300 (2007)
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59% of critics liked it
(223 reviews) -
90% of users liked it
(1,307,172 ratings)
Sin City author Frank Miller's sweeping take on the historic Battle of Thermopylae comes to the screen courtesy of Dawn of the Dead director Zack Snyder. Gerard Butler stars as Spartan King Leonidas and Lena Headey plays Queen Gorgo. The massive army of the Persian Empire is sweeping across the… More Sin City author Frank Miller's sweeping take on the historic Battle of Thermopylae comes to the screen courtesy of Dawn of the Dead director Zack Snyder. Gerard Butler stars as Spartan King Leonidas and Lena Headey plays Queen Gorgo. The massive army of the Persian Empire is sweeping across the globe, crushing every force that dares stand in its path. When a Persian envoy arrives in Sparta offering King Leonidas power over all of Greece if he will only bow to the will of the all powerful Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro), the strong-willed leader assembles a small army comprised of his empire's best fighters and marches off to battle. Though they have virtually no hope of defeating Xerxes' intimidating battalion, Leonidas' men soldier on, intent on letting it be known they will bow to no man but their king. Meanwhile, back in Sparta, the loyal Queen Gorgo attempts to convince both the skeptical council and the devious Theron (Dominic West) to send more troops despite the fact that many view Leonidas' unsanctioned war march as a serious transgression. As Xerxes' fearsome "immortals" draw near, a few noble Greeks vow to assist the Spartans on the battlefield. When King Leonidas and his 300 Spartan warriors fell to the overwhelming Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, the fearless actions of the noble fighters inspired all of Greece to stand up against their Persian enemy and wage the battle that would ultimately give birth to the modern concept of democracy. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Rating, Runtime
- R, 1 hr. 56 min.
- Directed By
- Zack Snyder
- Written By
- Zack Snyder, Kurt Johnstad, Michael B. Gordon
- Genres
- Drama, Action & Adventure
- In Theaters
- Mar 9, 2007 Wide
- On DVD
- Jul 31, 2007
- Studio
- Warner Bros. Pictures
Critic Reviews
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Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
300 has one-dimensional caricatures who talk like professional wrestlers plugging their next feud.
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David Denby, New Yorker
A muscle-magazine fantasy crossed with a video game and an Army recruiting film.
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Andrew Sarris, New York Observer
300 was as pathetically puerile as I had expected.
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Tom Charity, CNN.com
The kids just want to have fun. Many of them will. But what does that say about another Greek contribution -- Western civilization?
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Rick Groen, Globe and Mail
If the movie's neocon message is as thin as a politician's excuse, that's to be expected. But what's surprising here is that the sights are just as meagre.
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Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger
History is inconveniently complex. And so we get Frank Miller's version, in which everything is simplified to the point of porridge.
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Kevin Carr, 7M Pictures
even without all the special features, 300 is the kind of movie you want to put in the Blu-ray player, turn down the lights, turn up the volume and experience it
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Coco Forsythe, Future Movies UK
As the first blockbuster of the year, 300 sets the bar high enough, and is enjoyably silly.
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Ben Rawson-Jones, Digital Spy
Despite a cracking central premise and outstanding visuals, 300 ultimately leaves you feeling more gutted than some of the disemboweled soldiers on display throughout the movie.
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Andrew Osmond, Sight and Sound
If 300 represents an evolution in 'virtual' cinema, then at the same time it tells a story that transports us back to the violent roots of western civilisation.
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Neil Miller, Film School Rejects
Awesome!
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Scott Huver, Hollywood.com
Visually thrilling and viscerally satisfying.
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Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion
Asscrack-ugly
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John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...it features some of the most-beautiful packaging for any disc of any kind to date. (Blu-ray Book Edition)
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Dave Golder, SFX Magazine
This is cinema as a fireside storyteller, retelling heroic tales handed down through the generations.
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Tom Meek, Boston Phoenix
[Snyder] twists the brawn and battle into a cartoonish FX extravaganza with severed body parts and globules of blood flying across the screen.
