300 - Muscle versus Might

*May contain spoilers*

'300' is a film about the three hundred Spartan soldiers who attempt to stop the might of the Persian army at the famous Battle of Thermopylae. As a kid I was fascinated about this battle. How could three hundred soldiers hold off an entire army? As a result I was very excited when this film came out in 2006. Having recently watched it again I came to the conclusion that it wasn't one of those historical films that makes stuff up to increase the appeal of the film. The only instance of this is the use of 'bombs' by Xerxes army, and I can get past that.

The one thing that most people know about this film is when Gerard Butler screams 'This is Sparta!' and kicks the Persian messenger into a hole in the ground, and rightfully so. It's an epic line, but there are bits of the film that are just more awesome. The use of more 'comic book' blood in this film slightly masks some absolutely brilliant fighting scenes. Historically, the Spartan army is known as one of the fiercest and dangerous forces. Their soldiers are trained from children purely for the purpose of fighting and any weakness results in them being cast aside.

The fighting in this film shows how utterly dominant the Spartan army was, and I especially like the scene where the Arcadian army comes to their aid and the leader of the army questions the number of soldiers the Spartans have brought to fight. King Leonidas asks a few of the Arcadians what their profession is, receiving various answers, before asking the Spartans who respond with their battle cry. The quip 'See, I brought more soldiers than you did' is fantastic, and perfectly shows this Spartan ideology of fighting.

Speaking of King Leonidas, I thought he was a very interesting character. He is obviously the leader of the Spartan army, and surely knows that he is going to his death when he leaves to fight the Persian force. However, before he goes he makes sure he writes his name firmly into the history books. Gerard Butler plays Leonidas brilliantly, and is a dominant presence on the screen whenever he appears. I especially like the depths to his character as well. When Xerxes attempts to ally the Spartans with him by offering him leadership of all his armies he is visibly tempted, showing how much fighting meant to the Spartans. And yet his last act is to show that Xerxes, the self-proclaimed 'God-King' that he is as human as the next man, by making him bleed. The importance of his Queen is also refreshing to see. In many films there are strong women in a time where this would not have been the case, but in this case I got the feeling that Queen Gorgo was genuinely a supporting influence to Leonidas, shown by his looking to her when a number of key decisions have to be made. His obvious love for her is another interesting human feature of his character. As a solider of Sparta he is exposed to brutality, bloodshed and violence, but still finds room in his character to love another person.

Now I love a good action movie, and the inclusion of Spartan politics in 300 did not spoil this film for me. Not even the deformed hunchback ruined it. I wasn't entirely sure as I was watching the film exactly what purpose this character served. Surely if Xerxes knew there was a way around the back of the Spartan soldiers he would put his own men there to find it. He would not need the help of a deformed Spartan reject, and so I thought this bit was a bit strange, but nevertheless, it was interesting to see his obvious self-hate after he has betrayed his Spartan brothers.

300 isn't meant to be taken as a serious portrayal of these historical events, and as such it should not be reviewed as such. If it was meant in a similar line to films like Braveheart, then I would be roundly criticising it now for the lack of depth to any of the characters. But clearly it is not meant as such. The rippling abs and comic book blood show that it is definitely not a heavy film and can be enjoyed with friends. It's maybe not a family film, but it's very good to sit down and just relax to.