Rated R for graphic battle sequences throughout (decapitations & dismemberment), some sexuality and nudity (nipples, boobs, & butts). "R" not only stand for Rating, but RECOMMENDATION (eh, guys?)
300
Gerard Butler fans UNITE! Forget the "Phantom of the Opera," and go tell the Spartans to be prepared for plenty of CGI-gore galore!
3-1/2 stars (out of 4) for guyflickers & bicep-loving babes ONLY!
[(2007)USA/WB/Rated R] - (hr. min.)
Co-written & Directed by Zack Snyder
Source: Graphic novel by Frank Miller (& Lynn Varley)
Lead character/Cast
Leonidas (King of Sparta/age 45) - Gerard Butler
Leonidas (7-8 yrs old) - Eli Snyder
Leonidas (age 15/Wolf scenes) - Tyler Neitzel
Supporting characters/Cast
Gorgo (Queen of Sparta) - Lena Headey
Theron (Council leader) - Dominic West
Dilios (Narrator/1 of the 300) - David Wenham
Review:
"Madness? ... This - Is - SPARTA!!!" -Leonidas
Welcome to the Battle of Thermopylae (circa 480 B.C.): the Persian army (which numbers around 250,000+) VS. 300 Spartans (+ assorted Greek Acadians).
The two armies meet for a battle that should have ended in three minutes, but instead, turns into a 3 day struggle and clearly ranks as one of the most unforgettable 'underdog' fights of all time (w/ apologies to Rocky Balboa).
Not only that, but the Persian army is not merely 'human', but also consists of metal-masked 'Immortals', an axe-wielding giant (who would give a Middle Earth troll a run for his money), an armored rhino (w/ a really long, very sharp horn), and giant, armored elephants (that look like they were stolen right out of LoTR - well, can't win 'em all, eh designer guys & gals).
But forget all that.
This movie is ALL Gerard Butler ("Phantom of the Opera: the Musical") as 'King Leonidas', the very loud and spectacularly fearless leader of the Spartans. Seriously, how can you not like a commander-in-chief with his own bottomless pit (w/ no child or pet guards surrounding it).
But seriously, if you have an testosterone in your body then this is the one film you want to see this spring (maybe all year)! Check it out guys and make sure your date can handle lots of swordfighting and the more than sufficient amounts of blood-spurting wounds and
amputations!
Gary says CHECK IT OUT!
"Spartans! Enjoy your breakfast, for tonight we dine in Hell!" -Leonidas
Captain (King's 2nd in command) - Vincent Regan
Stelios - Michael Fassbender
Astinos (Capt.'s eldest son) - Tom Wisdom
Daxos - Andrew Pleavin
Ephialtes - Andrew Tiernan
Xerxes (Persian leader/self-made god) - Rodrigo Santoro
Messenger (Persian @ open) - Peter Mensah
Loyalist (Queen's confidante) - Stephen McHattie
Ephors (keepers of the Oracle):
Greg Kramer, Alex Ivanovici, w/ Kelly Craig as the 'Oracle Girl'
Co-writers: Kurt Johnstad and Michael B. Gordon
Original Music by Tyler Bates
Director of photography (Panavision widescreen): Larry Fong
Editor: William Hoy
Production Designer: James D. Bissell
Art Directors: Isabelle Guay, Nicolas Lepage, & Jean-Pierre Paquet
Additional crew:
Visual effects supervisor: Chris Watts
Digital visual effects: Hybride
Visual effects depts (9 separate units): Animal Logic; Hydraulx; Pixel Magic; Scanline; Buzz Image Group; Screaming Death Monkey; At the Post; Lola VFX; Technicolor-Toronto & Montreal
Visual effects art director: Grant Freckelton
Special effects supervisor: Louis Craig
Makeup & creature effects: Shaun Smith & Mark Rappaport
Stunt coordinator/fight choreographer: Damon Caro
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TRIVIA INFO (from IMDb.com)
The movie never claims to be historically correct. According to an interview with IGN.com, Director Zack Snyder says that fighting styles and formations (particularly the Spartan's phalanx) were purposefully changed - making them historically inaccurate - so they'd "look cool" and work better for movie purposes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"300" is based somewhat loosely on Frank Miller's 1998 comic book mini-series (specifically 5 issues of Dark Horse Comics, which were later released as a single hardback). Changes from history were made by Miller and director Zack Snyder so as to appeal to a wider audience and create a more exciting and visually stunning action movie, rather than a typical historical epic. Frank Miller was inspired by the original Battle of Thermopylae after viewing Rudolph Mate's "The 300 Spartans" as a child. His perception of the 'hero' concept changed greatly after seeing the Spartans make their sacrifice. The 1962 film starred Richard Egan, Ralph Richardson, & Diane Baker.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The film was shot on a soundstage with green & blue screens in Montreal. (NOT ON LOCATION)
