Monthly Archives: March 2007

300 is a record breaker. It was released in March and made $70 million in its first weekend. The results are astounding. But is it as good as these results suggest? To put it simply, the answer is yes, as long as you know what you’re getting into. This is not your average war epic, but it is your average graphic novel adaptation.

The key to 300 is its style. Like Sin City before it, the stylistic decisions behind the movie scream graphic novel. From beginning to end, it’s all about the shot. That’s the movie: a huge collection of shots, just like a graphic novel. The movie just has the advantage of motion and sound. You will often see shots of the battlefield and dramatic shots of the soldiers in and out of action. In the early scenes of the movie, you’ll see less of the “stunning” effect and more dramatic pictures of the characters as they speak, or shout as is more often the case. Later on, you’ll see tons of slow motion, and it never stops. Very little of the fighting is up to speed, literally. It’s less about the chaos of the battle and more about the stylistic view of a select few of the soldiers as they plow through hundreds of Xerxes’ forces. Some of the slow motion is implemented rhythmically, which creates an interesting effect. What I mean by that is that on a few occasions, you’ll see a character fighting in slow motion, then the action will speed up, and then go back to the same slow motion as before, all in a consistent rhythm.

Since this movie is about a war, the primary focus is on the battles, and if that’s what you want, then you will surely get your fix, as long as you care more about the style than the chaos of the battle (in other words, don’t expect another Battle of Helm’s Deep). This movie is not for the faint of heart, as there is no shortage of gore in it, and a bit of (arguably gratuitous) nudity as well. You will see blood from every soldier getting stabbed, but there are also a few extraordinary cases. I don’t want to give anything away, but rest assured that you will get a good view of a few gruesome deaths.

The story itself is simple. The focus is on a small army of 300 Spartans who held off thousands of Persians as Xerxes pushed through the Greek lands. This did actually happen historically, but 300 does not give a realistic portrayal of the events. In other words, this movie is not for history buffs; it’s for action fans, so don’t worry about having to deal with a lot of history. That said, there’s really not much to the story at all. That’s about it; it’s just really drawn out, although not to the point of feeling like a stretch. As I’m sure you’ve guessed from the previews, there’s a lot of shouting, and a lot of unrealistically dramatic dialogue (“Come back with this shield or on it”). The dramatic effect gained from this is very small and sometimes even begs a cry of “oh please.” But I doubt anyone will go see this movie hoping to see a good story anyway.

In terms of sound, it’s not bad, but it’s not exceptional either. As I said, most of the voice work is shouted. The soundtrack involves some hints of hard rock, which seems a bit out of place at times. It’s not overpowering though. Sound effects are good; it’s a lot of steel on steel, including some resonance, especially during slow motion, and there’s also a good bit of the traditional sound of metal stabbing into flesh.

The highly praised special effects are a key selling point here. My understanding is that the whole movie was shot indoors, which, after seeing it, sounds quite impressive. I can’t say much about the specifics without giving anything away, but I will say that it fits with the style and is high quality. The slow motion is very smooth, and you don’t get the choppy feeling that you sometimes get with slow motion in other films.

Like Sin City, the appeal here is entirely in the style. If that’s what you want, and if you enjoyed Sin City, then it’s pretty safe to assume that you will also enjoy this film. Don’t expect a good story or outstanding acting, but if all you want is some stylized metal-on-flesh action, then 300 is about as good as you’re going to get.