Oct 5 2006Official "300" Teaser Trailer Here

Gotta say, as a classics student I'm pretty excited.

Gotta say, as a fan of Uncle Jesse's Hair, I'm pretty excited.

There's that too, of course. Just Leonidas probbly didn't have a thing for moonshine 's all.

Seriously, "as a classics student" you're pretty excited? Did you not notice the otherworldly razor-toothed man-beast things I can only assume are to be the Immortals? Or that they are later shown wearing what I can only describe as metal kabuki masks? The multi-pierced Mr-T's-jewelry-wearing Xerxes? The impractically ornamental arrowheads? The saber-toothed wolf squaring off against a boy in what I'm sure will become yet another exaggerated account of Spartan heartlessness in training their youth for the army? As a classics student, I'd expect you'd be spotting painfully glaring historical inaccuracy. I'd expect you might wonder why we need to do a Thermopylae movie as interpreted by a graphic novelist, rather than doing a Thermopylae movie based on actual history. I'd even expect you to wonder if it could possibly be as primary-source-trashing as Troy. I'd mostly expect that because a classics student would be more versed in actual historical record, art and literature pertaining to this sort of thing.

Personally, as a classics student, I'm pretty much already trying to disavow everything I know about the battle at Thermopylae in order to judge this as a film rather than a travesty against history and a painful "re-imagining" of what may be one of the single most important military battles in the history of Greece and consequently the western world. Is it not enough that the Greeks held off a vastly superior force of Persians over an extended engagement providing time for Greece to organize and crush an invasion that, if successful, would have strongly altered if not completely redefined western society? Apparently we need supernatural man-beasts and rhinos to make that a worthwhile concept.

As a movie guy, I'm trying to decide if the seemingly heavy reliance on digital effects is going to be too distracting to allow for meaningful plot or character development. I'm also wondering if the odd melting pot of weapon-based martial arts is going to work in a way that's engaging, or if they were just going for maximum flash, minimum realism, a-la Wuxia kung-fu flicks. And I want to know if Gerard Butler ever stops yelling, cause that's pretty unclear at this point.

As more trailers pop up, I plan to continuously evaluate on a film level. From the level of a classicist, I think it's already clear that this film will be as much a failure at communicating the amazing achievement and capability of Spartan and Persian warriors as Troy was at retelling the Illiad.

Also, in before someone flames me for being a narrow-minded art-pleb academian with no vision for the personal imagination of a film writer and director in retelling a historically fuzzy story about some dudes fighting. I also expect to be told to "chill out" and that it's "just a movie dude". Make me proud, interweb.

Just wondering, did u know that it was based on the graphic novel with the same name by Frank Miller?

The digital effects was done in a way where it reflects the style Miller used in the graphic novel, much like the movie version of Sin City.

In terms of plot of story-telling, if they stick close to the graphic novel version, it should be pretty good, don't worry, it's not going to be another Troy or Kingdom of Heaven.

I did know:
"I'd expect you might wonder why we need to do a Thermopylae movie as interpreted by a graphic novelist, rather than doing a Thermopylae movie based on actual history."

My main point of order was that "as a classics student" this is going to be a mess. As a film buff, my major issues are those I outlined. I felt like Sin City was good because it was original graphic novel material translated into a film setting staying as true to the original work as possible. "300" is going to be a movie adaptation of a graphic novel about ACTUAL HISTORY. Why not just make a movie about actual history rather than using Frank Miller's sensationalized version of history re-imagined to pump up the violence and stylized gore? 300 Spartans did this in the 60s, and for a 60s movie, it's pretty good. I think we could do a more modern, grittier telling of this story without the supernatural sexed-up violence of Frank Miller.

As a teacher of classics, I'd like to see these Hollywood dimwits GET IT RIGHT for once. Spartan hoplites wore body armor and kilts at the time of Thermopylae. The whole samurai, whatever thing with the Persians looks RIDICULOUS, as does the ogre thing and WHAT IN HADES are elephants doint in the movie? Thermopylae was exciting AS IT WAS without all this (as Frank Barone would say) Crap! You know, they did the same with 13th Warrior-Danes running around in 16th century Spanish armor. I don't care how good Miller's novel is or is not, get the basics right. The costume person should be thrown down a well, as well as whoever did the "historical research." Zeus, give me a break. And what is it with the African Xerxes? Persians were IRANIANS for god's sake. The whole thing looks like junk.

I had the right to sublet, but I explained to her that my payments to her were not contingent on occupancy