I would like to know if the people shown in the movie are Aztecs or Mayans?
If i assume them as Mayans, then it presents a problem because the Mayan civilization collapsed in late 900s(not sure).
If i assume them as Aztecs, then it makes sense with the timeline, arrival of Europeans and Humans sacrifices and all, but the Movie Description says they are Mayans.
What am i missing here?
What am i missing here?
The main thing you're missing here is that while the southern lowland Maya city-states went into decline prior to 1000 CE, Maya city-states in the highlands and in the northern lowlands kept on going strong. From about 987 until the mid-1400s, the League of Mayapan dominated most of the Yucatan. Originally formed by an alliance of Chichen Itza, Uxmal and Mayapan, by around 1200 Mayapan emerged ended up monopolizing power in the league. After 1461, the league dissolved into more than a dozen smaller, independent kingdoms, which brings us up to the time period that Apocalypto is depicting.
As for how successfully it depicts that time period, I'll turn your attention to a three-part review (Part I, Part II, Part III) by a former AskHistorians / BadHistory regular who must, unfortunately, remain nameless.
