They have Schwarzeneggerian biceps, and every last one of them, even the greybeards, wear well-defined six- packs on their abs.
Although real actors play the characters and their faces are convincing, I believe their bodies are almost entirely digital creations. The lesson is that the Spartans are free, and the Persians are slaves, although the Spartan idea of freedom is not appetizing (children are beaten to toughen them).īut to return to those muscles. So brave and strong are the Spartans that they skewer, eviscerate, behead and otherwise inconvenience tens of thousands of Persians before finally falling to the weight of overwhelming numbers. The movie involves a legendary last stand by 300 death-obsessed Spartans against a teeming horde of Persians.
"300" has one-dimensional caricatures who talk like professional wrestlers plugging their next feud. "Sin City" has vividly- conceived characters and stylized dialogue. "300," directed by Zack Snyder, is ancient carnage, my least favorite genre, taken beyond the extreme.
"Sin City," directed by Robert Rodriguez and Miller, is film noir, my favorite genre, taken to the extreme. Why did I like the first, and dislike the second? Perhaps because of the subject matter, always a good place to start. They lean so heavily on CGI that many shots are entirely computer-created.
"300," I learn, reflects the book almost panel-by-panel. Universe.īoth films are faithful to Miller's plots and drawings. Of the earlier film, I wrote prophetically: "This isn't an adaptation of a comic book, it's like a comic book brought to life and pumped with steroids." They must have been buying steroids wholesale for "300." Every single male character, including the hunchback, has the muscles of a finalist for Mr. Now, as I deserve, I get "300," based on another work by Miller. I gave a four-star rating to " Sin City," the 2005 film based on a graphic novel by Frank Miller.