Friday, November 10, 2006

"Apocalypto" A Masterpiece?

Variety's Peter Bart says private screenings are being held around Hollywood and that word on the movie is "another brilliant exercise in filmmaking, extremely violent, yet compelling" and a "fiercely original work." Mind you, Bart also refers to Gibson's "dark, troubled mind." (How does he know? Did he have a peek inside?) I don't know about yet "another" brilliant bit of filmmaking. Personally, I think he's made one decent movie as a director ("Braveheart" of course) and that "The Man Without A Face" and "The Passion of the Christ" were sloppy as films. Remember, though "Passion" made buckets of money, it received mostly very poor reviews. Beyond the discussion of the film's obvious, almost hilariously over-the-top anti-Semitism, it just wasn't a very good "movie," when you're talking about the remote, stiff acting, the horrible score and so on. About the only element singled out for praise was the cinematography. It may have been an experience people found moving, but that doesn't make it a good film, any more than someone being moved during a reenactment of the Passion at their local house of worship means they've just seen good theater. But I'm certainly interested in seeing "Apocalypto." How can you not be curious to see it?

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