By now, most of you should know what 300 is all about. In addition to being a loose retelling of the Spartans stand against the Persians at the battle of Thermopylae, it is, furthermore, a film adaptation of Frank Miller's classic graphic novel of the same name. Many a comic geek, myself included, have waited with bated breath for a year or two now since it was announced that Zack Snyder was setting forth to bring the book to life. As time grew near and the footage and clips started to leak out, excitement and hype grew. Finally, on March 9th many a nerd's wet dream came true and the film finally hit theaters. Well I'm happy to say folks, the hype was well deserved. I managed to catch this one last Saturday and in an effort to stave of the rampant fanboy-ism that's been raging forth from my own girded loins all week, I've managed to hold off on the review until now. Still, after near five days post viewing I still find it hard to not let forth with a barrage of WOOOO! HECK YA! WOOOOOOOOOO!s even to this day.
Author Brian Keene summed up my own post viewing feelings pretty nicely: "When the movie was over, I wanted to pick a fight with 20 complete strangers, kick their collective ass, kill an elephant with my bare hands, eat it, bathe in blood, and then go home and make love to my queen. Instead, I sat in Baltimore/Washington gridlock and got grumbled at by my queen for waking her up at midnight. And then the dog farted on me as I slid into bed."Both of us must have gone to sleep with the same desire: "I wish I was a Spartan."There so much I loved about this movie. So much there to get the blood boiling. Being a long time fan of the original book, I saw the movie as following along closely throughout. With the exception of an increased story surrounding the queen, we're pretty much spot-on for the book. That's a big plus for book-to-movie adaptations and one that should make any fan happy. Next up on the highlight reel is the cinematography. Shot entirely on green screen, 300 showcases a washed out look giving us a movie somewhat dreamy in appearance. Furthering the cinematography angle we get down to real meat-and-potatoes: The fights. Oh boy the FIGHTS. WOOOOOOOO! FUCK YAH!!!!!!! er....sorry. Slipped out. Flying limbs, spattering CGI blood, countless bodies, walls of bodies, falling walls of bodies, the fighting machine that is a Spartan shield wall... the list goes on and on. Even in the pen and ink of the book, the fight scenes were gruesome and gritty and were a character all their own. On film it is one and the same. Finally, Gerard Butler? Kicks ass. Plain and simple. Many historians may pooh-pooh the historical accuracy of 300, but I pooh-pooh right back at them. Never once has Frank Miller claimed for this to be an accurate account of the Spartans - just simply loosely-based. This simple fact is what may prevent some from enjoying this film. If you prepare yourself ahead of time for an action adventure flick full of ass kicking then prepare to have a good time. For the fellow comic nerds out there fearful of yet another comic book movie that will shit all over your childhood, fear no more. They got it right this time. 
manly bearded men out of
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Article comments
1 - Dawn
We just watched it last night. Comic book gore and horror aside, it's the symbolism I am digging. Great, great movie. Really great.