Recently a friend and I saw the movie 300. It seemed it was all over in a flash and when we stepped out of the theater our adrenaline was running high. Never in my life have I seen a movie capable of filling me with so much energy. After witnessing the utter brute and strength of these muscle-popping warriors, I couldn’t help but hitting the gym as soon as possible. As well as being a stunning spectacle of a film, 300 is a great motivator for doing some much needed exercise.

By now you have most likely read at least a couple of the reviews that the critiques have provided. They try and make this movie seem like something mediocre or nothing special with degrading comments about lousy acting or storyline. Truth be told, even if the acting or storyline is lousy, (which I think it is not, Gerard Butler does a tremendous job of embodying a Spartan king), the shocking visuals and often-times grizzly graphics will put you in such disbelief, that you’ll soon forget about run-of-the-mill acting or lame storylines. Obviously spectacle is meant to play the greatest role in this film and it certainly does.

No matter what the critiques say, 300, out of all the films released this year, is not one you want to pass up. One extra note as well, see if you can catch this one in theaters. It’s a big movie, it needs a big screen.

Hollywood has long glamorized ancient history, but how much do they bend the truth? The bloody battles recreated for the Hollywood screen are sometimes stretched to unbelievable lengths, while some are straight from the history books.

“We Spartans have descended from Hercules himself. Taught never to retreat, never to surrender. Taught that death in the battlefield is the greatest glory he could achieve in his life. Spartans: the finest soldiers the world has ever known.” The number one box office seller since it came out; Frank Miller's movie 300 took movie goers by storm. Admitted by the director, the movie 300 is not based on real facts, but of the graphic novel Frank Miller had created back in 1999. Many have wondered about the real lives of the 300 Spartans, not just a glorified Hollywood version.

Armour

In the movie, the Spartans are depicted wearing virtually no armor. In fact, it was the Spartans heavy armor that protected them against the Persian weapons. Spartans wore breastplates and helmets with cheek protection. Their protection consisted of a shield that was bronze plated and about three feet in diameter. Their spears were their main weapon, measuring about 2.7 meters, but since these were prone to breaking, the Spartans also carried 60cm thrusting swords called xiphos and the less commonly used Greek sabre called a kopis.

The Army Masses

There were not really only 300 Spartans at the Battle of Thermoplyæ, but due to the Spartans being a very secretive and tended not to write things down about the way they lived, there have been quite a few estimates on the numbers on opposing sides. Britannica estimates that there were not five million Persians, the number closer to 350,000. The Greeks initially had about 7,000 troops, but King Leondias, leader of the Spartans, was left to cover their retreat, leaving the Greek army with the 300 Spartans and 400 Thebans. According to the ancient historian Herodotus, there were also 700 Thespian hoplites that refused the order to retreat. The 400 Thebans ended up surrendering and being branded by the Persians.

The Battle

The Battle of Thermoplyæ is said to have begun around August 11th, 480BC. The fight between the Persian Empire and the Spartans only lasted three days until the Spartans were ultimately defeated. The total casualties for the Battle were 2,400 Spartans, Thespians and other Greek allies, and 20,000 from the Persian Empire. While the Battle continued between the remaining 1,400 Greeks that did not retreat and the Persians, allowed Athens to build up a small naval force and the subsequent result was a Greek victory at the Battle of Salamis (circa September, 380BC) forcing Xerxes I back to Asia as his navy was destroyed. There was one more Battle where the Greeks and Persians clashed, the Battle of Plataea, ending the war, and the Persian expansion into Europe.

The Spartans as a people failed though, as they were only focused on training warriors, while Persia was more geared towards education, medicine, and technology, among others. Present day, Persia is now known as the Iranian Pleateau, comprising today's Afghanistan and Iran. Sparta today has a population of about 18,200 people.

While it is exciting to see such an historic event come to life on the big screen, especially under the direction of Frank Miller, it is always beneficial to know the actual history behind the tales that are based on a true story. “We're in for one wild night.” The 300 Spartans truly fought until the bitter end.

