Go Tell the Spartans…
By BooBooKitty Posted in Heroism | History | Hollywood | Thermopylae — Comments (32) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Go Tell the Spartans… that a tale of bravery and the price of freedom, a film about an innovative culture that birthed democracy will not be looked upon kindly by “progressive” movie critics. But wait, I will get back to the big-city boobs after I give you the low down on Zack Snyder’s rendition of Frank Miller’s graphic novel 300 that chronicles the ancient battle of Thermopylae.
More below the fold...
I wasn’t a big fan of the graphic novels and comic books for which Frank Miller is famous. In fact, I never had heard of the guy until I watched his movie adaptation of the graphic novel Sin City. I was holed up in my bedroom with a sinus infection, there was a storm raging outside, and I was too tired to sleep so I purchased this odd looking movie thinking it might distract me from my misery. It proved to be more than distracting; it was downright stimulating and uniquely entertaining. The super-sized visualization of all things human, both good and bad but mostly bad, was portrayed so stunningly by the CGI enhanced characters of Basin City that I could have enjoyed the movie even without sound.
I am an avid fan of pulp fiction, paperbacks that is, so I can imagine it is the same thrill and pace of my beloved space operas, science fiction, fantasy, and futuristic military epics that Frank Miller’s fans must love about his work. Classical literature is great if you want to ponder life and the mundane, but give me a Harry Dresden, Drizzt Do’Urden, or an Honor Harrington to stimulate my imagination and for an hour or two of escapism any day. These books are meant to be read as if one is participating, at a break neck speed and with raw emotion. Taken in at 100 to 200 page bursts with little long term retention, experienced instead of studied, and enjoyed for what they evoke emotionally, not mentally. Sin City revved up the same emotional treadmill I get from pulp fiction through its cinematography instead of words. 300 cranks its up a notch, straps you into a breastplate, slaps a xiphos into your hand, and hurls you into the bloody Battle of Thermopylae and the famous stand of the Spartans.
If you do not already know the story, then I recommend catching the History Channel’s Last Stand of the 300 for a great presentation of one of history’s most memorable battles. Here’s the gist, 300 Spartans fight hundreds of thousands of Persians in an Alamo-like stand that can only end one way and does, but not before the Spartans put an old fashion thrashing on the much larger force. 300 has a narrator that sounds like he could be reading the text blocks of Miller’s novel, and much is explained in this manner from the unique habits of the Spartan warrior culture to the events leading up to the battle. Little of the story is conveyed by the characters, they are there instead for emotional investment and to pull you into the action. The Spartans are portrayed in the movie as they are drawn Miller; half naked, sculpted pecs, brusque, manly and loud. The Persians are done the same, yet in a grotesque Baron Harkonnen-ish fashion that makes you hate them just as much as you’re perversely fascinated. They clash on the CGI sculpted Thermopylae pass in an almost historically accurate (minus the Hollywood bells and whistles) brutal and bloody battle that is artfully choreographed. The blood and severed limbs enhance ones enjoyment instead of distracting or serving merely as shock value. I know, that’s sounds horrible, but it’s true!
That is the beauty of this movie.
The lines are cleanly drawn, the Spartans are good and the Persians are bad. One need not waste any grey matter on moral relativism; just pick up a spear and fight! You have freedom and bravery on one side and submission and wickedness on the other. The good guys have all the right one-liners and the bad guys just sneer and look sinister. The movie is almost two hours long, yet it is so fun and engrossing that it feels more like thirty minutes. The end is historically inevitable, but never fear, it is still inspiring and uplifting. There is more to the movie than the battle, yet the rest follows the same line of good versus evil with the bad guys getting their just desserts.
And now to get back to the big city boobs who ballyhooed this movie here, here, and here. Take my advice guys, the less you try to make everything a sexual, political, cultural, or racial issue the more likely we will all better get along. If you watched this movie and thought “they shouldn’t be dogging the men from NAMBLA” or “not all heroes are white” then you missed the whole point of going. This movie is meant to be a wild ride that gets your juices pumping, not an analogy for modern day issues.
