Mel Gibson is once again in spotlight for his forthcoming film Apocalypto. Just like his previous film ‘The Passion of the Christ’, a bloody epic which detailed the last 12 hours in the life of Jesus Christ leading up to a brutal depiction of his crucifixion was the subject of controversy, and now his new production which detailed the collapse of Mayan civilization has again become the subject of controversy. It is believed that it is angering members of the culture it portrays.

Now native activists in Guatemala, once home to a large part of the Mayan empire that built elaborate jungle cities in southern Mexico and northern Central America centuries ago, say Gibson’s film “Apocalypto” is racist.

Ignacio Ochoa, director of the Nahual Foundation that promotes Mayan culture said,

Gibson replays, in glorious big budget Technicolor, an offensive and racist notion that Maya people were brutal to one another long before the arrival of Europeans and thus they deserved, in fact, needed, rescue.

The film is made in Mayan language. Guatemala’s 36 years civil war killed more than 20,000 people, mostly Mayans. Some rights groups say the army tried to wipe out the Maya.

Lucio Yaxon, a 23-year-old Mayan human rights activist, said Apocalypto’s heart-pounding trailer was unrealistic.

But Richard Hansen, an archeologist said, “I am a little apprehensive about how the Maya themselves are going to perceive it.” He also said that director took caution to ensure authenticity and historical accuracy.

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