A Visually Stunning Yet Hollow Film

Rating: 2/10 (28 March 2007)

Don't believe all the hype. 300 is not the great film that it has been made out to be by many viewers. While it does have some of the most stunning visuals yet done in CGI, the film is hollow in terms of its acting, writing, direction, and practically everything else.
The film's main draw is its amazing CGI effects. Here at least the film doesn't fail to live up to expectations. The battle sequences are incredible if one looks at them only if taken at face value. They are what kept my attention during the film and the fact that the entire film is practically nothing more then CGI is a good thing because otherwise this film would have been a complete waste. The CGI effects might be great, but they certainly can not make up for the lack of other elements in the film.
Everything else in the film is effectively a hollow shell. The acting is among the worst you will see in a major release though I will Gerad Butler credit for trying to make the best of the truly terrible script he was handed. What makes actors of his caliber do these types of mindless films is beyond reason. Outisde of him the entire cast should have been fired and replaced by someone a little more capable of acting.
The writing is horrendous. The historical battle was thrown out of the window entirely. The dialouge is every cliché we have come to expect from any ancient epic movie Hollywood has ever produced. There is not a single memorable piece of dialouge I came out of this film with and I certainly don't plan on wasting my money to go see this again. I understand the want to bring the Frank Miller graphic novel tot the screen but do we have to throw out everything real about the battle out do it? I mean, when you are stripping warriors almost entirely out of their armor and changing battle formations just so they, in the words of director Zack Snyder, "look cool" then what is the point of a film?
The answer: none at all.
In short, if you are looking for some mindless action film then go see this. If you re looking for something more intelligent then avoid this film like the plague. Might I recommend waiting for this to come out on DVD and then renting it instead of wasting money by seeing it in a theater. You won't regret it.