survive does not come from his concern for his personal safety. The movie makes the viewers feel that this is a consequence of his promise to his wife, which he wants to keep.
Jaguar Paw’s ability to survive can mainly be attributed to his fear which allows him to sense the danger and take precautions to avoid or overcome it. Again, this fear comes because he love his family and therefore wants to ensure that he is there to take care of them. Every time he recalls the promise he made to his wife that he will return safely.
Right from the stage of his escape from the jaguar to the final scenes of the movie, this interplay among love, fear and survival is subtly surfaces in the movie. Once he reaches his forest, he challenges his enemies, stating that “This is my forest… and I will hunt here,” (Gibson). He is not afraid anymore because he feels that now he can finally keep his promise to his wife. Reassured by this conviction he plans to kills his foes and traps each one of them with his ingenuity and skills he acquired from his knowledge of the jungle and his hunting instincts. He uses a beehive bomb, poison darts and animal trap to kill each of his enemies until he reaches to safety.
Of course, a new civilization is poised to arrive on the shore, with perhaps more lethal weapons and he can still be in danger. On the other hand, he apprehends that it may lead to their merging in to an entirely different world of civilization. But he does not want that either. He just wants to be with his family, teaching his children the way his father taught him, to hunt and to survive. This, again, is another aspect that manifests his love, for his wife and children.
His pregnant wife and his child are waiting for him in a pit where he has left them and he knows it. He is not ready to die yet, and as he was being taken to sacrificial altar he declares that to his friend. It is not his own death he is worried about, but the promise to go back to his wife that he made to her lets him survive all the ordeals he has been subjected to.
Even the eclipse, though it has wider meaning in the context of the film, seems to have come as a direct answer to his and probably his wife’s prayers to help him keep his promise. He is able to overcome the physical limit of a wounded human body and the will to fight his enemies chasing him only because of his love. Love is not merely a promise but a yearning of physical and mental intensity that can transcend all the known boundaries of human endurance and suffering. Love has to prevail ultimately or else human spirit and its sagacity to survive cannot survive.
The victory of love is and has to be at the cost of conquering fear and that is what this film says at a different level. Thus, it can be stated that though the movie portrays violence and gore, and an extent of being “so appalled by the violence that she left half way though the movie and told me that she was going to need a drink and an Ambien in order to sleep that night” (Mendel), its charm lies in the way it portrays love and commitment.
Works Cited
Gibson, Mel. Apocalypto. Perf. Rudy Youngblood. Icon, 2007.
Mendel, Emily S. Apocalypto (2006). Culturevulture.net film. Web.
Tooze, Gray W. Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto [Blu-ray DVD]. H D Sensei. Amazone. 2006. Web.