"300 is a stunning step forward in filmmaking, and will come to be recognized by Generation X as a definitive bloodthirsty epic - legendary in scale and scope."
Hype. It can make or break a film. I don't know about you, but there's nothing I detest more than getting really pumped to see a movie and then being let down in the theater. You feel cheated, almost betrayed even - like coming to the shocking realization that Santa Claus is nothing more than a fat guy in a suit at the mall.
300 is one of those films that is surrounded by hype, no, soaked in it. I'm here to say that 300 doesn't live up to the hype. It surpasses it in every single way.
Based on Frank Miller's graphic novel, 300 stylishly embellishes the 480 B.C. Battle of Thermopylae, where the King of Sparta led an army of 300 men against the immeasurable ranks of the Persian Empire.
Every child of Sparta was inspected upon its birth. Any male that was found to be too small, weak or sick were abandoned on the slopes of Mt. Taygetos, ensuring only the strongest would serve in the ranks of the Spartan army.
After making a good first impression (understatement!) on some mountaintop, these boys would begin a rigorous training regime at the age of seven. Engaged in hand-to-hand combat as well as learning military strategy at such a young age guaranteed a vast force of Spartan warriors who could not only defend their homeland, but kill any oppressors of their freedoms.
One of these fearless combatants was Leonidas, who would grow up to be King of Sparta. As Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro) and his Persian Empire invaded Greece, King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) gathered 300 of his best men and headed to the pass of Thermopylae in an attempt to bottleneck the advancing Persian force.
As Leonidas and his men fight for Sparta's freedom, Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey) struggles to gain support from the Ephors (a group of nasty old priests who serve as Sparta's main governmental body) to send the entire army to her King's aid.
You can't ignore the numbers here folks. 300 versus one million. Yeah, that's not the greatest odds in the world - but hey, a hell of a lot better than playing the lottery right? But that's the idea, knowing your going to die - and facing that death with honor and courage. These men, in their leather man-panties and swirling scarlet capes, exemplify heroics and bravery with their no-nonsense slaughtering of faceless Persian foes. If I had a lottery ticket for every time a head or equally important appendage was severed from its owner's body, I might have an actual chance of winning.
Directed by Zack Snyder (2004's Dawn of the Dead), 300 plays host to a lavish, cinematic bloodbath that captures the beautiful illustrations of Frank Miller's graphic novel frame-for-frame, thanks to the stunning cinematography of Larry Fong (Lost).
Every single shot of this film is awe-inspiring, playing more like visual poetry than a simple action flick. Everything is sleek and stylish and even though 300 is based loosely on true events, the world created is entirely of its own. It's like Middle Earth on steroids, with beefy gladiators to go with it.
Zack Snyder will, from this point forward, be a household name for lovers of cinema. The way he has brought Frank Miller's graphic novel to life can truly only be defined as a "masterpiece," or perhaps "f*cking awesome!" as some of my generation may deem it.
I'm glad to see graphic novels and comic books being taken seriously by filmmakers. There are tons of good stories and characters that have yet to make their appearance on the silver screen but with titles like Sin City, V For Vendetta and 300 out there for the public to consume, it looks like comic nerds like myself are in for a treat.
300 is a stunning step forward in filmmaking, while not as thought provoking and visually shocking as The Matrix, it will come to be recognized by Generation X as a definitive bloodthirsty epic - legendary in scale and scope.
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"Two hours of unrelenting violence bathed in spectacular, monochromatic visual effects." ByJulian Roman
"Come back with your shield, or on it." ByBryan Yentz
"Zack Snyder proves he can make something look good with a computer, but he hasn't proven that he is a good filmmaker. 300 is a spectacular mess of a story only glorified by Frank Miller's amazing visual style." ByKaya Savas
"300 is the equivalent of an insecure body-builder who spends years making himself look like an impressive sculpture, only to realize he doesn't have personality." ByDodd Alley
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