In the dense Mesoamerican rainforest, Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood), his father Flint Sky, and their fellow tribesmen live a peaceful life hunting and maintaining their close-knit community. One day, while on a hunting trip, they encounter a group of terrified refugees fleeing from an unknown threat. Observing their fear, Flint Sky advises Jaguar Paw to never let fear control him or spread through his heart.
That evening, the tribe gathers around an elder who tells a story about a being consumed by insatiable greed. This being, despite receiving all the gifts of the world, continues taking until nothing is left, bringing about the end of the world. The elder’s story leaves the tribe in contemplation as they prepare for another day.
At dawn, the tranquility of the village is shattered when Maya raiders, led by a ruthless commander named Zero Wolf, attack without warning. The raiders slaughter many villagers, including Flint Sky, who is killed by the sadistic raider Middle Eye. During the chaos, Jaguar Paw hides his pregnant wife, Seven, and their young son, Turtles Run, in a deep, empty well for safety. Promising to return, he is captured by the raiders before he can escape. After the attack, the surviving adults are bound and forced to march into the jungle, leaving the village’s children abandoned. Trapped in the well, Seven and Turtles Run struggle to find a way out as rain threatens to flood their enclosure.
As the captives are marched through the jungle, they witness the devastation of the surrounding land. Burned forests, barren maize fields, and entire villages decimated by disease serve as a grim reminder of the widespread suffering. Along the way, the group encounters a diseased girl who delivers an ominous prophecy foretelling the collapse of the Maya world.
The captives eventually arrive in a bustling Maya city, where the women are sold into slavery while the men are taken to the top of a grand pyramid to be sacrificed to the gods. Jaguar Paw is among the captives selected for sacrifice. As he is laid on the altar and prepared for execution, the high priest looks to the sky and witnesses a solar eclipse. Interpreting the event as a sign that the gods are appeased, the priests spare the remaining captives.
However, their reprieve is short-lived. The remaining captives are taken by Zero Wolf and his men to an open field for a deadly game. The raiders force the captives to run for their lives, offering freedom to those who can escape their deadly projectiles. Jaguar Paw’s friend Blunted is among the first to run and is fatally struck. When it is Jaguar Paw’s turn, he is wounded but manages to evade death. Blunted, mortally injured, distracts the raiders long enough for Jaguar Paw to kill Zero Wolf’s son, Cut Rock, and escape into the jungle.
Furious over his son’s death, Zero Wolf leads a group of eight men in pursuit of Jaguar Paw. As they track him through the dense forest, Jaguar Paw recalls his father’s words about fear and resolves to confront his pursuers on his own terms. Using his intimate knowledge of the terrain, he employs the jungle to his advantage, gradually eliminating his hunters one by one.
One of the raiders is mauled by a jaguar, while another succumbs to a snake bite. Jaguar Paw bludgeons Middle Eye to death with a stone hatchet, avenging his father. He also lures Zero Wolf into a trap designed for hunting tapirs, impaling him with deadly spikes. Another raider drowns after chasing Jaguar Paw over a waterfall, and yet another is poisoned after falling into a trap Jaguar Paw sets with natural toxins.
As the chase continues, the last two raiders pursue Jaguar Paw to the outskirts of his village. However, all three are brought to a stunned halt when they reach the shoreline and witness the arrival of Spanish conquistadors. The towering ships anchored offshore and the presence of foreign soldiers clad in armor leave the raiders and Jaguar Paw momentarily speechless. While the raiders cautiously approach the newcomers, Jaguar Paw seizes the opportunity to flee back to his village.
Arriving at the well, Jaguar Paw rescues Seven and Turtles Run just as heavy rain begins to flood the enclosure. He is overjoyed to discover that Seven has given birth to their second child, a healthy baby boy, underwater. Reunited with his family, Jaguar Paw leads them to safety in the jungle.
The next day, the family gazes at the Spanish ships from a distance. Recognizing the potential danger posed by the newcomers, Jaguar Paw decides to avoid contact with them. He and his family retreat deeper into the rainforest to begin a new life far from the Maya civilization and the looming presence of the Spanish.
Leave a Reply