A true epic of courage and sacrifice.

Rating: 10/10 (9 March 2007)

Ever since Gladiator, we have been subjected to many lesser movies like Troy and Alexander. But now with 300, the bar has been raised even higher. A visual masterpiece, 300 tells the story of King Leonidis and 300 of his Spartan warriors that defend their land from 250,000 invading Persian warriors. Their courage rallied an entire nation to fight against a foe previously thought invincible. I can't say enough about the amazing visuals in this movie. What surprised me the most is the film's use of slow motion. Normally I am wholeheartedly opposed to extensive use of it in action movies. What you usually see in slow motion action movies is things like a character leaping through the air firing 2 guns at the same time, or bullet casing hitting the floor, or people making impossible leaps in carefully choreographed martial arts fights. You guessed it, I'm not a fan of The Matrix, or any movie directed by John Woo. Not that I hate them, but give the slow motion a rest. But here, it actually serves the story and the characters. The Spartans were the best combatants of their time. They weren't simple countrymen who served in battle when they were needed. They were born and bred soldiers. They could easily handle themselves when faced with odds of 3 to 1...or more. The slow motion shows the ease with which they could dispatch multiple enemies without even breaking a sweat. The slow motion also gives an epic sense to the battle scenes that, if played in real time, would simply be a mind boggling jumble. It brings the brutality home. But the slow motion is just part of the visual style. From the great use of CG, to the color schemes, to the camera angles, the movie is a feast for the eyes. It truly NEEDS to be seen on the big screen to be appreciated. There is a sequence that shows the Spartans watching from the cliffs during a torrential storm while the Persian fleet is consumed by the sea that is a particular favorite of mine. Is there a ton of character development? No. But then, you don't need it. This is a simple story of men doing what they were trained to do, fighting for what they believed in against an enemy they knew they had no chance of defeating. Even in the face of certain death, their courage never wavers. They knew going in that they were fighting for something greater than themselves. Zack Snyder is quickly becoming one of my favorite directors. His remake of Dawn Of The Dead is not only the best zombie movie ever made, but one of my favorite horror movies of all time. He turned the genre on it's ear by changing the lumbering zombies of George Romero, and turning them into fast running, meat seeking missiles. Now with 300 he has taken the gladiator genre, shaken it, and given it a life like never before. It's truly unlike anything ever seen before. Hopefully a sign of things to come, 300 is the first must see movie of 2007.