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Tony Macklin, Fayetteville Free Weekly
300 is a fun-fest of blood, mayhem, and absurdity. At its best, it is entertaining; when it's not at its best, it's pretty dumb. It's pretty dumb much of the time.
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Steve Biodrowski, ESplatter
Zack Snyder's film version of the graphic novel by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley may look like the greatest music video ever made; whether or not it is a decent feature film is another question altogether.
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Mark Pollard, Kung Fu Cinema
This is death and war as ancient poets might have imagined it, glorious and provocative ... 300 is a powerhouse actioner.
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Tricia Olszewski, Washington City Paper
All this bellowing and testosterone gets old fast -- especially since there's not much of a plot outside of the combat scenes, and the not-much-of-a-plot scenes are laden with dialogue worthy of Anakin and Padmé.
Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
Featured Audience Ratings
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Bob S
pretty silly - world's longest video game cut scene -
moon r
Imagine a high school football pep rally with everyone shirtless, jocks and the cheerleaders, all of them yelling "HOO-YAHHH!!!", filmed in close up and glorious slo-mo, and you've just about got this film completely pegged. Come to think of it, it actually sounds… More
Imagine a high school football pep rally with everyone shirtless, jocks and the cheerleaders, all of them yelling "HOO-YAHHH!!!", filmed in close up and glorious slo-mo, and you've just about got this film completely pegged. Come to think of it, it actually sounds pretty good put that way, huh? At least I didn't mention the excessive bloodshed, the hacking, whacking, chopping dat meat, not even once ... oops! -
Albert K
A testosterone pump-up of a movie. The visuals is dazzling and the action entertaining. Too bad the story qualities and characterization is slim. It tries to be nothing more then a violent action movie for kicks. The classic 300 Spartans story is there for the sake of a plot backdrop… More
A testosterone pump-up of a movie. The visuals is dazzling and the action entertaining. Too bad the story qualities and characterization is slim. It tries to be nothing more then a violent action movie for kicks. The classic 300 Spartans story is there for the sake of a plot backdrop and a place to ignite action... nothing more. -
Jameson W
Fantastic special effects and action scenes! -
danny d
a great film. not quite an epic, but fun to watch and directed very well. the cinematography was great and the music fit each scene perfectly. gerard butler was great, although his scottish accent was a little too noticeable at times since he was playing a greek. the history wasnt… More
a great film. not quite an epic, but fun to watch and directed very well. the cinematography was great and the music fit each scene perfectly. gerard butler was great, although his scottish accent was a little too noticeable at times since he was playing a greek. the history wasnt meant to be accurate obviously, but i still wish it was more accurate. most of the details were highly inaccurate in very blatant ways. i only with held a 5 star rating because the story was too simple with little character development, i could have done without the porn scenes, and some of the outlandish characters were a little silly. usually if i have this many criticisms of a movie it wouldnt get more than 3 stars, so the fact that im willing to still rate it so high should show how much i liked all of the other elements of this film that i havent criticised. worth watching for sure. -
Phil H
Hmmm tricky, the action is absolutely amazing, over the top , bloody , fast, furious, deadly, brutal, dark, gorgeous to look at yet quite realistic in a sense and almost slightly gothic. The fantasy aspect is great, very much alike 'Clash of the Titans' or 'LOTR',… More
Hmmm tricky, the action is absolutely amazing, over the top , bloody , fast, furious, deadly, brutal, dark, gorgeous to look at yet quite realistic in a sense and almost slightly gothic. The fantasy aspect is great, very much alike 'Clash of the Titans' or 'LOTR', maybe too much like 'LOTR' for its own good in places and the plot is historically accurate to a degree so you know what happens but that doesn't really spoil the outcome. Like various other comic adaptations the soundtrack which has been used really makes it so much darker, harder and exciting , much like 'Spawn', 'The Crow', 'Sin City' or 'Blade', the only thing that puts me of is the half naked buffed up men haha also the acting is pretty wooden if truth be told. A great film purely for the fights and looks really, 'Sin City' still just about wins with its plot and characters but this a damn fine hack n slash historical/action flick. -
