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List Price: $19.98 | | Label: Warner Home Video
Salesrank: 1430
Released: July 31, 2007 |
| Our Price: $1.90 |
| Used Price: $1.34 |
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MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
The epic graphic novel by Frank Miller (Sin City) assaults the screen with the blood, thunder and awe of its ferocious visual style faithfully recreated in an intense blend of live-action and CGI animation. Retelling the ancient Battle of Thermopylae, it depicts the titanic clash in which King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) and 300 Spartans fought to the death against Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro) and his massive Persian army. Experience history at swordpoint. And moviemaking with a cutting edge.
Description of 300 (Widescreen Edition):
Like Sin City before it, 300 brings Frank Miller and Lynn Varley's graphic novel vividly to life. Gerard Butler (Beowulf and Grendel, The Phantom of the Opera) radiates pure power and charisma as Leonidas, the Grecian king who leads 300 of his fellow Spartans (including David Wenham of The Lord of the Rings, Michael Fassbender, and Andrew Pleavin) into a battle against the overwhelming force of Persian invaders. Their only hope is to neutralize the numerical advantage by confronting the Persians, led by King Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro), at the narrow strait of Thermopylae.
More engaging than Troy, the tepid and somewhat similar epic of ancient Greece, 300 is also comparable to Sin City in that the actors were shot on green screen, then added to digitally created backgrounds. The effort pays off in a strikingly stylized look and huge, sweeping battle scenes. However, it's not as to-the-letter faithful to Miller's source material as Sin City was. The plot is the same, and many of the book's images are represented just about perfectly. But some extra material has been added, including new villains (who would be considered "bosses" if this were a video game, and it often feels like one) and a political subplot involving new characters and a significantly expanded role for the Queen of Sparta (Lena Headey). While this subplot by director Zack Snyder (Dawn of the Dead) and his fellow co-writers does break up the violence, most fans would probably dismiss it as filler if it didn't involve the sexy Headey. Other viewers, of course, will be turned off by the waves of spurting blood, flying body parts, and surging testosterone. (The six-pack abs are also relentless, and the movie has more and less nudity--more female, less male--than the graphic novel.) Still, as a representation of Miller's work and as an ancient-themed action flick with a modern edge, 300 delivers. --David Horiuchi
300 (Widescreen Edition) Reviews:
"Prepare For Glory!" ~ In Pursuit Of A Beautiful Death 
2009-11-02 - Watching the amazing. hallucinatory 2007 film '300' is a visual treat not soon to be forgotten, it's like experiencing history through the eyes of Salvador Dali. To make the viewing experience even more impressive is the inclusion of a highly intelligent script with dialogue that resonates with the audiences intellect and emotions. Action and philosophy merge as one as deeds and word meld into a comprehensive worldview examining the paradigms of both the people of Sparta and those that would seek to enslave them. As the brave 300 battle against insurmountable odds a profound Spartan philosophy of war is lived out before your eyes and one comes to understand and embrace what they are doing and the reason behind their willingness to die for the greater good.
'300' is a one-of-a-kind film that I will never get tire of watching. It's an absolutely astonishing cinematic achievement!
Entertaining, but......... 
2009-10-29 - This is an entertaining movie to a point. Yes, it's based on fact, but I'm not knowledgeable enough to say just how much. I was expecting to see a regular historical movie but was very disappointed in the fact that it had "supernatural" occurances and creatures. Also, I'm not deaf in the least, but I and my husband had a lot of trouble understanding some of the dialog. Would I recommend this movie...no.
Short and Sweet
2009-10-26 - I just bought this Blu-ray and I would have to say that it is all I could have wanted. I thought that the book was a bit much, but it was still a very nice package. I first saw 300 in an IMAX theatre, and was amazed. Shortly after I upgraded to a 1080p HDTV. The 300 BD has many ways to view the movie. I have now seen them all, and they are each a different and interesting experience. If you liked this movie, and you are looking for the best version, this is worth the price. ***warning*** the BD book doesnt fit most BD holders, so keep that in mind.
300 blu-ray
2009-10-24 - 300: The Complete Experience (Blu-ray Book + Digital Copy and BD-Live) [Blu-ray]
this is the best
Fun Action, Irritating Subtext, Blu-Ray transfer could be better 
2009-10-19 - 300 / B000Q6GX5Y
*Spoilers*
As a spectacle fighting movie, "300" is a joy to behold. The fighting sequences are beautifully choreographed, and the camera work is superb. Special effects merge flawlessly with the rest of the action, and it is a delight to see what a big budget and talented cast can produce when they put their minds to it. Even the soundtrack and soothing narrative overlay are gorgeous, combining to make the frequent and varied battle scenes a feast for the eyes and ears. And the stunning visual effects aren't limited to the battleground; the much-hyped Oracle scene is as lovely in film as it was on the promotional posters, and the visions of Xerxes and his entourage are lovely, if historically unrealistic (more on that later). Even the writing for the Spartan warriors is nicely done; the humorous quips on the battlefield are clever and help to relieve the overall tension.
This isn't to say "300" is for everyone - if visual effects aren't your thing and spectacle fighting doesn't interest you, this movie likely won't hold your interest. There is a story, but it's definitely the weakest point of "300" - the jingoistic, oh-aren't-I-a-clever-writer dialogue for the Spartan queen in particular will grate on anyone's nerves, with flat lines like "Freedom isn't free" spoken with such overdone fervor and determination that it feels she's stepped directly out of Team America: World Police.
And it's important to note that "300" isn't even remotely historically accurate - not that it needs to be, but sometimes the movie seems to think that we should think that, which is just odd. Spartans shouldn't be talking about "freedom" and "free men" as if they were present-day Americans; Sparta was a slave-holding society without shame, so why this unnecessary "freedom" subtext? Can't we just have a nice spectacle fighting movie about defending one's borders from an invading power without needing to make the whole thing 'relevant' to modern day events? It almost feels like the movie is embarrassed of itself and wants to tag on a "deep" subtext as an excuse for all this artistic fighting, but the "deep" material just distracts, unlike the subtext in Gladiator which I felt served an actual point.
As a final note, having owned both the Blu-ray and the regular version of this movie, I don't particularly feel that the Blu-ray version is worth shelling out the extra money. The transfer isn't the best (there are many scenes that are still very grainy), and this isn't really the best movie to showcase Blu-ray abilities anyway, since the visual effects are deliberately kind of washed and grainy to begin with. I'd definitely recommend buying this movie, as it's definitely worthy of a spot on the shelf, but I'd buy the regular DVD over the Blu-ray version.
