Up-close slaughter

Rating: 7/10 (3 April 2009)

OK, I liked it. Didn't love it. The whole CGI comic book look was a bit annoying. But that was largely the point, so I had to get over it. Also, it isn't a documentary, so some liberties taken with history are, I suppose OK. I don't think that the Spartans fought bare-chested because they weren't, well, suicidal morons. Oddly, some of the cheesiest dialog was straight out of Herodotus and other ancient sources. And while the battle gore is played for style points, it makes one reflect on the nature of warfare prior to gunpowder. It was up-close slaughter, often on a massive scale. The movie is worth checking out, just don't expect it to be something it's not.