300 - a Movie Review

Despite the apparent simplicity of the movie (come on, it is a gorefest), it is actually quite complicated. There are so many different ways this movie can be viewed, with all of them being valid. One can find in equal measure reasons to hate it or reasons to love it and anyone can argue all sides. For me, there are plenty of things I don't like. Yet most of them were overwhelmed by the things that I came looking for.

I've never been a fan of comic books. Movies adapted from comic books, or graphic novels, have never really held any appeal to me. There are very few that I've enjoyed to any degree. I can't really say why that is. I have friends who are into the comic book scene and they have shown me some really fine examples of visual artistry, if not reasonable storytelling. The media simply never took root in my experience.

My first exposure to 300, through trailers, brought me face-to-face with what appeared to be a visual feast. It spoke to me the way a graphic novel might speak to a comic book fan. The visuals were so compelling, so powerful, and so otherworldly, that each image appeared to be a still frame of artistry.

If nothing else, I went to this movie simply to view it as one would wander the galleries of the museum looking at the artwork.

But that is an enough to warrant recommending a movie. There've been plenty of beautiful movies that aren't worth the celluloid they are filmed upon.

The other aspect of 300 that appeals to me most is the historical context of the Battle of Thermopylae. While I am not a classicist, certainly classical history of ancient Greece and Republican Rome figure strongly in my appreciation of world history and culture that we live within today. Thermopylae has always been a favorite of mine. While Herodotus and later historians of his era are certainly prone to exaggeration for the sake of storytelling, the heroism and importance of that battle are difficult to discount. I'm certain the actual events at the Battle of Thermopylae, if viewed in real time, might completely sap this stature. Consider any major historical event that has been inflated to the status of legend. Would we really want to see Washington shivering in his boat as he crossed the Delaware with runny nose and hacking cough?

Some events in history grow beyond realism.

There is no discounting the historical importance of accuracy. Facts must be known and understood. Reality must be respected. These facts are indispensable and inviolable.

However, at times it is appropriate to tell stories in a way that captures the feeling of the event augmented by the historical significance of the outcome and enhanced with the persona of the people involved in the event.

The ancient Greeks knew this. Shakespeare knew this. Modern storytellers know this.

Consider the stylized biography of any major historical figure. Events are compacted, enhanced, and synthesized in order to tell the tale of the essence of that person and what they accomplished. Is history harmed in these enhancements? There are times when the hook of entertainment becomes more important than precise accuracy. Historians are there to correct any minor misconceptions of the subject. Scholarly texts are there for those who are interested in digging deeper into the truth of a person or event. Sometimes, sparking interest in the subject is just as important as conveying the precise details.

Consider your own experience in school as a youth. Do you remember the dry, boring recitation of dates and events that seem to have little historical context or drama? The events being studied were tremendously important, yet they failed to engage the mind. No, I'm not arguing that accuracy needs to be sacrificed for an MTV attention span. I'm simply defending the concept of artistic license.

300 is not historically accurate. It is not meant to be. It is an adaptation of a visually stunning graphic novel inspired by a fantastically significant historical event of celebrated bravery. The details, both known and speculated, are available to anyone who wants to dig a little deeper. Go to the bookstore, or flip on the History Channel, sure to be awash in Spartan and Persian documentaries, very soon. You aren't going to find in-depth explorations of motivation or background. This film is not intended to send you home with a complete understanding of every historical detail. This is not a substitute for an education. If you want that, you'll never like this film, so don't waste your time.

If you want to feel for a couple of hours, rather than think, this will serve.

300 is a great story, told in the spirit of Greek mythology, with larger-than-life characters, fantastic events, and the otherworldly aura appropriate for people who saw the gods as everyday participants in their world. There's a reason for this. The story is actually a visual narration of a tale told by the fictional Diosos, a participant in the battle and a fellow Spartan. The story is presented the way a Greek would tell the story. The Spartans are full of valor, bravery, and heroic qualities, while the enemy is a force of decadence, misshapen beings, and monsters appropriate for an ancient Greek's imagination.

The use of CGI and visual enhancement in this movie is simply better than I've seen in any other movie. I'm not a big fan of CGI. All too often it's used in an exhibitionist fashion. "Look what we can do." To me, proper CGI should enhance the story or serve the story and characters, not overwhelm the material. In 300, the CGI meshes with the topic in order to tell the story in this spirit of Greek mythology, and Frank Miller's graphic novel. Sure, you know you're seeing visual effects. You know, the film was shot in front of a blue screen. You know that nearly everything you see is being enhanced. However, if you immerse yourself into the spirit, and the tone of the storytelling, you begin to see 300 for what it is; a visual masterpiece.

Some critics have described this is war porn. It certainly is violent. Men are impaled, stabbed, beheaded, limbs are chopped off, and digital blood flies. However, these things happen within the context of a comic book or graphic novel - not a cartoon, but a more adult presentation. The truth is, I saw more unsettling consequence of violence in Saving Private Ryan, and I certainly saw more gratuitous blood in Kill Bill. The violence of ancient combat is unavoidable when telling this story. The raw carnage of Thermopylae is a very aspect that makes the stand of the 300 heroic. It HAS to be portrayed. In my opinion, if such a thing can be possible, the violence was tastefully portrayed while still maintaining the impact.

I truly believe this was a beautiful film. Even before I saw it, so many scenes and images viewed on the net could be frozen, framed, and hung on my wall. These were iconic images of something that already had legendary status in my mind. These were a tableaux, capturing the spirit of a very important event in the distant past. The slow-motion effects froze the scene, while maintaining a very slight sense of motion, just as you would see in a graphic novel with the motion lines surrounding a picturesque scene. These are larger-than-life images. And that's what you're paying to see when you go see 300.

I am sorely tempted to go into a historical digression about the truth of the Battle of Thermopylae as known by historians. I fear I could prattle on for pages about the importance of this battle, the Greek civilization it preserved, the later efforts of Alexander the Great, and how all of this culminated in the Western civilization that dominates the world today.

I'm not going to do that to you.

Go see 300. Don't look at it like the History Channel. Look at it as legend brought to the screen in a legendary fashion. Watch it for the visual aesthetic. Appreciate it as a film that skillfully translates the graphic novel experience to celluloid.

And then come home, boot up your computer, and read about the mother of all last stands. Find the facts of Sparta, the 300, and the Thespian allies and also died at their side.

Or, if you want a more historically grounded fictionalized account, go get Gates of Fire, by Steven Pressfield. It's one of the best historical novels I've ever read.