About Me

I ramble about a number of things - but travel experiences, movies and music feature prominently. See my label cloud for a better idea. All comnments and opinions on this blog are my own, and do not in any way reflect the opinions/position of my employer (past/current/future).

19 April 2007

Movie: 300

There are two ways to review this movie. It is visually stunning, over the top, a simple, straight forward plot line - all hallmarks of a great adaptation of a graphic novel. It is highly entertaining and enjoyable.

But it can also be seen as political and historical commentary - esp as it is a fictionalised account of a real event. The real event: a war between Sparta and Persia, where the Spartans were out numbered, but eventually won. But, it was nothing in the scale proposed by 300. In a a modern setting, it is like saying 300 men first went into D-Day, and paved the way for the latter onslaught. Most people, whether literate or not, get their history through visual means; ;not by reading. How many people learnt a bit of the history of Scotland through Braveheart for example? Surely, there should be a motivation to get the history fundamentally correct?

And lastly, it is a political comment - that a well trained army will always defeat a massive army of lesser talent; and we should never reference any help that is actually offered on the way. It is a war between the east and the west - it is a war about defending freedom (aparently). I am not sure, if the bloodshed potrayed is really good propaganda ...

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