300 (2006)

Director:

Zack Snyder

Writers (WGA):

Zack Snyder (screenplay) &
Kurt Johnstad (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

9 March 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | History | War

Tagline:

Prepare for glory!

Plot:

King Leonidas and a force of 300 men fight the Persians at Thermopylae in 480 B.C.

Plot Keywords:

Xerxes | Stylization | Unreliable Narrator | Lesbian Kiss | Extreme Gore

Awards:

6 wins & 28 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. May 24	8:00 PM	HBO
Sun. May 25	3:20 AM	HBO
Tue. May 27	8:00 PM	HBO

Cast

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 (as Giovani Antonio Cimmino)
Stephen McHattie	...	Loyalist
Greg Kramer	...	Ephor #1
Alex Ivanovici	...	Ephor #2
Kelly Craig	...	Oracle Girl

Also Known As:

300: The IMAX Experience (USA) (IMAX version)

MPAA:

Rated R for graphic battle sequences throughout, some sexuality and nudity.

Runtime:

117 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | Sonics-DDP (IMAX version) | SDDS

Certification:

New Zealand:R16 | Portugal:M/16 | Brazil:16 | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | UK:15 | Iran:(Banned) | Italy:T | Ireland:15A | Germany:16 | Netherlands:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Australia:MA (new rating) | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | France:-12 | Norway:15 | Singapore:M18 | Finland:K-15 | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | USA:R (certificate #42864) | Malaysia:18PL (original rating) | Peru:14 | Malaysia:18PL | South Korea:18 | Japan:R-15 | Australia:MA | Australia:R (original rating) | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Icestorm Studios, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The line "Come back with your shield, or on it" was a common phrase said by Spartan women to their sons and husbands. It was common Spartan practice to bear the dead soldiers on their shields. The phrase "Come back with your shield" was a reference to the fact that a soldier who showed cowardice would usually drop his very heavy shield as he ran away in order to escape faster.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the scene in which the battle rhino appears, the rhino can be seen passing through one of the Persians.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Dilios: When the boy was born, like all Spartans, he was inspected.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Big Fat Quiz of the Year (2007) (TV)

Computer-Effects Extravaganza Better Than I Expected

300 Once again, not having high expectations turned a movie into a pleasant surprise. Oh, this isn't anything super, but it is a lot better than I had heard. Yeah, I heard the usual "it's just moronic mayhem, nothing but blood and guts and way overdone action."

Not really. I've seen a number of films with a lot more action than in here. When they did have it, unlike a lot of other films, the carnage didn't go on and on. It lasted a few minutes at most and broke for a lull.

The only aspect I thought was sub-par was some of the dialog, which sounded juvenile in spots. That and, at least for me, I found myself unable to get involved with any of the characters. Oh, I definitely did not want "the bad guy" to win but I didn't think the "good guy" was anything appealing, either.

What WAS appealing were the colors in here and the special-effects. What a tremendous visual movie this is, just stunning in parts and interesting to look at from start-to-finish. That's what held my attention. Sure, I could tell the obvious computer-generated effects, but so what? This movie simply was fun to ogle, with all it's incredible scenery, outrageous monster-like characters and dramatic colors. For that alone, this movie is worth seeing.