--------------------------------------------------------------
Additional cast - non-Persian (from IMDb.com)
:Giovani Antonio Cimmino ... Pleistarchos
Alexandra Beaton ... Burned Village Child
Tim Connolly ... Leonidas' Father
Marie-Julie Rivest ... Leonidas' Mother
Dennis St John ... Spartan Baby Inspector
Andrew Shaver ... Free Greek-Potter
Robin Wilcock ... Free Greek-Sculptor
Kent McQuaid ... Free Greek-Blacksmith
Marcel Jeannin ... Free Greek-Baker
Additional Ephors:
Tom Rack, David Francis, & James Bradford Spartan Generals:
Robert Paradis & Jere GillisSpartan sentries:Dylan Scott Smith & Maurizio Terrazzano
Additional cast - Persian Army (from IMDb.com):
Tyrone Benskin ... Persian Emissary
Robert Maillet ... Uber Immortal (Giant)
Gary A. Hecker ... Ubermortal Vocals (voice only)
Leon Laderach ... Executioner (Mr. razor arms)
Vervi Mauricio ... Armless Concubine
Persian Generals:
Patrick Sabongui, Stewart Myiow, & Dave Lapommeray (Slaughtered)
Kissing Concubines:
Ariadne Bourbonnière & Isabelle Fournel
Other concubines:
Andreanne Ross & Sara Giacalone
Sandrine Merette-Attiow ... Contortionis
tCamille Rizkallah ... Giant with Arrow
Persian dancers:
Elisabeth Etienne, Danielle Hubbard, & Ruan Vibegaard
Persian Slave Girls:
Stephania Gambarova, Chanelle Lamothe, Sabrina-Jasmine Guilbault, Genevieve Guilbault, Bonnie Mak, Amélie Sorel, Caroline Aspirot, Gina Gagnon, Tania Trudell, Stéphanie Aubry, & Mercedes Leggett
Manny Cortez Tuazon ... Transsexual (Asian) #1
Atif Siddiqi ... Transsexual (Arabian) #3
Watch the Trailer [from Yahoomovies.com]
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
300
Gerard Butler fans UNITE! Forget the "Phantom of the Opera," and go tell the Spartans to be prepared for plenty of CGI-gore galore!
3-1/2 stars (out of 4) for guyflickers & bicep-loving babes ONLY!
[(2007)USA/WB/Rated R] - (hr. min.)
Co-written & Directed by Zack Snyder
Source: Graphic novel by Frank Miller (& Lynn Varley)
Lead character/Cast
Leonidas (King of Sparta/age 45) - Gerard Butler
Leonidas (7-8 yrs old) - Eli Snyder
Leonidas (age 15/Wolf scenes) - Tyler Neitzel
Supporting characters/Cast
Gorgo (Queen of Sparta) - Lena Headey
Theron (Council leader) - Dominic West
Dilios (Narrator/1 of the 300) - David Wenham
Review:
"Madness? ... This - Is - SPARTA!!!" -Leonidas
Welcome to the Battle of Thermopylae (circa 480 B.C.): the Persian army (which numbers around 250,000+) VS. 300 Spartans (+ assorted Greek Acadians).
The two armies meet for a battle that should have ended in three minutes, but instead, turns into a 3 day struggle and clearly ranks as one of the most unforgettable 'underdog' fights of all time (w/ apologies to Rocky Balboa).
Not only that, but the Persian army is not merely 'human', but also consists of metal-masked 'Immortals', an axe-wielding giant (who would give a Middle Earth troll a run for his money), an armored rhino (w/ a really long, very sharp horn), and giant, armored elephants (that look like they were stolen right out of LoTR - well, can't win 'em all, eh designer guys & gals).
But forget all that.
This movie is ALL Gerard Butler ("Phantom of the Opera: the Musical") as 'King Leonidas', the very loud and spectacularly fearless leader of the Spartans. Seriously, how can you not like a commander-in-chief with his own bottomless pit (w/ no child or pet guards surrounding it).
But seriously, if you have an testosterone in your body then this is the one film you want to see this spring (maybe all year)! Check it out guys and make sure your date can handle lots of swordfighting and the more than sufficient amounts of blood-spurting wounds and
amputations!
Gary says CHECK IT OUT!