Jens S
Set in an almost fanastic world the movie about the historic Battle of Thermopylae is very beautiful to look at and visually extremely stunning. I guess the graphic novel saw to that and the movie seems to stick rather close to it. There is a LOT of blood and violence of course, but… More
Set in an almost fanastic world the movie about the historic Battle of Thermopylae is very beautiful to look at and visually extremely stunning. I guess the graphic novel saw to that and the movie seems to stick rather close to it. There is a LOT of blood and violence of course, but like in Sin City it looks so surreal and stylized that it's a lot less disgusting than in some recent horror movies. Some of the really cool fight scenes feel a little repetitive at times, with too much slow-motion used, but at least there is no editing that could cause spasms. The patriotic, death defying lines the Spartans are yelling must not be taken too seriously from today's point of view, just like the movie should simply be considered an entertaining piece of art, no history lesson or with meaning for today's world. Gerard Butler is very good in the lead role, but I still would have wished for the movie to touch me more than it actually did. The excellent last five minutes finally reach the emotional depth the whole move would have deserved. Very entertaining and cool eye candy, but not as strong as its huge historical forerunners like Braveheart or Gladiator. -
Chris W
Gerard Butler gives a commanding performance (the best of his career so far) as Spartan King Leonidas in this intense, surreal, epic, and beautifully shot, edited, and directed historical fantasy. Snyder has created a great and unique cinematic experience that, while not being… More
Gerard Butler gives a commanding performance (the best of his career so far) as Spartan King Leonidas in this intense, surreal, epic, and beautifully shot, edited, and directed historical fantasy. Snyder has created a great and unique cinematic experience that, while not being completely historically accurate, is a wonderfully entertaining and stylish take on the Batte of Thermopylae in which a small group of Spartan warrirors due battle against a vastly overhwelming number of Persians who wish to conquor them. Though this film is largely style over substance, it does have some deeper themes and what not going through it, chiefly that of fascism. You root for the Spartans, and you're rooting for fascism. Kinda like Starship Troopers though not quite as brilliant. The slow-mo gets a tad overused, and yeah, the Persians are undeniably portrayed as perhaps too fey and sibilant, but hell, this is fun, not art. I actually prefer this to the graphic novel it's based on because this has much more story and depth. All in all, a bloody good show. -
Brad W
A thrilling, action packed film, and is definently worth seeing. KingLeonidas (Gerard Butler) and his 299 strongest men take on the Persian army that is taking over anyone who stands in their way of global conquest. The plot is very interesting, but is also very historically… More
A thrilling, action packed film, and is definently worth seeing. KingLeonidas (Gerard Butler) and his 299 strongest men take on the Persian army that is taking over anyone who stands in their way of global conquest. The plot is very interesting, but is also very historically unaccurate, and as kind of a history buff it bugged me, but it did follow the comic prett well I think. The cast is boring, they act and talk how Snyder tells them, and Gerard Butler is cool and my favorite, but he bothered me too at times. The action is the main point of the film, and in my opinion was near perfection, and Snyder never fails to make a great action film. The score was pretty awesome, it worked amazingly well with the action and basic scenes. The slow mo effect was great too in the action scenes, but I think they use a bit too much. The look of the film is also great, it really looks like a comic. 300 is a good film, and although I have big problems with the historical accuracy and cast, this is a movie nobody should miss. -
Eric A
This movie is badass, period. Glad I got to see it in IMAX. -
Drake T
A stylistic visual fantasy infused by non-stop gore filled action. It's a film that's obviously heavy on imagery but even behind all the excessive masculinity there's some credibility to the dialogue. The archetypes often resonate, the honorable king, the loyal queen,… More
A stylistic visual fantasy infused by non-stop gore filled action. It's a film that's obviously heavy on imagery but even behind all the excessive masculinity there's some credibility to the dialogue. The archetypes often resonate, the honorable king, the loyal queen, the scheming politician. They may all have been 2-dimensional but rightly so. What we have is a blockbuster action epic, perhaps nothing more but it's nothing really less either. -
