Genre: Historical Fantasy / Action / Adventure
Directed By: Zack Snyder
Based on a Graphic Novel By: Frank Miller
IMDB Details: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0416449/

A couple weeks ago I went with my friend Pat to watch the adaptation of Frank Miller's graphic novel "300". Which, if you've been living under a rock, it retells part of the story of the Persian invasion of Greece by Xerxes, where 300 Spartans held the pass of Thermopylae against 300,000 or so Persians.

I had been seeing the trailers for this film for a while, and had high expectations for the film. Mostly because, as you'll find, I'm a nut for history and love seeing it on the big screen. From the trailers the movie appeared to be somewhat fantasized, and you've got to expect that from Hollywood. Also, being based on a graphic novel I expected it to follow Miller's fictionalization more than wrote history anyway. Especially after "Sin City" (2005) and its wonderfully slavish devotion to the graphic novel and even the look of the graphic artwork. I assumed that "300" would be in the same vein.

Now I haven't read / seen the graphic novel of "300" so I can't say if it and the movie have the same look and feel however, the movie certainly is shot and framed like graphic novel panes. Like a lot of historically-set action / adventure movies these days, "300" had that gray washed-out-with-strong-contrast-primary-colors look. 

The pacing of the film starts off slower for the first third of the movie with exposition of Spartan life and the main characters. It then moves into a faster pace for the last two-thirds with the fugue between the home front and the war front until the inevitable conclusion. There isn't much character development except for the Spartan King Leonidas (Gerard Butler). Therefore when you watch the battle scenes and some Spartans die you might have known their names (maybe) but you kind of don't care about anyone but Leonidas.

Most of all the visual impact of the film was its strongest asset. Everything was framed and shot carefully with purpose. I'm assuming it was done so in order to follow the GN. In fact it seemed like the GN may have been used as a storyboard. There was a lot of slow motion for added impact in many scenes. As well, the aforementioned color treatment enhanced certain aspects to emphasize action or objects in frame (similar to how it was used in "Sin City"). I can see why the distributors co-released the film to IMAX theaters. I would like to see this on the super-huge screen myself if it comes to the local IMAX.

Overall the film was "Really Good" but not "Great" or "Epic", as Pat and I agreed on this point after the screening. It was also violent, but that should be expected. There are very graphic blade-piercings and decapitations, sans the anime-asian-gore-flick style blood spray you might have seen in Tarantino's "Kill Bill" (2003).

As historical fantasy entertainment I give it 3.5 / 5 stars.

It's worth the price of admission and certainly one for the DVD rack, at least mine.

There is an overriding theme in the movie and why I really liked the 300...

*** Possible Spoilers ***

The theme of fighting for what is right, fighting for your freedom and your country because it is the right thing to do.

I think that's a good message that should resound today. That we should not give up in the face of the enemy and we should continue to fight for what is right. I'll let you extrapolate what I mean by that.

Also the bit of the "home frone" story depicted by the statesman and the oracles. Greedy politicians bought off in their lust for power...simply by money or even by the money of the enemy. Does that remind you of anyone or any groups? And I don't just mean the Democrat or Republican parties either...

For what it's worth "300" was, in a way, a refreshing contrastion for me to a movie like "V For Vendetta" (2005). I don't know that what message I took from the film was intended. The film makers could have easily imparted such themes and concepts simply because that's how Frank Miller wrote the GN, because it's good drama, and its somewhat historically true. Not necessarily to make any particular statement to the current (although I'm quite certain that was the intent of V). However I suppose that is the beauty of art...to appeal to the eye of the beholder.

So yes...that's right I see (and perhaps wanted to find) a political statement in the film which resonated to my bias that I wish the squabbling politicians in (the U.S.) congress and the American people would take to heart. 

That said, on the topic of interpretation, I suggest this very interesting article called "True Thermopylaes" by Bill Walsh of the Weekly Standard. It goes into depth about this movie, the historical events it's based on, and some political analysis.