300 is a 2006 epic historical fantasy action film directed by Zack Snyder, who co-wrote the screenplay with Kurt Johnstad and Michael B. Gordon. Based on the 1998 Dark Horse Comics limited series of the same name by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley, the film, like its source material, is a retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae in the Greco-Persian Wars. The plot revolves around King Leonidas (Gerard Butler), who leads 300 Spartans into battle against the Persian "God-King" Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro) and his invading army of more than 300,000 soldiers. As the battle rages, Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey) attempts to rally support in Sparta for her husband. The film also features Michael Fassbender in his film debut.
The story is framed by a voice-over narrative by the Spartan soldier Dilios (David Wenham). As an unreliable narrator, Dilios introduces various historical inaccuracies and other fantastical elements, placing 300 within the genre of historical fantasy. 300 was filmed mostly with a superimposition chroma key technique to replicate the imagery of the original comics.
An unfinished cut of 300 premiered at the Austin Butt-Numb-A-Thon on December 9, 2006. The completed film then premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 14, 2007, before being released in both conventional and IMAX screens in the United States on March 9, and on home media on July 31. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised its visuals, action sequences, and style but received criticism from historians, who criticized its historical inaccuracies, most notably its depiction of the Persians, which some characterized as Persophobic. Grossing over $468.8 million, the film's opening was the 24th-largest in box office history at the time, and became the tenth highest-grossing film of 2007. The film earned a leading ten nominations at the 34th Saturn Awards, winning two for Best Action, Adventure, or Thriller Film and Best Director (for Snyder). A sequel, titled Rise of an Empire, based on Miller's previously unpublished graphic novel prequel Xerxes, was released on March 7, 2014.
Plot
Dilios, a hoplite in the Spartan army, narrates the story of a Spartan king named Leonidas I from childhood to kingship through the Spartan child-rearing system and the Battle of Thermopylae.
A Persian herald enters Sparta one day, urging Leonidas to offer "earth and water" in submission to King Xerxes. Leonidas and the Spartan soldiers decline, throwing the herald, who insulted his wife Queen Gorgo, and his envoy into a bottomless pit. Visiting the Ephors, Leonidas proposes repelling the Persians through Thermopylae by funneling them into a narrow pass, allowing the Greeks' heavy infantry to defeat the numerically superior Persian light infantry. The Ephors warn Leonidas against waging war during the upcoming Carneia, and the Oracle corroborates their advice. As Leonidas angrily departs, an agent from Xerxes appears alongside a Spartan politician named Theron, who rewards the Ephors' covert support with gold and "fresh oracles".
Having been forbidden to mobilize Sparta's army, Leonidas gathers 300 soldiers, with many leaving behind sons to continue their name. Although they are confronted by Theron and the Council about defying the Ephors, they depart for the Hot Gates shortly afterwards. Joined by a few thousand Arcadians and their leader Daxos along with other Greeks, they traverse a village that was entirely pillaged by the Persians before reaching Thermopylae, where a storm sinks many Persian navy ships at the Aegean Sea. The Spartans then scout out a large Persian encampment and construct a wall using the bodies of slain Persian scouts as mortar. Meanwhile, Leonidas encounters Ephialtes, a deformed Spartan whose parents fled Sparta to avert certain infanticide. Looking to redeem his family name, Ephialtes details a secret goat path through which the Persians could outflank and surround the Spartans and requests to join Leonidas's army. Leonidas sympathetically declines, as despite Ephialtes' skilled thrust attack, his inability to raise his shield would compromise their phalanx formation.
Following their refusal to lay down their weapons, the Spartans utilize the narrowed pathway to repel many waves of the advancing Persian onslaught, including an arrow volley. Xerxes, impressed by their skills, personally approaches Leonidas and offers him immense wealth, power and control of all Greek forces. Leonidas declines, mocking the inferior quality of Xerxes' warriors. Xerxes sends in his elite guard, the Immortals, accompanied by the monstrous Über Immortal, but the Greeks triumph, suffering only a few Spartan casualties.
On the second day, Xerxes unsuccessfully dispatches new waves of detachments against the Spartans, including Slaves, war elephants, bombardiers, and an armored rhinoceros. Completely irate, he begins executing his own generals for their failures. Meanwhile, an embittered Ephialtes reveals the secret path to Xerxes in exchange for wealth, women, and a uniform. During the fight, Leonidas' loyal captain and friend Artemis suffers a personal tragedy when his eldest son Astinos is decapitated, compelling him to violently break formation and responsively kill several Persians in a vengeful, murderous rage. The Arcadians retreat upon learning of Ephialtes' betrayal, but Leonidas orders an injured but reluctant Dilios to return to Sparta and inform his compatriots of what has happened.