Kristijonas F
With this visually mind-blowing experience Zach Snyder has definitely created a steady fan base. It's like stabbing myself in the heart with a syringe of testosterone - Pulp Fiction style. -
Matt G
I think Critics were too harsh on this. I think it's a masterpiece. I was surprised that 90% of users liked it. Sure it had outstanding visuals and great dialogue, but people shouldn't treat it like it's the greatest thing ever. I thought it was good though. Maybe a… More
I think Critics were too harsh on this. I think it's a masterpiece. I was surprised that 90% of users liked it. Sure it had outstanding visuals and great dialogue, but people shouldn't treat it like it's the greatest thing ever. I thought it was good though. Maybe a little too much slow motion and some parts don't make sense. Gerard Butler gives a believable performance as King Leonidas and this movie sure has a lot of memorable quotes and scenes. The messenger part was pretty dumb though, and the persians had some pretty weird piercings but overall this is a 'must see' movie that's action packed and full of great actors. One word though: OVERRATED. -
Kase V
A...fun?...film with all the blood you can ask for. Awesome visuals with the occasional 'Ummmmm... Why?' but that's okay. An entertaining movie. -
Conner R
Honestly, this movie is fun. Sure, half of it takes place in slow motion and some dialogue is corny, but it still manages to be jam packed with cool stuff. From a visual standpoint it's flawless, the style is really beautiful and the landscape is treated with the upmost respect.… More
Honestly, this movie is fun. Sure, half of it takes place in slow motion and some dialogue is corny, but it still manages to be jam packed with cool stuff. From a visual standpoint it's flawless, the style is really beautiful and the landscape is treated with the upmost respect. When all is said and done, the story works and chararacters alike. While it doesn't have the emotional weight as something like Troy, it's dynamite as a pure action movie. -
Fernando Rafael Q
Review pending. -
Bently L
One word: Overrated. However, there are some good and memorable quotes. We will always remember Gerard Butler as the man who said these words: "THIS IS SPARTAAAAA!!!!!" http://www.snotr.com/video/534 -
Richard C
This movie was awesome. It has some really cool fight scenes and really good dialogue. I think this movie uses slow motion too much though. I also think this movie is a little overated. I was going to give this 3 1/2 stars but i did really enjoy the movie so im going to bump it up… More
This movie was awesome. It has some really cool fight scenes and really good dialogue. I think this movie uses slow motion too much though. I also think this movie is a little overated. I was going to give this 3 1/2 stars but i did really enjoy the movie so im going to bump it up half a star. Grade: B+ -
Lewis C
(I'm bumping my original score down a bit, to what I feel is more accurate.) My opinion of this movie has changed over the last few months. I now see clearly that the battles weren't as amazing as I originally thought, the characters were as one dimensional as they can be,… More
(I'm bumping my original score down a bit, to what I feel is more accurate.) My opinion of this movie has changed over the last few months. I now see clearly that the battles weren't as amazing as I originally thought, the characters were as one dimensional as they can be, and I was left extremely unsatisfied with the ending. Yes, I know the Spartans had meet that particular destiny, but the way they did was totally weak, in my opinion. Now that all the negativity is out of the way, I did in fact enjoy 300. Everyone else here has already gushed about the visuals, so I'll just add that they are in fact as good as everyone says. Good dialogue (if appropriately over the top) that was pretty funny at times, and a few (though not enough) excellent action sequences. And Lena Headey had the most badass part in the whole movie, I love that woman. -
Dean !
A great entertaining film, with plenty of action and a very impressive visual style similar to Sin City. Although the fights are great, very violent the use of CGI blood effects gave it quite a comic book feel and help tone the gore side down a bit. The story is very simple and to the… More
A great entertaining film, with plenty of action and a very impressive visual style similar to Sin City. Although the fights are great, very violent the use of CGI blood effects gave it quite a comic book feel and help tone the gore side down a bit. The story is very simple and to the point, not a deep film it is all about the battles and the visuals. Great if you liked Troy, Gladiator, Kingdom of Heaven but some viewers might want a bit more story to break up all the action. However it's definitely worth experiencing!