So if you are intent on taking away my visceral, visual, and just plain fun film pleasures then I say… Molon Labe!
Cross posted from The Minority Report and The Hinzsight Report
but I really don't like how the previews to "300" look, and I especially hate varying speeds of action shots and guitar riffs soundtracking a story fron ancient times. Maybe it's better than I think but those are my immediate impressions.
It too had awful, MTV-style commercials, with music that was completely out of place for the subject matter.
Yet the movie had none of that crap. In fact, the score was one of its strongest parts.
made it look like some kind of lighthearted mod movie, which of course it wasn't.
I saw in a review that metal guitar is in the actual "300" soundtrack but I guess I'll know better if I actually see the movie. I still hate choppy action shots and varying degrees of slow motion.
A weakness that 300, fortunately, does not suffer from.
Gladiator's greatest mistake was the duplicate of First Knight. It took a story that was well-known and mangled it in a Disneyish style.
300 at least keeps the important parts of the story of the 2nd Invasion by the Persians intact. And instead of changing the rest of the story, just plain left it out.
There are those who look on Dresden and Tokyo and Hiroshima as some of the greatest evils ever perpetrated by man. I look on them and thank the perpetrators for saving millions.
Guitar riffs fro me, brings up the image of a stoner (my apologies guitar world)cranking out random samplings. The sound track is much, much more and greatly adds to the raw emotion of the movie. Here is a revirew of the musical score:
Two trends in film composing power Tyler Bates' soundtrack to 300: the fusion of electronic effects and instrumentation with traditional orchestral instruments, and the use of Eastern-inflected vocals to evoke the ancient world. Fans of Rome and Battlestar Galactica will recognize the latter technique; on 300: Original Soundtrack Recording, Iranian recording artist Azam Ali does the lead vocal honors. 300—based on a popular graphic novel by Frank Miller (The Dark Knight Returns)—brings the Battle of Thermopylae (that's be 300 Spartans versus the Persian Army, circa 480 BCE) vividly back to life. In the manner of Miller's Sin City collaboration with Robert Rodriguez, 300 finds director Zack Snyder (Dawn of the Dead) emulating Miller's intense layouts.
Of course, a graphic novel has no soundtrack, giving Bates free reign to create an original soundscape to complement the visuals. Best known for his work on The Devil's Rejects and Dawn of the Dead, Bates furthers his postmodern push to enhance conventional orchestral scoring with the electric energy of rock music. The soundtrack is constructed of 25 relatively short cues. Opening track "To Victory" (2:34) sounds Bates' battle cry, employing a pulsing electric-guitar drive, emphatic percussion, haunting vocals and martial chanting, to searing effect. Quieter tones build during the foreshadow-y "The Agoge" (2:33) and "The Wolf" (2:34), leading into the full-bodied choral extravaganza (punctuated by cymbal crashes) that is "Returns a King" (2:22). "Submission" (2:39) follows an ethereal vocal line into a threatening brass tone.
You can find the whole review here.
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Thou art the Great Cat, the avenger of the Gods, and the judge of words...-Inscription on the Royal Tombs at Thebes
I hope the movie gets the number of Greeks soldiers right, and does not perpetuate a falsehood that it was only 300 Spartans that fought the Persians at Thermopylae.
In the beginning, there were something like 7,000 Greeks, led by the Spartans. Even after Leonidas wisely dismissed most of the Greeks so they could live to fight another day, 700 or so (Thespians or Thebans???) remained and made the final, heroic, legendary stand with the Spartans.
And yes, I'm a bit surprised that the Diversity Police have not come down hard on this movie, considering how its a bunch of white guys fighting the good fight against an Eastern horde bent on conquest and domination. In fact, I'm surprised that the filmmakers did not cast the Spartans with a nod towards modern worship of diversity, and that a blonde-hair, blue-eyed guy wasn't cast as Xerxes.
...I don't really see any reason in not following history as it relates to the numbers. The Spartan heroism was no less spectacular because they had some help.