Gorgo approaches Theron for help in petitioning the Spartan Council for reinforcements, but Theron rapes her, and the following day, he treacherously attempts to defame her as an adulteress before the Council. Enraged, she kills him, revealing a bag of Xerxes' gold in his robe. Acknowledging his betrayal, the Council unanimously agrees in her favor. On the third day, the Persians, led by Ephialtes, traverse the secret path, encircling the Spartans. Xerxes' general and Ephialtes implore them to surrender, but the Spartans refuse, as Leonidas tells Ephialtes "May you live forever!". After a young, spirited and highly skilled Spartan soldier named Stelios kills the general, Xerxes commands his troops to attack, forcing Leonidas to throw his spear at him, which slices his face and proves his mortality. The remaining Spartans fight to the death, finally succumbing to an arrow barrage.
Inspired by Leonidas' sacrifice and Dilios' testimony before the Spartan Council, the Greeks mobilize an army, with Dilios heading the Spartan-led charge. After delivering a rousing emotional speech honoring King Leonidas and the 300 who sacrificed their lives a year prior, Dilios leads the Greeks into the Battle of Plataea against the Persians.
Cast
Gerard Butler as Leonidas, King of Sparta David Wenham as Dilios, narrator and Spartan soldier Lena Headey as Queen Gorgo, Queen of Sparta Giovanni Cimmino as Pleistarchus, son of Leonidas and Gorgo Dominic West as Theron, a corrupt Spartan politician Vincent Regan as Captain Artemis, Leonidas' loyal captain and friend Tom Wisdom as Astinos, Captain Artemis's eldest son Andrew Pleavin as Daxos, an Arcadian leader who joins forces with Leonidas Andrew Tiernan as Ephialtes, a deformed Spartan outcast and traitor Rodrigo Santoro as King Xerxes, the powerful and ruthless god-like king of Persia Stephen McHattie as the Loyalist, a loyal Spartan politician Michael Fassbender as Stelios, a young, spirited and highly skilled Spartan soldier Peter Mensah as a Persian messenger who gets kicked into the well by Leonidas Kelly Craig as Pythia, an Oracle to the Ephors Eli Snyder as young Leonidas (7/8 years old) Tyler Neitzel as young Leonidas (15 years old) Robert Maillet as Über Immortal (giant), a muscular and deranged Immortal who battles Leonidas during the Immortal fight Patrick Sabongui as the Persian General who tries to convince Leonidas to comply at the end of the battle Leon Laderach as Executioner, a hulking, clawed man who executes Xerxes's own men Tyrone Benskin as the whip-wielding Persian Emissary
Production Development
Producer Gianni Nunnari was not the only person planning a film about the Battle of Thermopylae, as director Michael Mann had already planned a film of the battle based on the book Gates of Fire. Nunnari discovered Frank Miller's graphic novel 300, which impressed him enough to acquire the film rights. 300 was jointly produced by Nunnari and Mark Canton while Michael B. Gordon wrote the script. Director Zack Snyder was hired in June 2004 as he had attempted to make a film based on Miller's novel before making his debut with the remake of Dawn of the Dead. Snyder then had screenwriter Kurt Johnstad rewrite Gordon's script for production and Frank Miller was retained as consultant and executive producer. Frank Miller's original graphic novel 300 was inspired by the film The 300 Spartans, which Miller first saw at age six.
The film is a shot-for-shot adaptation of the comic book, similar to the 2005 film adaptation of Sin City. Snyder photocopied panels from the comic book, from which he planned the preceding and succeeding shots. "It was a fun process for me... to have a frame as a goal to get to", he said. Like the comic book, the adaptation also used the character Dilios as a narrator. Snyder used this narrative technique to show the audience that the surreal "Frank Miller world" of 300 was told from a subjective perspective. By using Dilios' gift of storytelling, he was able to introduce fantasy elements into the film, explaining that "Dilios is a guy who knows how not to wreck a good story with truth". Snyder also added the subplot in which Queen Gorgo attempts to rally support for Leonidas.
Two months of pre-production were required to create hundreds of shields, spears and swords, some of which were recycled from Troy and Alexander. Creatures were designed by Jordu Schell, and an animatronic wolf and thirteen animatronic horses were created. The actors trained alongside the stuntmen, and even Snyder joined in. Upwards of 600 costumes were created for the film, as well as extensive prosthetics for various characters and the corpses of Persian soldiers. Shaun Smith and Mark Rappaport worked hand in hand with Snyder in pre-production to design the look of the individual characters, and to produce the prosthetic makeup effects, props, weapons and dummy bodies required for the production.
Filming 300 entered active production on October 17, 2005, in Montreal, and was shot over the course of sixty days in chronological order with a budget of $60 million. Employing the digital backlot technique, Snyder shot at the now-defunct Icestorm Studios in Montreal using bluescreens. Gerard Butler said that while he did not feel constrained by Snyder's direction, fidelity to the comic imposed certain limitations on his performance. David Wenham said there were times when Snyder wanted to precisely capture iconic moments from the comic book, and other times when he gave actors freedom "to explore within the world and the confines that had been set". Lena Headey said of her experience with the bluescreens, "It's very odd, and emotionally, there's nothing to connect to apart from another actor." Only one scene, in which horses travel across the countryside, was shot outdoors. The film was an intensely physical production, and Butler pulled an arm tendon and developed foot drop.
Post-production