Three Films that Prove Mel Gibson Should Never Make Another Historical Drama

Please Mel, just stop

Mel Gibson in “Braveheart” (Image: Paramount Pictures via Rotten Tomatoes)

If you’ve read any of my articles about film, you know that I love historical movies as much as I love history. It can, however, be difficult to find films that are historically accurate enough to keep me from throwing popcorn at the screen midway through. In my opinion, the most egregious example of a film butchering history is Oliver Stone’s JFK, which I wrote about below.

Hollywood and Revisionist History: The Countless Conspiracy Theories in Oliver Stone’s Film ‘JFK’

As bad as that was, at least it was a one-time offense. When it comes to completely revising history on film no one comes close to Mel Gibson. Below are three examples of why Mel should never again make a historical film, either as an actor or as a director.

1. Apocalypto (2006). Apocalypto received a lot of press when it was released because Gibson used the actual Mayan language in the film, with subtitles added. This was pretty cool except for the fact that it gives an impression of historical accuracy that just isn’t there.