Fantastic on the surface, a little burlesque underneath

Rating: 7/10 (11 May 2007)

Firstly, I must state that my initial reaction after watching this movie was, well, not quite "wow", but it was quite fantastic! Okay, so what was it? A highly exaggerated and lavish account of the Battle of Thermopylae in which King Leonidas and 300 fellow Spartans defended their land from the Persian invasion. Sounds exciting, doesn't it? Well, it is. Very. For much of the movie I found myself tensing and sitting in unease, and for much of the movie I also found myself laughing at the Laconian wit expressed so very effectively throughout.
The visuals were much at the centre of 300, making heavy use of CGI and choreographed in total accordance with the style of the movie. it was bold, it was relentless and it worked. There is no denying that I thoroughly enjoyed this movie.
The acting..well, Gerard Butler held his character perfectly and pulled off a stunning performance. The expressions he used conveyed many emotions and at times he held everything together. In fact, all main characters had noteworthy performances (well, for all there was to their characters).
However, despite everything I just said, anyone who watches movies on a deeper level than the gloss and style of the visuals and the action-packed storyline will be slightly, if not overly, disappointed. Perhaps not disappointed, but aggrevated or even just slightly annoyed. The fantastical style adopted may well have been totally in aid of storytelling and embracing the mythical nature of the events at Thermoplyae, complementing an extraordinary story with extraordinary extras. However, this is not my gripe. The level to which the credibility of the story has been stretched is my gripe. Between elephants, rhinos and ridiculously disfigured beings participating in warfare, the battle techniques used and even the gross overuse of homophobia and racism in the movie was quite unsettling and at times totally farcical.
This movie, like most action movies, can be viewed on two different levels. One will leave you amazed by the aesthetic values and sheer style of the battle scenes. However, the other will uncover a sensationalist tale of myth rather than Ancient History.