Director: Zack Snyder

Rated R - Nudity, Violence, Blood and Gore

Cast: Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, Dominic West, David Wenham, Vincent Regan, Michael Fassbender, Tom Wisdom, Andrew Pleavin, Andrew Tiernan, Rodrigo Santoro

Kick Ass: Reinvented

Coming into 300 it is important to know that the movie is a film adaptation of a graphic novel of the same name by Frank Miller and not a historically accurate depiction of the actual event. This being said, 300 is an awe-inspiring movie. From the moment the title flashes across the screen in blood to the last slash of the sword this movie leaves your jaw on the floor. Every spear, sword, shield, and spot of blood is beautifully done. It's so good looking in fact that if you didn't know it you would never realize that almost none of the sets are real.

That's right; 300 uses more green screen computer generated effects than any movie to date. Almost every set is computer generated; the ancient temples, the rocky landscape of Greece, the heaving ocean, almost everything. The only thing you can truly count on being real is the actors. The expanded use of this relatively new technique has allowed the film's director to create scenes which could never have been done before.

The movie is about the Battle of Thermopylae in which 300 Spartans and their allies held off an approaching Persian army of a million men. The Spartans Held their lines for three days and inflicted massive casualties upon the enemy force that outnumbered them so overwhelmingly. The battle exemplifies perfectly what it was to be a Spartan; their fighting skill and their warrior spirit. The movie 300 does the legend proud.

Which brings us to the action. 300 will redefine your definition of bad ass. The fighting in this movie is so epic; so intense; and so “holy sh** did he just do what I think he did!” crazy that it will leave you gibbering about it for hours after you leave the theater. Limbs are cut off, men are decapitated, and Persian soldiers are slaughtered by the hundred. Oh, and it is bloody...very bloody.

But don't be fooled by all of the action, there is real substance here. Particularly from Gerard Butler, who brings a fierce and visceral energy to the role of the Spartan King Leonidas that really makes the movie what it is. His queen, played by Lena Headey, also brings a lot to the table with a solemn and very resolute portrayal. The acting in 300 won't win any Oscars but it is definitely far above par for the action movie crowd.

300 does have its flaws, chief among them being a handful of hokey action movie clichés, but the movie is just so groundbreaking and completely exhilarating that I wouldn't have it any other way. It drops you into the legendary battle of Thermopylae that is so intense that you can almost feel a spear in your hand. It's just too bad that after seeing 300 no other action movie can even compare.

Rated: “R”

Based on the Graphic Novel by Frank Miller.

Not to be confused with the movie “300 Spartans” from 1962. (A classic)

Trust Your Instincts “300”

This is a difficult film to recommend. I liked it, but I think lots of people won't. So here is a ton of information to aid you. The short review is this, very graphic, hard “R,” some good lines, lots of action, could have been more moving.

What about the “R” rating?

The 1962 version called “The 300 Spartans” was a classic film, a little campy but still a fun experience. There were things Hollywood couldn't show back then and there still are today. I know, it's surprising but the Spartans would offend even the modern open-minded. I'll dig a little deeper into this later. For now lets just say that our idea of heroism doesn't match ancient Greek ideas so certain things had to be inaccurate in order to fit the modern audience.

I can't help but compare this to “Alexander the Great,” which sucked. This movie is everything that one wasn't. The graphic violence in this film is pervasive and unavoidable. If you don't like tons of violence don't see this film.

Regarding nudity and sex. Almost all of it fit the plot and era of the film. It could have been much worse. Watch “Alexander” if you don't believe me. You could probably close your eyes through most of the nudity. It isn't sprung at you like it is in some films.

It plays out like this:

1 thirty-second, topless, dancing oracle -totally gratuitous.

1 suggested (but graphic) sex scene with King and Queen -hey at least they're married.

Couple more scenes with the Queen -who had trouble keeping her clothes on and didn't wear much even when she did.

1 circus of freaks/drunk debauchery by Xerxes -probably historically true.

As a Movie …

I'll admit that I was worried when I saw that “300” was made by the same people who did “Sin City.” I'm not a fan of filming the whole thing in front of a green screen and then animating every frame. I want special effects to be unnoticeable not in your face. Still it didn't completely wreck this film.

