The World in a Nutshell: Prepare for Glory! - 300

I watched the movie "300" two weeks before not as a historian or a Frank Miller fan. At first I was skeptical; I never expected it would be worthy for the time spent, as I was busy with a lot of other things, but now I think I have been mistaken. The Movie is taken from FRANK MILLERS COMIC which is based around the event itself. It is a romanticized take on history; therefore, like everyone, I also expected to see Xerxes depicted as an evil tyrant and king Leonidas portrayed as some sort of superhero. In my view, it is a movie of amazing cinematography and unmatched action sequences. It combines the newest aspects of technology with old school warfare and it works. Like I said before, I watched this movie not as a historian or a comic book fan; I never have such a cross of ideals worked so well, putting prejudice aside and try to appreciate what; it as a very good movie. From the way I see it, the film set out primarily to entertain, and in that it succeeded with me. I liked the use of the grotesque monsters and such, just because those characters made the film fun.

The summary of plot is like this.

During the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, an alliance of Greek City States fought the invading Persian Army in the mountain pass of Thermopylae. The Greeks held back the then Persian Army which was vastly outnumbered in one of the most famous last stands of history. Persian King Xerxes led an Army of well over 100,000 (Persian king Xerxes before war had about 170,000 army). Men to Greece was confronted by 300 Spartans, 700 Thespians, and other Slave soldiers. The battle lasted for about 3 days, and after which all 300 Spartans were killed. The Spartan defeat was not the one expected as a local shepherd named Ephialtes, defected to the Persians and informed Xerxes of a separate path through Thermopylae, which the Persians could use to outflank the Greeks.

Since I watched the movie at home and my neighbor was preparing for exams, I couldn't enjoy the acoustic effects of the DVD to its full extent, and I couldn't anywhere compare it with the theater. Because of the excellent soundstripe editing, the mixing as well as considering the DVD print, I got the real experience of a #1 movie. I could experiece its sound mixing perfection from the very beginning.

The movie begins with the birth of the Spartan King Leonidas, his childhood, and combat training. Furthermore, I can say countless events up to the last moment of the movie; like the growling of the wolf, the first shot of Persian messenger’s arrival and the impressive scene of Persian messenger with conquered King Heads, King Leonidas's reaction towards the messenger, etc. Therefore, I think it's one of the best movies I have seen in the recent times. Below listed are the names of some of the actors and their names in the movie.

Gerard Butler - King Leonidas
Lena Headey - Queen Gorgo
Dominic West - Theron
David Wenham - Dilios
Vincent Regan - Captain
Michael Fassbender - Stelios
Tom Wisdom - Astinos
Andrew Pleavin - Daxos
Andrew Tiernan - Ephialtes

Rodrigo Santoro - Xerxes
Giovani Cimmino - Pleistarchos
Stephen McHattie - Loyalist
Kelly Craig - Oracle Girl

Some scenes from the Movie: