Mel Gibson honoured for Apocalypto
Story by Jack Foley
MEL Gibson has been honoured with the Visionary Award from the Latino Business Association (LBA) for his new epic, Apocalypto.
The actor-director, who is trying to rebuild his reputation following a drunken anti-Semitic outburst earlier this year, was flattered to receive the accolade and described his film as “a badge of honour for the Latino community”.
Apocalypto is a Mexican-made film, spoken in Mayan, that chronicles the decline of Mexico’s native civilisation. It is due for a release in the US in December and in the UK early next year.
But even though it has been seen by very few people – and many are predicting a turbulent box office reception – the epic has impressed the Latin business community.
Its chairman, Rick Sarmiento, said that Gibson’s much-publicised outburst earlier this year, had not been taken into account when the group made their decision to recognise the film.
He told the BBC: “Hearing him tell the story about using Latino actors, it was a no-brainer.”
Apocalypto features a cast of unknown actors and most of the crew were also recruited in Mexico.
Mr Sarmiento added that the film had made him “feel extremely proud of everything to do with our culture”.
Gibson, who is himself a devout Catholic, said the Mayan civilisation had always been of interest to him and wanted to make a film that raised awareness of their story.
He wants to dismiss the popular myth that history “only began with Europeans”.
The former Lethal Weapon star was, however, shielded from members of the press at the ceremony, which was held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles on Thursday (November 2, 2006).
Reporters who did attend were kept a few hundred feet away and weren’t allowed to ask the star any questions.