Marathon and Thermopile: a Historical View

Much has been made of the battle of Marathon. It is certainly archetypal and represents the triumph of good over evil. Athenian democracy wasn't quite our democracy but it was a quantum leap ahead of anything their neighbors would have for hundreds of years in the areas of freedom and fairness. The Greek army at Marathon was virtually a militia, each unit representing the men of their county, all fighting for hearth and home. Persia was the invader, her army made up of slaves and citizens pressed into service. Though vastly outnumbered the Athenians were victorious-a triumph of not only of their soldiery but of their ideology (and ours).

Of course the movie “300” isn't about the Athenians at Marathon. It's about the Spartans at Thermopile. The Spartans aren't as easy to paint as the good guys. They were an ancient warrior cult. Their entire culture revolved around war. The Spartans conquered the indigenous people in southern Greece and enslaved them. They never actually amounted to more than 10% of the total population of their own country. How is that even possible? Well they were devastating warriors but mostly they spread a rumor that boogey men would attack anyone caught outside after dark. Groups of young Spartan thugs would wonder the roads at night attacking anyone who dared to violate the unofficial curfew.

Not that the Spartans were easy on their own people. A baby wasn't named until an elder had determined it was a viable and healthy. If it wasn't thriving with in three days they threw it from a cliff. Spartan women ran their households because the men lived in the army barracks-all of them. When a boy turned 7 he left his mother and joined the army. Through a series of tests, which not every boy survives, a boy eventually becomes a man and joins a mainline fighting unit.

Like the Athenians, Spartans encouraged homosexuality but for different reasons. In Athens it was considered romantic in Sparta it was considered manly. You would fight harder if your lover stood next to you in battle.

Thermopile historically resulted because Persia invaded on a holiday. Athens elected not to anger the gods by going out to fight. Sparta decided if it was every city-state for it's self they may as well wait for the Persians to wear themselves down a bit sieging Athens. Not everyone was so sure that Persia would attack Athens first. One of the Spartan Kings (they had two at a time) decided to go out to meet the Persians in a tiny gap that was defensible by a small force. He left the bulk of the army to defend Sparta and took only his personal body guard of 300. Several small city-states, allied to Sparta and Athens also sent forces and Sparta took with them 3,000 auxiliaries (slaves with javelins) that pop history seem to forget about. Still the Spartans did stand in the front line of every battle at Thermopile and three hundred men probably wasn't enough for two rows.

There is something amazing about one line of determined Special Forces standing against forty thousand. It gives me chills like when Gandalf stood against the balrog on the bridge and yelled, “You shall not pass.” This is a great movie for that and that alone is worth the price of admission.

Other Historical Inaccuracies

Unlike film real Spartans never wore shoes. They didn't want to take the time to put on shoes if they were surprise attacked so never wearing them kept their feet tough.

There were initially 4,000 Athenian warriors who did help fight until they were flanked via the goat path. 1,000 Thespians stayed with the Spartans. Only the Athenians, the Phoicians, and the Arcadians retreated by cover of night to join the main armies.

The oracle didn't tell them not to go it merely said Sparta would burn if the blood of one of her kings wasn't spilled in sacrifice. This may be why Leonidas stayed even when it was a lost cause. There is nothing in the Spartan code that prevents a Spartan from retreating. In fact they were trained to use guerilla tactics if they couldn't fight nobly.

Larger Story

What I've been getting at with this review is that Sparta just doesn't make a really “good” good guy. Many great lines in this movie are actually the least accurate things historically. Like when Leonidas says, “a new age has come, an age of freedom,” that's a little hypocritical coming from a Spartan. However, the second half of the line, “all will know that 300 Spartans gave their last breath to defend it,” is technically true.

The sacrifice made by the Spartans was an inspiration to finally spark the city-states to work together. It lead to Philip of Macedonia uniting Greece and his son Alexander conquering the known world. So despite all their flaws the sacrifice of these brave men did start a chain reaction that protected and spread the ideals of democracy and freedom. Without that thin line a martyrs it's likely our world today would look very different.

PS

Xerxes, played by Rodrigo Santoro, makes a great evil character constantly tempting people to make a deal.