But do you know what the comic book or film in fact says about the numbers? I'm curious.
I don't know it, I am more a non fiction history guy. I doubt they pretend it was 300 from the start. I do agree with you history should be accurate but movies just never do this.
Molon Labe!
Both Thespians and Thebans remained, according to Herodotos. Whatever was left of the 700 Thespians and 400 Thebans would have remained - with the Thebans, again according to Herodotos, being kept there against their will, while the Thespians, under Demophilos, remained willingly.
The legend, though, is that 300 Spartans fought alone against the Persians; have you heard any contradiction to that in the popularized tale? Few remember the Thespians being there, and a cinemagraphic representation of the events should not be expected to show otherwise.
I didn't know that the Spartans were joined by the Thebans and Thespians for the final stand until I read up on the subject.
that 300 vowed to take a stand, no matter what, and inspired their allies, much like when Col. Lawrence told the Arabs, on the march to Aqaba, "if they see 100 men crossing from the desert, 1000 will join."
but in the movie there is a faction of "Arcadians" that join the 300. You don't get to see the size of their army, but the dialogue implies that it is considerably larger than the 300 Spartans.
There was one specific reference to the Thespians that I recall, but it was between 2 of the Spartans.
Much like a good book is adapted slightly for the big screen, Frank Miller and Zack Snyder took liberties with the history, and made an immensely entertaining, action-packed, and overall excellent film.
The history was surprisingly accurate in many respects (although hundreds of small deviations could be pointed out), and, if anything, the interest in the Persian Wars piqued by this film should encourage people to learn more of the actual history on their own.
Of course, Herodotos is the best of primary sources on the events in the Persian Wars and at Θηρμοπυλαι. The seventh book of his Histories, entitled "Polymneia," contains the account of Xerxes' expedition through this fabled battle.
As BBK mentioned in this excellent diary, the History Channel's "Last Stand of the 300" documentary - one of the best History Channel pieces I have seen to date - is a good source of information, as well.
I'll see this film again, and highly recommend it. At the very least, it is a captivating starting point for learning about the actual history of the Ancient Greeks and, from there, of Western Civilization.
Oh, and FWIW, I thought Sin City was as appallingly awful a film as I've ever seen.
...can you tell me what the movie says about the number of Greeks at the battle? Does the battle begin with the 7000-strong allied force. Does it mention how the Thebans and Thespians remained to make the final stand?
I don't know why I'm so fixated on this, but for some reason I want to know before I see it...if I see it in theaters at all that is.
...were the Arcadians, who departed before the last stand. Though the film was over two hours long, it could have used a good deal more time not only to include more peoples, but also to develop more characters.
Though if you have the chance to see it on IMAX.
It does not specifically mention how many people are in the army. Nor does it mention the fact that the Athenian fleets beat the stuffing out of Xerxes's naval forces and sank half his total army of 2million. The movie is about the power and bravery of 300 free men who knew they were marching off to die when they left for the pass of Thermopylae to face off a against a million slaves (and that much, at least, is historically accurate).
There are those who look on Dresden and Tokyo and Hiroshima as some of the greatest evils ever perpetrated by man. I look on them and thank the perpetrators for saving millions.
I'm going to see it Monday, hopefully.
I also hope the release of this film, no matter how good, doesn't hurt the chances of a screen adaptation of Steven Pressfield's Gates of Fire.
And I'll take very highly any recommendation of a book on the topic of Thermoplylae which comes from someone with so apt a screen name. ;-)
Everyone knows that the ancient Greeks brought the invasion on themselves because of their patriarchal ways, their cultural arrogance, their callous disregard for the environment, their exploitation of the helpless Asian peoples, their militaristic conception of the citizen-in-arms, their rightwing opposition to the enlightened central government of Persia. And furthermore....
Coffee break, take morning meds
Hmmm, the Reality Pill and anti-MSM psychosis drugs appear to be working now. Never mind.
Molon Labe!
