Awe-inspiring epic adventure; remarkable overall

Rating: 9/10 (20 March 2007)

300 (2007) *** ½ Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, Dominic West, David Wenham, Vincent Regan, Michael Fassbender, Tom Wisdom, Andrew Pleavin, Andrew Tiernan, Rodrigo Santoro, Kelly Craig. Remarkable and groundbreaking adaptation of Frank Miller's cult classic graphic novel depiction of the historic account of the Spartans vs. Persians battle royale of Thermopylae circa 480 B.C. offers a large amount of flexibility and imagination with its ferocious, hyper-stylized violence replete with "Matrix"-like video game speed changes in the action in its largely CGI digital world amazingly realized by filmmaker Zach Snyder (who co-scripted with Kurt Johnstad and Michael Gordon) with a breakneck gonzo anything goes style that will have fanboys (and non-fanboys) rejoice. Butler stands out as the stoic, stalwart King Leonidas with a hint of Sean Connery gravitas setting the tone for the epic adventure. Truly mesmerizing.