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All Movie Info
Starring:
Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, Dominic West, David Wenham, Vincent Regan, Andrew Tiernan, Rodrigo Santoro, Stephen McHattie, Andrew Pleavin, Tom Wisdom, Michael Fassbender, Tom Wisdom, Greg Kramer, Alex Ivanovici, Kelly Craig, Giovani Cimmino
Directed By:
Zack Snyder
Written By:
Zack Snyder, Kurt Johnstad
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300 (2007)
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Movie Review by Zara 
March 10th, 2007
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My 300th Review (Surprise, surprise!)
I'm not even sure where to start with this review. I suppose it would be best to go with some observations.
* The reason why you can upload pages and pages of pictures to your MySpace profile is because the movie studio (Warner Brothers) was smart enough to pay an assload of money so that the coding could be done to make that feature so. The privilege to upload all of those pictures has been available for about a month and a half now, giving the studio a wealth of time to install the images into the brains of the computer using public (more or less you're a hermit if you don't have a MySpace page). The company has also paid an inordinate amount of money to plaster their image across several other sites (including the other one that I work for).
* All of that promotion appears to have paid off. Going to see a 7:10 pm screening at my local theater, arriving with 20 minutes to spare until lights were due to go down, we were told at the box office that the only seats available for that showing were in the front rows. The following showing was already 2/3rds of the way full. When we exited, there were people lined up up and down outside the theater (as well as inside) waiting to see the movie. I wouldn't be surprised to see on Monday that it's broken outstanding previous box office records, even despite maintaining a well-deserved "R" rating.
* The insanely beautiful benefit in going to a showing on opening weekend and sitting in a packed theater is getting to gauge the reaction of the audience as to how the movie as a whole will be received. When there are collective bursts of laughter, applause, cheering and whooping and hollering, you know you've got yourself a movie that people are going to go see at least once more before it exits the theaters. People were intensely into this movie. From what I observed there was an even mix of men and women both in groups of couples and groups of friends.
* Why does this movie appeal to both men and women? Well, the movie is gorgeously filmed, with the dark scenes rich in volumes of darkness, the light shining only on the men who are fighting for their right to remain free men. The warriors are plucked clean of their body hair, their bodies chiseled by physical training, muscles emphasized by the sheen of body make-up and the flattering golden hues in which they are filmed. This movie is meant to make women wet and men secretly hark back to the time when they played with their smooth action figures. The men kick ass and look damn f*cking good doing it.
* The other reason why this movie is such an appealing one for women is the fact that the influence of women is not repressed. While there is only one lead character in the XX brigade, she is a queen and she is damn strong. Starting off the movie with the line that "Spartan women give birth to REAL men," was just enough to sell the ladies out there. Watching her take charge later in the flick brought the strongest response from the audience, a wild display of shouting, cheering and clapping. It was not over quickly.... but everyone liked it. ;)
* There is nothing that I love more than blood. There is something about blood in a movie, appropriately or inappropriately used that will illicit a reaction from me. The movie is based on a graphic novel (Frank Miller's, the same man responsible for the story in SIN CITY) that I have never seen by a man that I was unfamiliar with before last year. That alone warrants that the violence will be grandiose and somewhat comical or implausible in nature. I don't mind cartoonish violence. I just want to see it handled with the right kind of approach. Recognize that it's over the top and embrace it rather than taking it too seriously or playing it too much of a joke. It is a rough balance to strike and 300 does it with an amazing amount of grace. Blood droplets splattering as if paint from Pollock's brush, the sprays of blood and gore dancing across the screen like liquid ballerinas... it was in a word... GLORIOUS.
* Of course this movie isn't for everyone. It is melodramatic and it is over the top and it is by nature slightly cartoonish. It is violent, bloody and loud. There is something in it for every group that wants to get offended to get offended by. 300 is the type of movie that people will either give 5 stars or none at all. And honestly? Being in the middle is the worse curse that a movie could get. Thus proving the intense power that this film holds.
Long live Sparta. May we all get a chance to be delivered that beautiful death.
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 | Tim
Mar 10, 2007 1:19 AM
also wrote a review of 300
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| This is my favorite movie of the year so far, I think it will be hard to beat. The flying arrows that darkened the sky was an awesome scene, as well as the King kicking the messenger and his people into what seemed to be the bottemless pit! I will go see this again before it leaves the theaters and will buy it on DVD.............. |
 | B Movie Ben
Mar 10, 2007 6:43 AM
also wrote a review of 300 
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| I hear that this is a great film for seeing the newest techniques in ab-oiling, and the state-of-the-art in faux decapitations and digitized blood spray. I'll be there at 11 this morning. Stay tuned. great review, by the way. |
 | Evil Eye
Mar 10, 2007 9:37 PM
also wrote a review of 300 
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| Damn! The previews I've seen had so little actual detail in them I didn't realize this was by Miller. I just saw Sin City for the first time today and I have to say I loved it. Sounds like I will have to add this one to my must watch list. |
 | Lisa
Mar 11, 2007 9:59 AM
also wrote a review of 300
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| I watched it last night....wow it was a truly amazing piece of film, and thoes abs mmmm I want a spartan ;) |
 | billr
Mar 10, 2007 8:26 PM
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Hello Zara,
I couldn't wait to see this movie! When I went to the theater I was very excited becuase there was so many people there to see the movie!
I was holding myself back because I love to read different histories of wars all around th world! I knew this movie would be hollywoodized and they didn't let me down!
They took an awesome true life story and killed it by mixing not true with some true facts!
I loved the same things you had said..well maybe not the glisening men but what the true spartian lady would say, how they held that pathway to the death and of course the blood and gore of it all!
Take care, Always! Bill |
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