It should be noted that the ancient "historians" did not notice whole classes of people in recounting historic events. The 300 Spartans came with auxilaries - helots who served as light infantry, armed with javelins, bows and sling. Other helots served as armorers, blackmiths and medics. The actual Spartan force, including the helots, was about 600 to 700 men. Although the helots were serfs, helots who exhibited bravery in battle could become Spartans.
My father-in-law Nick grew up in the tiny Spartan mountain village of Koulima, and when he returned twenty years ago, they roasted a rabbit for a grand feast celebrating his visit. For them, that was about as much meat as they could spare! [The Germans never got that far into the hinterlands during their WWII occupation.] The highlands of Laconia are truly beyond description for hardscrabble ethos.
I myself visited the site of the battle of Thermopylae, and the area of the maximum conflict is less than fifty yards wide. No escarpment as in the movie [or the History Channel mock-up], but it's a real strange sensation to see a place where such a momentous event for Western Civ took place. I also went to Delphi, and the place was overrun with wild foxes [the four-legged kind!] and extremely beautiful, aside from its historical significance. [My Celtic ancestors ransacked the place in 276 BC]
Victor D. Hanson is the guy to read for the sad sequel, which has the Spartans defeating the Athenians in the most senseless conflict ever waged. But that set the stage for Alex the Great and the spread of Hellenic culture as far east as Pakistan, where my Greek-American wife and I visited a little town between Islamabad and Peshawar which had a Greek museum and was founded by A the Great. The village looked like a replica of a run-down Greek village, and the people had a distinct Hellenic look and body-language 2300 years later. It's a famous small town, and I just forgot the name.
The single worst offense the educationalists have committed in our public schools is to bowdlerize history into some sort of gender and ethnic socialization agenda. The Spartan and Hellenic ethos has influenced history far more than any influences from PC faves. But I digress...
is from the same area of the world that invented terrorism in 12th century Iran. The radical Islamic terrorists of today, want to bring back the Persian Empire of the past. They do not follow real Islamic values, but instead follow Persian Empire values disguised as Islamic values. Islam is only used as a recruiting tool for terrorists. Real Islam is about peace not terrorism and conquering.
Alexander the Great fought back against the Persian Empire and took over their land, and tried to free the people the Persians made slaves.
Around 650 the Arabs took over the Persian Empire and brought Islam to it.
Before 1935, Iran and Greater Iran was considered the Persian Empire.
Then why are the majority of Muslims not speaking out against the extremists? They won't even do it in free countries like America and England and Australia, etc. Not even a significant minority wish to speak up. Why? If they want rational people to continue to believe that it is not the Religion that is the problem, then they have to give us Reason to do so, rather than platitudes.
There are those who look on Dresden and Tokyo and Hiroshima as some of the greatest evils ever perpetrated by man. I look on them and thank the perpetrators for saving millions.
The Spartans stand for liberty and the Persians slavery and tyranny.
Sparta has a king whom is the commander in chief that knows the clear and present danger of Persia(aka President Bush) and a council that is blinded by some leaders to that danger, whom are secretly conspiring against Sparta(aka the Democrats in Congress) .
I know its a weak link but, it did sound strangely familar in the movie.
The Spartans stand up and fight, unlike the sneaky Democrats who scuttle and run and are so very concerned about hurtful and illegal acts which may stop our enemies. LibertyWins obviously has a brand of Kool-Aid that creates the world as the world is not.
I wonder what 12 step program fixes that?
Molon Labe!
I never drink kool-aide, sir. Just thinking aloud.
By the way stop butcher that Reagan quote, its "the trouble with our liberal friends is not their wrong, its that they know so much that isn't so.."
Otherwise 300 is the best movie since the Patriot when in comes to conservative democratic civic values.
Cowpens defeated the British and were named in honor of the Spartans of which you write. It is a matter of pride in my hometown of Spartanburg. Sparta, Greece is our sister city. I know the 300 story well. good post
btw, Gen Morgan also fought with George Washington up north.
Mike Gamecock DeVine @ The Charlotte Observer
"One man with courage makes a majority." - Andrew Jackson