Cast
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Gerard Butleras King Leonidas -
Lena Headeyas Gorgo -
Dominic Westas Theron
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David Wenhamas Dilios -
Vincent Reganas Captain -
Michael Fassbenderas Stelios
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Tom Wisdomas Astinos -
Andrew Pleavinas Daxos -
Andrew Tiernanas Ephialtes
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Rodrigo Santoroas Xerxes -
Giovani Antonio Cimminoas Pleistarchos -
Stephen McHattieas Loyalist
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Greg Krameras Ephor #1 -
Alex Ivanovicias Ephor #2 -
Craig Kellyas Oracle Girl
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Eli Snyderas Leonidas @ 7/8 Yrs -
Tyler Neitzelas Leonidas @ 15 Yrs -
Tim Connollyas Leonidas' Father
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Marie-Julie Rivestas Leonidas' Mother -
Sébastian St Germainas Fighting Boy (12 Years Old) -
Peter Mensahas Messenger
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Arthur Holdenas Partisan -
Michael Sinelnikoffas Elder Councilman -
John Dunn-Hillas Councilman
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Dennis St Johnas Spartan Baby Inspector -
Neil Napieras Spartan With Stick -
Dylan Scott Smithas Sentry #1
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Maurizio Terrazzanoas Sentry #2 -
Robert Paradisas Spartan General -
Kwasi Songuias Persian
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Alexandra Beatonas Burned Village Child -
Frédéric Smithas Statesman -
Loucas Minchilloas Spartan Baby A
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Nicholas Minchilloas Spartan Baby B -
Tom Rackas Ephor #3 -
David J. Francisas Ephor #4
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James Bradfordas Ephor #5 -
Andrew Shaveras Free Greek-Potter -
Robin Wilcockas Free Geek-Sculptor
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Kent McQuaidas Free Greek-Blacksmith -
Marcel Jeanninas Free Greek-Baker -
Jere Gillisas Spartan General #2
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Jeremy Thibodeauas Spartan Boy -
Tyrone Benskinas Persian Emissary -
Robert Mailletas Uber Immortal (Giant)
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Patrick Sabonguias Persian General -
Leon Laderachas Executioner -
David Lapommerayas Persian General Slaughtered
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Vervi Mauricioas Armless Concubine -
Charles Papasoffas Blacksmith -
Isabelle Champeauas Mother at Market
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Veronique-Natale Szalankiewiczas Daughter at Market (3/5 Years Old) -
Maeva Nadonas Girl at Market -
David Thibodeauas Boy #1 at Market
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David Schaapas Potter -
Jean Michel Paréas Other Council Guard -
Stuart Myiowas Persian General
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Andréanne Rossas Concubines -
Sara Giacaloneas Concubines -
Ariadne Bourbonniereas Kissing Concubines
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Isabelle Fournelas Kissing Concubines -
Sandrine Mérette-Attiowas Contortionist -
Elisabeth Etienneas Dancers
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Danielle Hubbardas Dancers -
Ruan Vibegaardas Dancers -
Geneviéve Guilbaultas Slave Girls
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Bonnie Makas Slave Girls -
Amélie Sorelas Slave Girls -
Caroline Aspirotas Slave Girls
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Gina Gagnonas Slave Girls -
Tania Trudellas Slave Girls -
Stephanie Aubryas Slave Girls
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Mercedes Leggettas Slave Girls -
Stéphania Gambarovaas Slave Girls -
Chanelle Lamotheas Slave Girls
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Sabrina-Jasmine Guilbaultas Slave Girl -
Manny Cortez Tuazonas Transexual (Asian) #1 -
Cindyas Transexual (Asian) #2
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Atif Siddiqias Transexual (Asian) #3 -
Camille Rizkallahas Giant With Arrow -
Trudi Hanleyas Long Neck Woman
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Neon Cobranas Litter Bearer/Slave -
Gary A. Heckeras Ubermortal Vocals
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