I could not contain my disappointment

Rating: 2/10 (28 March 2007)

First off, if you go to see this film, go knowing it is a comic book adaptation and as such don't expect historical accuracy and expect mutants and everything else thrown in for good measure. It's pretty unfair to criticize the film on these points.
But you can be forgiven for thinking that with this sort of creative freedom surely the film can't fail? Well actually, it can.
There are so many bad points to this film it is hard to concentrate on exactly what to criticize. The most prominent failure of the film, however, is that it makes no effort to get the audience to care in any way for any character in the film at any time. It is a drawn-out, slow motion snooze-fest.
Admitedly the effects and cinematography are superb, but it is perhaps the films only saving grace.
Poor acting, simply awful dialogue (at which the audience sporadically giggled - not the intention of the film makers by the way) and a non-existent storyline hamstring what could have been a superb film.
The film is full of rousing speeches and gut-wrenching battles - but no ground is laid before it. What exactly are the Spartans trying to defend? They talk of being 'free men' who will not surrender to the dark forces of Persia. But what do they mean by free? From the evidence of the film, their definition of being free seems to mean being free to commit infanticide, to be free to practice homophobia (quite strange for such buff, under-dressed men who hang around all the time wearing nothing but thongs and flexing their muscles) and freedom to be blood thirsty thugs. In fact, the only admirable quality in their society may be that their women are not second-class citizens.
The 'bad guys' are de-famed as homosexuals (thus making it more righteous to kill) who are all black or Asian - specifically not white.
But aside from semantics and politics, the film just doesn't work. There are obvious holes in the plot that are glossed over (like the fact that there are 300 soldiers - but half way through the narrator says hundreds leave the battle field but visually the numbers remain the same). The characters are bland and have no individual personality. Their backgrounds are not given - therefore giving the audience no idea what they stand to lose and robbing them of all empathy. I could go on and on but this films simply isn't worth the time. Rent Sin City let this one go under your radar.