by Kuan Hur Tan

Created on: May 22, 2009

I had a portable version of this movie for viewing on my PSP but I failed to watch it because the title and the trailer did not attract me. I had since deleted it. After sometime, I managed to get the DVD version of this movie but still, I left it un-touched until recently when I thought it might be a good idea to watch it since I had abandoned it for quite sometime. Well, to my surprise, I would say that it is a good movie.

Preview
Every ancient movie always starts with a narrator reading a story that relates to the movie. 300 is no exception. However, the narrator's voice and tone are important to make a story interesting to watch. 300 has done it.

Back to the story. It is 480 BC when the Persian King, Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro) tries to conquer Athens and Sparta. Most of them refer Xerxes as the God and one of his groups of army is called the immortals because people believe that the immortals cannot be killed or defeated. When Xerxes sends a messenger to Sparta to command King Leonidas (Gerard Butler), the ruler of Sparta, to surrender peacefully, the messenger is killed. Well, I thought that no Kings should kill messengers even to this date. As a result, the action has sparked Xerxes' will to bring down Sparta more than ever.

King Leonidas is not aware of corruption happening within the people he trusts. Sparta relies on the prediction of local oracle but is told to surrender too. In the end, he disobeys the order of oracle and set off with 300 best Spartans to block Xerxes' way.

When the battle day comes, the Persians are unable to break through the 300 Spartans and 700 Thespians (alliance force). The immortals thought to be invincible are killed by the Spartans. Any Persians soldiers or greatest giants are defeated by the Spartans and Thespians until the Xerxes is shown a secret passage the flank.

The Storyline
The movie proceeds smoothly and everything is explained in details and short. 300 is able to lead the moviegoers into the story till the end. There is a well balance approach in between each scene. Like in some movies, they are either having lots of conversation or lots of fighting scenes which make them rather boring.

Some movies fail to demonstrate the leadership quality of the King. However, King Leonidas is able to bring the spirit out from his followers and lead them into an almost win-win situation in the battle with the Persians. Their never fear spirit is seen when they fight against the enemies. The fear of the enemies when defeated is also clearly seen through actions.

Effects
The action flicks are nice and interesting to watch. It seems to be copying The Matrix yet it is not. They whole movie has a yellowish and blurry layer but that does not affect the overall quality of the movie. Well, 300's approach is just different but interesting to watch. In other words, it is hard to describe and you will have to experience it yourself.

Verdict
There are highs and lows in 300 and they are well balanced. I just wish that it could be a longer movie even though the length of the movie is just right. The effects are incredible and different. It may not be as massive as Lord of the Rings but the combinations of the scenes are able to bring out the most of the movie. After writing this review, I am determined to watch it for the second time.

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