Another Mel Gibson Controversy!

The New York Times frets: is the new Mel Gibson movie good enough to get Oscar nominations? If so, what will liberal Hollywood do? This isn't an issue. If the movie is overwhelmingly good, Hollywood will give it nominations. But brutally violent movies are almost never favored with Oscar nods and "Apocalypto" is reportedly soaked in blood, so when this movie DOESN'T get nominated, don't cry foul. Besides, if Hollywood mostly ignored "The Passion Of The Christ" -- which got decidedly mixed reviews -- despite that film's massive popularity, then it won't have any trouble ignoring this one. People didn't go to see "The Passion" because they love Mel Gibson and love obscure films in dead languages. They went because it was the first major Hollywood Biblical tale in decades and Gibson did a great job of marekting it. It was a phenomenon. Gibson is not Spielberg. "Apocalypto" may indeed do well, but it is far from a slam-dunk. And of the two reviews so far, one was very strong (Variety) and one was mixed (Hollywood Reporter) so that hardly justifies Oscar talk just yet.