The New Age of War Movies

Rating: 9/10 (12 March 2007)

It did not start with "Saving Private Ryan" & the motto "War is Hell." The new age for war movies started with "300" and "Why we fight." No, this isn't a recruitment movie for the armed forces. Surprisingly, this movie is about the reason for going to war, what would you lay your life down for, and ultimately about the sacrifices that have to be made for victory. But if you walked out of the movie saying "Gosh, that was really violent," you completely missed the point of the movie and should be kept from breeding.
Acting - Gerard Butler as Leonidas is at his best in this movie. No one else could deliver a corny line (about fighting for too long and how kneeling would hurt) any better. It was said with kingly charisma. The other standout was Lena Headly as Queen Gorgo. It's not often you see a strong woman character in a primarily male cast. All the others played their parts well, as Spartan soldiers willing to die.
Music - The perfect blend of metal and symphony but separated. Tyler Bates did a wonderful job. And there's nothing better than watching a band of angry Spartans marching towards the Persians with a heavy metal guitar-riff going.
SFX - Absolutely fantastic, except for Xerxes towering over Leonidas. That was very bad, but overall, the CGI and blue-screen work was fantastic. The stylized feel of the movie was brought out through this technique, and gave it a true comic-book feeling, even moreso than Sin City.
Overall - 9 out of 10. For the depth of this type of movie, it was near perfect. Eat that, Troy!