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Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Boring

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

An excellent epic adventure movie, retelling the tragically heroic defence of the Strait of Thermopylae by the Spartan king Leonidas, his bodyguard of 300 men and supporting Greeks. From what I've read, Hollywood for once stays fairly true to the actual historical story, only to my mind contriving a romance between the young son of a disgraced former Spartan king and the daughter of another high-ranking Spartan officer and the subterfuge of a Greek-sympathetic queen within the camp of the Persian king Xerxes.In the early part of the film, there's lots of exposition as different characters get to explain the then-current political situation passed off as dialogue just to make sure the audience understands the historical context. Another minor criticism I might make is that the physical location of the Strait in the movie failed to convey to me its narrowness and hence terrible danger of their defence. While the battle scenes lack the realism of what you might see in a modern-day feature and you never really get the sense of the overwhelming numbers of the Persian army, it's impossible not to get caught up in the spirit of the Spartans futile but heroic resistance and there's real pathos in the ending as death rains down literally, at last, on them.Ralph Richardson is the big name classical actor brought in like Olivier in "Spartacus" to add gravitas to proceedings and this he does capably but Richard Egan, as the noble Leonidas, is particularly good in a performance which makes you wonder why he didn't go on to become a major leading character actor of the 60's. David Farrar, as the mood-swinging Xerxes is perhaps too pantomime-villainy in the part however.I was first taken to this movie with my classmates by a school-teacher as a history lesson many years ago and it made a big impression on me then. Revisiting it today, I got more this time of the history as well as the adventure, but in both ways this is a sword and sandals epic of the best type. A great story, well told, in short.

I first saw this movie when aired on TV sometime in the 60s. I thought the battle scenes of ancient warfare were the best I'd ever seen. I knew the story and was impressed by the accuracy. This movie can be used in a history class.It is refreshing to see battle scenes without computer generated soldiers as in so many more recent movies. Other great movies in the genre are John Wayne's "The Alamo" and Christopher Plummer & Rod Steiger's "Waterloo" and Charlton Heston's "El Cid."I will go see "Gates of Fire" if ever released. Hopefully, it will achieve a similar degree of excellence.

Zack Snyder's 300 based on Frank Miller's graphic novel may perhaps be the interpretation that's etched on the modern moviegoer's mind, with its slow motion, stylized battle sequences leaping out from the panels of the comic, and plenty of wailing WWE style with Gerard Butler leading the charge as King Leonidas of Sparta, his troops severely outnumbered against the mighty Persian army in the Battle of Thermopylae, but morale running high nonetheless for being able to fulfill a warrior's calling of an honourable death on the battlefield while defending their homeland from foreign invaders.Naturally the 1962 film version directed by Rudolph Mate will be dated, but the spirit and scheme of things remain on the agenda, with the story given a more holistic coverage of the same battle with its sea component mentioned, a pity that it wasn't filmed. In my opinion when I look back with nostalgia, Swords and Sandals epics in the 60s were always about grandeur with its scale and countless number of extras suited up with equipment and logistics to portray an era long past, without resorting to modern day trickery with computer programs to make up the numbers. Logistics, I can imagine, could be quite the nightmare.For a tale that's been told since 480 BC, you can bet that interpretations will defer depending on the source, and if compared with 300, there are some aspects here in the story that held more potential. For instance, it would have been great if the sea battles made it to the film, and Leonidas (Richard Egan) conducted a daring raid of the Persian camp with a handful of merry men, which made them go on the offensive instead of just depending the narrow pass at Thermopylae, for a reason none other than to spread chaos and panic, and also to buy the Greeks time to set up their defences.More importantly, this film doesn't over romanticize the Spartan warriors. Yes they are great in their fighting prowess and their fearsome reputation is legendary, but The 300 Spartans take time off to dwell on the need for unity amongst the squabbling Greek contingents, where unity is strength should everyone stand up and be counted when faced with a collective aggressor. Superstition and religion also played a key role in the methods of the Spartans, as with the key turning point of their betrayal which turned the tides for them. Battle sequences aren't as stylized, and some of the strategies were quite weakly executed to have imagined the Persian army led by Xerxes (David Farrar) himself, also beefed up with his Invincibles troops, couldn't outfight the Spartans since almost all fights are close quartered mêlées.Dialogue is slanted 60s styled, so don't expect pompous lines screamed across the screen by any character wanting to rouse their troops. Even Richard Egan's Leonidas wears an optimistic smile now and then, and seemed relatively more friendly than the Gerard Butler version who looks like a murderous butcher eager to shove his spear into the rear of his enemies. For all the lean and meanness of Butler's very toned and muscular Leonidas and his Spartan troops, the lack of physique gets camouflaged here through the use of battle armour, and while 300 was essentially a King Leonidas story, this one somehow had a romantic subplot spun between the characters of Ellas (Diane Baker) and Phylon (Barry Coe), with the former persuading her beau to abandon duty for romance and the quieter life.Still for those who prefer a break from the flashy, exaggerated treatment gladiator style of Snyder's 300, this version may be the more accurate account given its mention and time devoted to the sea component and other Greek troops joining the Spartans, and also without making Xerxes look androgynous. But if you're more of an action junkie, then stick to Snyder's stylized version as the battle sequences here couldn't withstand the test of time compared to what's on offer by filmmakers today.

All in all, it's not a bad movie. But if you like Ancient History and have seen or read anything related to one of the most heroic and important moments of world's history (Persian Wars/Thermopylae), you'll probably feel that this movie has tried, but not really made the mark.My main feeling is the movie has lacked serious proper research. To start, the costumes are not even from the Greek period (V cent. BC) but actually later Roman (!) It is not just the acting pointing to the 60s but the superficial approach of the script (and direction) towards the motivations and personality of characters such as Leonidas, the Spartan King. Leonidas was brave but he did not take that lightly the battle and the decision to sacrifice himself and his army. He was the most respected king of Greece and Sparta the most powerful army. He knew his decision was going to shake Greece as an earthquake.A bit of research would have avoided the inconsequent laughs and silly smiles without sacrificing the story, adding key elements to give the audience the source of power of both kings (Leonidas = democracy/individual freedom; Xerxes = autocracy/submission fear) and the clash of civilisations that was about to happen.The romantic sub-plots are useless and do not help tell the story. Again, the historical sources are filled with interesting elements that could had add a lot more drama, and based on facts (as far we can tell).Although I don't want to, it is impossible not to compare with '300' from Frank Miller. Even discounting the highly graphical impact, that version has, undeniably, far better consistency in the historical elements. "The 300 Spartans" can be seen as entertainment but if you really love Ancient Greece, get Miller's 300 and then do yourself a favour and google Thermopylae. You will learn the facts having some fantastic visuals to match. Time travel guaranteed!