We saw 300 this afternoon. It was our first movie to see in the theater in quite a while simply because nothing excited us enough to drop $22. This movie was definitely worth the cost of admission. Yes, it is a lot of blood and violence, but it’s got a solid story behind. Watching the outnumbered Spartan army take on onslaught after onslaught of Persian warriors is simply riveting. The Spartans aren’t bloodthirsty; they are out to make sure their families and countryman are safe from having their lands taken and becoming slaves.
The film is a visual feast too. In the same way that Sin City brought a graphic novel to life by using a stark black and white color scheme and other very artistic turns, 300 uses muted color and a lot of CGI to achieve its style. The film has certainly mixed critics, some who find the CGI to be a triumph of filmmaking and others who think it made the film look too perfect. I’m in the former group, the CGI was used to great effect and the finished product was a great theatrical experience (honestly, a better overall expereince than we got at The Pirate Queen last night).