Review - 300

300 may be the coolest thing ever. I realised this when watching the Persian messengers galloping across golden fields of corn to Sparta near the beginning. Their Arab headdresses billowing in the wind, they arrive to deliver the news to King Leonidas that Xerxes, King of Persia, has designs on his land. The Spartan’s defence against this threat is an awesome true story that, when embellished by sick puppy Frank Miller, has become an epic blood ballet that really is a must-see.

This is the tale of the Battle of Thermopylae as told around the camp fires in the years after; it is history as myth, and not ashamed of the fact. 300 concentrates on visceral thrills, not characterization and complicated plots; it is made to entertain and astonish, not to give a realistic portrayal of life in Ancient Greece. In that it is very successful, painting the Persians as sensual freaks, and the handful of Spartans that face their massed army as rugged super soldiers, the kind of men that could all be played by Sean Bean.

Unfortunately, none of them are. But Gerard Butler is still excellent as Leonidas, with a six pack to match his warrior discipline and the boomiest voice this side of Brian Blessed. The other Spartans boom along nicely with him, and The Wire’s Dominic West is wonderfully slimy as Theron, the Machiavellian politician back in Sparta with designs on Queen Gorgo (Lena Heady). Heady is the weak link in an otherwise very robust cast, letting the character’s pinched sternness hide any acting that might be going on underneath.

The true star is really the art direction, which is outstanding; the whole look is beautiful, in a stylish muted palette. The CGI backgrounds, as with another Frank Miller adaptation, Sin City, are not designed to be realistic, but to produce a fully-realised fantasy world. Every frame looks like a painting. The fight choreography, so fluid and brutal, is also great, producing a many thrills.

We went to see 300 at the IMAX, and it is really is a film made to be seen in this format (let’s face it, they are unlikely to show a Mike Leigh retrospective there). As we waited for this to begin, people were shouting “This is Sparta!”. 300 has already built up a cult following, and unusually it has the mainstream appeal to become a huge hit.