"Spartans! Enjoy your breakfast, for tonight we dine in Hell!" -Leonidas
Captain (King's 2nd in command) - Vincent Regan
Stelios - Michael Fassbender
Astinos (Capt.'s eldest son) - Tom Wisdom
Daxos - Andrew Pleavin
Ephialtes - Andrew Tiernan
Xerxes (Persian leader/self-made god) - Rodrigo Santoro
Messenger (Persian @ open) - Peter Mensah
Loyalist (Queen's confidante) - Stephen McHattie
Ephors (keepers of the Oracle):
Greg Kramer, Alex Ivanovici, w/ Kelly Craig as the 'Oracle Girl'
Co-writers: Kurt Johnstad and Michael B. Gordon
Original Music by Tyler Bates
Director of photography (Panavision widescreen): Larry Fong
Editor: William Hoy
Production Designer: James D. Bissell
Art Directors: Isabelle Guay, Nicolas Lepage, & Jean-Pierre Paquet
Additional crew:
Visual effects supervisor: Chris Watts
Digital visual effects: Hybride
Visual effects depts (9 separate units): Animal Logic; Hydraulx; Pixel Magic; Scanline; Buzz Image Group; Screaming Death Monkey; At the Post; Lola VFX; Technicolor-Toronto & Montreal
Visual effects art director: Grant Freckelton
Special effects supervisor: Louis Craig
Makeup & creature effects: Shaun Smith & Mark Rappaport
Stunt coordinator/fight choreographer: Damon Caro
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TRIVIA INFO (from IMDb.com)
The movie never claims to be historically correct. According to an interview with IGN.com, Director Zack Snyder says that fighting styles and formations (particularly the Spartan's phalanx) were purposefully changed - making them historically inaccurate - so they'd "look cool" and work better for movie purposes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"300" is based somewhat loosely on Frank Miller's 1998 comic book mini-series (specifically 5 issues of Dark Horse Comics, which were later released as a single hardback). Changes from history were made by Miller and director Zack Snyder so as to appeal to a wider audience and create a more exciting and visually stunning action movie, rather than a typical historical epic. Frank Miller was inspired by the original Battle of Thermopylae after viewing Rudolph Mate's "The 300 Spartans" as a child. His perception of the 'hero' concept changed greatly after seeing the Spartans make their sacrifice. The 1962 film starred Richard Egan, Ralph Richardson, & Diane Baker.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The film was shot on a soundstage with green & blue screens in Montreal. (NOT ON LOCATION)
--------------------------------------------------------------
Additional cast - non-Persian (from IMDb.com)
:Giovani Antonio Cimmino ... Pleistarchos
Alexandra Beaton ... Burned Village Child
Tim Connolly ... Leonidas' Father
Marie-Julie Rivest ... Leonidas' Mother
Dennis St John ... Spartan Baby Inspector
Andrew Shaver ... Free Greek-Potter
Robin Wilcock ... Free Greek-Sculptor
Kent McQuaid ... Free Greek-Blacksmith
Marcel Jeannin ... Free Greek-Baker
Additional Ephors:
Tom Rack, David Francis, & James Bradford Spartan Generals:
Robert Paradis & Jere GillisSpartan sentries:Dylan Scott Smith & Maurizio Terrazzano
Additional cast - Persian Army (from IMDb.com):
Tyrone Benskin ... Persian Emissary
Robert Maillet ... Uber Immortal (Giant)
Gary A. Hecker ... Ubermortal Vocals (voice only)
Leon Laderach ... Executioner (Mr. razor arms)
Vervi Mauricio ... Armless Concubine
Persian Generals:
Patrick Sabongui, Stewart Myiow, & Dave Lapommeray (Slaughtered)
Kissing Concubines:
Ariadne Bourbonnière & Isabelle Fournel
Other concubines:
Andreanne Ross & Sara Giacalone
Sandrine Merette-Attiow ... Contortionis
tCamille Rizkallah ... Giant with Arrow
Persian dancers:
Elisabeth Etienne, Danielle Hubbard, & Ruan Vibegaard
Persian Slave Girls:
Stephania Gambarova, Chanelle Lamothe, Sabrina-Jasmine Guilbault, Genevieve Guilbault, Bonnie Mak, Amélie Sorel, Caroline Aspirot, Gina Gagnon, Tania Trudell, Stéphanie Aubry, & Mercedes Leggett
Manny Cortez Tuazon ... Transsexual (Asian) #1
Atif Siddiqi ... Transsexual (Arabian) #3
Watch the Trailer [from Yahoomovies.com]
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++