A metaphor for modern times

Rating: 7/10 (11 April 2013)

We could argue all day and night about the historical inaccuracies of this movie, but there is little point in doing so, since the record of the Persian Wars relies upon the investigations of Herodotus.
"300" has much more to say about the modern times we live in than it does about the Hellenic conflict with Persia.
300 "western" men face the hordes of the East. This is a metaphor for the economic crisis western developed nations have faced over recent decades as the lands of the East have regained their confidence and challenged western supremacy.
Sparta was no democracy. There are no Athenians in 300. No Pericles or Cleisthenes to enable the 300 to vote on the best course of action. Leonidas was a king of Sparta but in 300 he represents the contemporary CEO of a western corporation, standing firm to resist the onslaught of Eastern economies on his homeland.
This is a movie, an action movie, a CGI movie, that provides a statement on the difficulties we in the west face today, right now. Do we give in to the economic dominance of China, Japan, Korea and India, or do we fight and fight hard to the last man standing. The Greeks won their wars against the East. Shall we do the same?