a beautious action orgy like no other

Rating: 7/10 (25 March 2007)

Two years ago the cinemagoing audience got a taste of all things Frank Miller with Robert Rodriguez's seminal adaptation of Sin City,which remains to this day one of the most seminal comic book/graphic novel adaptations of recent years - it also helps that Quentin Tarantino lent his directing panache, earning himself and the film even more kudos - truly the floodgates to all thing's Miller-related had opened.
Knowing this would have put any future director of Miller's work under the spotlight, especially one Zack Snyder. Despite proving the naysayers wrong with his crack of George Romero's legendary Dawn of the Dead in 2004,many could argue that he is still an unproven director. 300 should and will remedy that. The original Frank Miller/Lynn Varley work remains a graphic novel spectacular and so this adap will be as well in film.
Let's clear a few things up; anyone expecting a historical epic in similar vein to Gladiator may walk away disappointed.The sole reason to stump up the cash for this is to bear witness to its violent excess. With copious amounts of CGI claret spilled, the appetite of gorehounds will be satiated. The Spartan 300 are nigh-on invincible cleaving through the Persian hordes like the cannon fodder that they truly are. With the 300 trained in the art of war, seeing them clashing blades is as gratifying as it is bloody. Even with the arrival of various dark beasts, they are truly gods of war until an unexpected development rears its ugly head. The acting from all involved is sub-standard throughout, but Gerard Butler's portrayal of Spartan King Leonidas - even though verging on campiness- shines through with gusto and is also gifted with several witty resorts. Visually, the film is stunning with every frame being a work of art in its own right due to some splendid CGI. The skirmishes that play out are gifted with an aesthetic quality that is gratuitously bloody and alluring all at the same time. The visuals are sumptuous and are backed up with SFX of equal standing. So, one can surmise that though light on actual plot, the battles that ensue more than rectify this niggle. Here's hoping that Zach Snyder rightfully gets the recognition he deserves, because this is one heck of a calling card to Hollywood if there was one and shows he has what it takes to propel SFX-heavy action forward. One can only imagine what treats a Snyder-directed adap on Alan Moore's Watchmen can bring us. 4/5