While one online Yankee journo is bashing "Apocalypto" as a violent "two-and-a-half hour torture-fest" (see Roger Friedman's review at FoxNews.com— CLICK HERE ), members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association apparently disagree. Clearly, they enjoyed their private screening on Thursday.

The consensus view of kudos-watchers is that Mel Gibson's controversial action flick about the, literally, dying days of the Mayan empire in the 16th century will probably be nominated at the Golden Globes for best foreign-language film (actors speak a native dialect) along with "Letters from Iwo Jima," "Volver," "Lives of Others" and "Pan's Labyrinth." Several other pix in the running deserve a bid, too, but the category's already run out of room. Three of the five seem pretty solid: "Iwo Jima," "Volver" and "Apocalypto." Perhaps "Lives" and "Pan's" are vulnerable, but they've been received so enthusiastically by HFPA viewers that it's hard to imagine how they could be bumped.

I have seen "Apocalypto." It's an excellent action movie. Violent, yes, but so well made on the tech side that it should do well in the Oscar crafts categories. But the Globes don't have those races, so the foreign-language film race is the one that may give us the best indication of its potential at the Oscars.

If "Apocalypto" does well with the academy's tech branches, it might ultimately be the pic that brings sound mixer Kevin O'Connell — Oscar's biggest loser with 18 past defeats — his long-overdue award. How curious that he could win for an infamous pic, given the Mel connection.

Photo: Mel's savages behave rather savagely in "Apocalypto," which may be an issue with the academy's notoriously squeamish electorate.
(Disney)