Hey, I’ll buy it now that you mention it. That scene in the Mayan city certainly had a Fellini-esque vibe to it, whether intended or not.
BTW, the use of dwarves I took for a nod at authenticity - apparently, dwarves had some sort of supernatural significance in some Mesoamerican cultures.
[QUOTE=Dumbguy]
I took the whole thing as an allegory for modern America. The Mayans were tearing down forests to make paint, hoodwinking the masses by pretending to control the sun, attacking nearby cultures for no apparent reason, and yet they seemed unable to recognize that most their problems were of their own creation.
Not saying that’s necessarily what Gibson was intending, but that was how it struck me.
[/QUOTE]
What really tipped Mel’s hand was the gay marriage ceremony, which many people seem to have missed. 
No, seriously, I don’t think you’re far off the mark. I don’t believe that Mel was speaking exclusively about the US, but I think that was large part of it.