DVD Movie Review: Apocalypto

The adrenaline flooded film Apocalypto arrives on DVD on 5/22/07 and while the film is a visually arresting piece of cinema, the disc itself is barebones. Featuring only one short documentary on the making of the film, and a laughably short deleted scene, it's obvious that a multi-disc definitive edition is either in the works or planned at some point in the future.

Synopsis:

The tale is simple, yet a surprisingly powerful one. A peaceful Mayan village is attacked by invading forces and Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) is viciously separated from his family (but not before hiding his wife and child in a well) and sent to a fantastical city built on blood, fear, and oppression, where he is to become a human sacrifice to the gods. A twist of fate offers him a chance to escape and with his unwavering determination and bravery he embarks on a bloody voyage to rejoin his family. Savagely pursued by his enemies, Jaguar Paw will need to utilize the skillful prowess and cunning tricks taught to him by his father to evade capture. Read the theatrical review atwww.moviepulse.net!

Special Features:

The main special feature "Becoming Mayan: Creating Apocalypto" is about 30 minutes and covers the construction of the sets, the costumes, makeup and weapons used in the film. We do gain some insight into the arduous processes of recreating an entire civilization with fantastically enormous sets and hundreds of extras. Painstaking details are insisted upon for nearly every aspect of Apocalypto. The featured filmmakers, including director Mel Gibson and writer/co-producer Farhad Safinia discuss how their major goal was to ensure that the audience felt as if they were watching actual events and that someone had merely captured intense footage of real people doing factual activities. Locating the perfect jungle and constructing massive sets were two of the most important aspects. Filmed in Catemaco and Veracruz, Mexico, the large Mayan pyramid, the shanty town and much more were all built entirely from scratch.