In theaters.
300 is based on Frank Miller's graphic novel of the same name, and features the battle of Thermopylae between Sparta and Persia in 480 B.C. The central conflict is between Xerxes, the self-proclaimed god/king of Persia, and Leonidas, the revered and virile king of Sparta. The plot centers around the invasion of Sparta by Xerxes, and Leonidas' decision to fight their millions of men with only 300 Spartan soldiers.
Overall the movie doesn't live up to the hype, unless you enjoy staring at large, scantily clad, muscle bound men. The fight scenes and visuals were excellent, but they don't make up for a lack of a cohesive or engaging story. This is a movie that celebrates violence for the sake of violence, and although I was excited by several of the slow-motion action sequences, it didn't make up for the 3 graphic beheadings, etc. The script does subtly explore a couple of themes that I liked, the corruption of the church and the regret of neglecting family at the point of death. It also shows the downfall of the Spartans as directly related to the rejection of a flawed soldier who defects to the other side and exposes the weakness of the Spartans to Xerxes.
The most interesting thing about the movie is the discussion in the media regarding the movie as a political statement. Journalists at the Berlin Film Festival were equally passionate that George W. Bush was represented by Xerxes and Leonidas. To say he is Xerxes, corrupt leader of a morally bankrupt nation that is running roughshod over anyone that stands in his way, is to display an anti-American bias. To say he is Leonidas is to say that the US represents light and reason, as well as a military giant to be feared by the modern day Xerxes, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran.
In reality, I doubt the director, Zack Snyder, intended any political meaning, and the film is far from an intelligent commentary on world affairs. The most accurate attribution of the sides, based on the characteristics given the 2 civilizations and their leaders, would be the US as Persia/Xerxes and Al Queada as Sparta/Leonidas. That is not my perspective, but I think if you are an Islamofascist, you see the US as a morally corrupt and greedy nation and you see yourself as a warrior firmly committed to a cause. If you were to change "Sparta" to "Islam" in the dialogue of the movie, the similarities become clearer.
Favorite Scene: Leonidas attempting to get the blessing of the gods; his attitude throughout the scene is one of the best parts of the movie.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
300 - C+
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6 comments:
I also watched it over the weekend and was going to write a review. I'm not sure how to evaluate it, but ultimately gave it a B, in that I think it exactly realizes that to which it aspires. The film is often beautiful and the special effects are phenomenal. The speech is stilted and full of testosterone-fueled platitudes about honor and courage. That said, military (and our contemporary outgrowth of it, sports) speeches tend towards the use of statements like "Give 110%", "No Fear", etc..., so it is probably fitting. The battle sequences in some ways harken back to Kill Bill in the beauty of the violence.
In the way of Greek tragedies, it is the very thing that makes the Spartans great (the fact that they kill the physically inferior) that is ultimately their downfall. Likewise, the film explores all the Spartans sacrifice in the name of being great soldiers, including their inability to show weakness or emotion. In this way the film both celebrates the Spartans pursuit of excellence and mourns the loss of their humanity.
I did a little research on the battle. Most historians believe that the Persian force of Xerxes at that time was between 500,000 and 1,000,000 (although historians of the time placed it as high as 5,000,000). Apparently, in the first two days of fighting, the Spartans (and their other Greek allies, who appear to have played a much larger role than that assigned to them in the film) did kill between 20,000 and 30,000 of the Persian forces.
*Parental Note (and I'm not a parent) This is rated R for good reason. The violence is intense and the nudity and sex is glorified. I read a reviewer who called a scene in Xerxes tent "the Star Wars cantina scene meets Caligula." That seems about right.
I almost gave it a B-, but I just didn't like it at all, so it was hard to pull it out of the C's.
I didn't see Sin City (the other Frank Miller graphic novel movie) and I think its safe to say the 'graphic novel turned movie' genre isn't my favorite.
sin city is more stylized and more visually arresting, but it's ultimately a morality tale told by the completely immoral. i thought it was a load of crap in boogie nights and the people vs. larry flynt and i think it's a load of crap in sin city. it's ultimately about redemption, but it has the crackle of confederate money to me.
Agree on Larry Flynt, disagree on Boogie Nights. Boogie has more of a detached viewpoint and no 'high road', whereas Larry Flynt tries to glorify the man and his activities.
Boogie shows the people for what they are; desperate and broken people who've finally found a 'family', and the reality is that family is anything but. All the things that Dirk thought would make him happy (the 'dojo', the 'vette, the girls) just temporarily improved his life before he went back to being a loser.
i see your point. i know you're a fan of that film and i'm not. if i'm going to listen to a morality tale, i need someone or something moral within it, or at least an implied moral vantage point outside it. without that, it's nihilism. i didn't feel like boogie nights offered either. the notion that i need a movie to explain to me that the porn industry ultimately can't make someone happy or fulfill them is ludicrous. that said, i only watched the movie once, and that was ten years ago, so i might take a great deal more away from it now.
I wouldn't call Boogie Nights a morality tale. Everyone of the characters suffers greatly when they attempt to venture into the real world. No one is ultimately redeemed in the movie.
The movie about this morally bankrupt group works because everyone in the movie give career-best performances, including the best female performance of the 90s. And it's directed with astonshing technique and flair, with subtle references to Goodfellas and Raging Bull.
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