"Hey, you, what is your profession?"

Rating: 7/10 (5 April 2007)

First of all I must start saying this is NOT a Historic movie but an Inspired in History Epic movie! It is, as we all shall know, an adaptation of a Frank Miller's graphic novel inspired in the Greek legend of the 300 men who fought until death, under King Leonidas' orders, against thousands of Persians. So, as the movie is an adaptation of a graphic novel based on courage and bravery it acts like that, meaning by other words, it's just an epic movie that illustrates bravery, courage and glory. That's nothing else. It's inspired in historic happenings, but it doesn't follow them faithfully, it's not its intention/purpose.
If we see the film by this point of view, we will find it pretty good, in spite of not being the best epic movie I've ever seen In fact, I think there are a great number of epic movies, based in history, that are better than this one. I can remember BREAVEHEART In my opinion was better than this 300 Anyway, 300 is definitely a good quality epic movie.
On the other hand, what annoyed me the most – and it has nothing to do with the movie – was some comments, here on IMDb, saying this movie is Fascist, based on propaganda, racist, that terrorists and Hitler would appreciate it OH MY GOD! From WHERE came out these people who keep saying such silly crap?!
Let me just ask you something:
Is it a violent movie that praises violence, rage, and hate? YES, it is.
Is it a movie that discriminates the strong people from the weak, suggesting that the weaker and the disable ones should die to let the strong live? YES, it is.
Is it a movie that proposes us to fight for a cause and die, if necessary, to defend it? YES, it is.
Is it a movie that worships war instead of peace, ignoring the loss of 300 lives, just to claim an ideal of glory and pride? YES, it is.
It's ALL TRUE! but HEY you BLIND people just LOOK into HISTORY and search for yourselves:
if in the Ancient Sparta the children were not educated and military trained like the movie describes;
if they didn't kill the weakest and disable ones to just maintain the stronger in order to create the best soldiers;
If they weren't trained in the worst possible conditions and weren't ready to die for their land!
These men were just professional soldiers, born and trained to do just one thing in their lives: fight! They had no other professions like blacksmith, farmer, pastor – like one scene of the movie clearly portrays! No, they were warriors, just that!
This film is just portraying realistically the ancient Sparta nation, so all those comparisons are absolutely absurd and without any sense. We can't look to the Ancient world with the same moral standards of our modern societies. We can't say this film is fascist just because it portrays a social behaviour (truth at that time) that nowadays we consider absolutely barbaric and salvage! The History is like that, we cannot change it! If we want to do something with historic sense we must be faithful to it, and not change it just because nowadays it's morally incorrect!
About the terrorist propaganda another one that makes me laugh! This "western world" in going out crazy about the terrorist issue! If this film was shot just 15 years ago nobody would say it has a terrorist message! You all are PARANOID with terrorism! Just because it shows us glory becoming from death and suffering, just because it praises the death for a cause, it's terrorist propaganda! So did BREAVEHEART, and nobody said it had a terrorist message!
Other people say it's propaganda to the US army, because it shows us a gigantic force (Persians) crushing a small group of rebellions (the Spartans), and those would be the "terrorists" crushed by the military power of the bigger force What they forgot is that either in History as in the movie, that Persian gigantic force (the invaders, just like the US army!) was defeated by the Greeks (the defenders of their land) – not those 300, but the complete army – so even here the comparisons are absolutely ridiculous!
Now, back to the movie, after all is what really matters! I just loved the characterization, especially of the Persians! The King Xerxes (played by Brazilian actor Rodrigo Santoro) and the Persian Immortals are simply fantastic! They may not be faithful to real history but they are amazing! As I said in the beginning the characterization mixes the "real" world with a world of fantasy and mysticism used in the graphic novels I think the movie was improved by this type of characterization and fantasy.
Definitely, not a brilliant, but a pretty good epic movie!