Italian court sets age limit for Apocalypto viewers

An Italian court on Monday barred those under the age of 14 from watching Mel Gibson'sfilm Apocalypto.

A lawyer for consumer group Codacons told Reuters on Monday that the court's ban is temporary, pending a hearing on Jan. 17.

A public uproar arose after Italy's film review board approved the movie,set duringthe Mayan civilization's decline,with no age restrictions.

The movie has received an "R" rating in North America, where it debuted in December, meaning those under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Other countries, including the U.K., France and Germany, have also set age limits for viewers of the film.

The furor came to a head on Thursday when Codacons said it would bring the issue to the courts to demand an age limit be set for the film, which shows bloody battles, beheadings and organs being ripped out of victims.

The film opened in Italy as scheduled on Friday, the same day Francesco Rutelli, the country's culture minister, expressed a need to revisit movie rating standards.

Rutelli met on Monday with officials from the committee that sets ratings.

Featuring a cast of unknowns and told in an ancient language, necessitating subtitles, Apocalypto has been described as hyper-violent.

While some have praised the controversial Gibson for shooting Apocalypto in the Yucatec Maya tongue and going to great lengths to build an indigenous cast from Mexico and Central America, others have criticized the bloody portrayal.

Activists in Guatemala were among those angered by the film and accused Gibson of painting an unflattering, "savage" portrait of Mayan culture.

Nevertheless, Apocalypto has been recognized with several film award nominations. It will compete in the best foreign language film category at the Critics' Choice Awards on Friday and at the Golden Globes next week.