Mel Gibson: Heroic Suffering Savior

Quote of the day:
"To be stupid, selfish, and have good health are three requirements for happiness, though if stupidity is lacking, all is lost."
--Gustave Flaubert

I have not seen Mel Gibson’s new movie "Apocalypto," but I have repeatedly seen its ad, in which he personally proclaims it is the “story of one man’s heroic struggle to save his family.” In other words, the same old, same old for Mel.

He is fixated on the stuggles of a heroic loner attempting to save humanity. The more struggles, the better. The more suffering, the better. The more gruesome the suffering, now we’re talking.

This theme links all of his movies, beginning with the Mad Max series, continuing with the "Lethal Weapon" films and hitting stride with "Braveheart," which told the story of William Wallace leading the brutal (capital B) fight for Scottish independence.

This brutality reach apotheosis in his most notorious film, "The Passion of Christ." It was not a religious or historical story as much as it was Mel attempting to to reach new heights in telling the story of a heroic misunderstood loner who saves the world through undergoing unimaginably gruesome torture. After I saw this film, I came to see that all these movies are about Mel Gibson.

Whether "Apocalypto" fits this mold, I’m not sure, but it seems to. I wonder in how many ways he is going to have to tell his story before he is satisfied?