The movie I will be reviewing is 300 and will be focusing mainly on the cultural aspect of the movie. The movie opens dramatically with thunder rumbling as the narrator explains the main character, Leonidas’ early life as a Spartan. Leonidas represents all male Spartans in the opening scene. Since his birth, Leonidas was judged, whether he was worthy or not. The narrator then explains how Spartans are “baptized in the fire of combat,”, as a young Leonidas is in an intense sword fight with a grown warrior. As the opening scene continues you are given a brief insight into the Spartan way of life. Male Spartans were said to be taken away at the age of 7 to be intensely trained and molded into the perfect warrior. All healthy male Spartan citizens participated in the compulsory state-sponsored education system, the Agoge, which emphasized obedience, endurance, courage, and self-control. A Spartan was taught that loyalty to the state came before everything else, including one’s family. Also in this scene, there is specific scenery that is uniquely represented. For example, some architecture is inaccurately represented.
As the film goes on, the same cultural aspects are continuously portrayed. For example, the following scene opens up to Leonidas, now king, sparring with his son. Now the Spartan beliefs of early training and pressure to be elite are once again shown. Leonidas then receives a visit from a Persian messenger who then dramatically asks him to submit to the Persian God-King Xerxes. Leonidas gives an arrogant speech about how Spartans never back down and have a reputation to keep. Leonidas then exclaims “THIS IS SPARTA!” As he kicks the Persian messenger into an endless pit of death, while Spartan warriors slaughter the Persian warriors accompanying the messenger. Although this is not historically accurate, a Spartan king would likely react to being asked to submit in the same way, by killing or wounding the messenger to make a point. In my opinion, Leonidas should have threatened Xerxes and the messenger with a message back to Xerxes. That being said, while being historically inaccurate, the scene did help the movie, being one of the most memorable parts.
Leonidas’ fearless act to round up 300 Spartans, along with a few thousand other Greek soldiers, and go to war with the powerful Persian empire, shows initiative and confidence. In the film, all of the Spartan warriors are accurately dressed and equipped with the standard Spartan helmet, shield, spear, sword, and cape. A Spartan king needed to have these characteristics, it was required to keep up with the Spartan ego and reputation. Sparta would have two kings rule, due to its constitution. The kings would share their duties, and the pressure of the dual leadership would keep the other king honest. Both kings would ensure that one king would not misuse or gain too much power, that they could cause harm to the state. The odd nature of the Spartan kings was impressive, considering all other Greek city-states of the time had elected officials in place of their kings. The film is inaccurate in portraying this aspect of the Spartan culture. The whole film is conveyed as if Leonidas were the only king. The reason the writers did this is to make Leonidas have stronger characteristics and attributes.
The next scene gives insight into the religious beliefs of Spartans. Leonidas climbs a mountain in order to speak with the Ephors and the oracle to ask the gods for permission to go to war with Persia. An ephor is one of five Spartan magistrates. There were a total of 7 ephors, consisting of the two kings and the 5 who were elected. The ephors held numerous duties including legislative, judicial, financial, and executive duties. Oracles were thought to be portals through which the gods spoke directly to people, who interpreted signs sent by the gods through bird signs, animal entrails, and other various methods. In the movie, the oracle is represented by the most beautiful Spartan woman. At first, the ephors deny Leonidas’ request for war, regardless of the hefty offering of gold from the king. They ultimately leave it up to the oracle, who then says that not only Sparta but all of Greece will fall. This scene reveals the respect and power held to the set of Greek gods by Spartans. Their praise of the gods, their acceptance and belief of their mightiness, and their celebration in festivals throughout the year highlight just how revered they were by Sparta. Along with that scene, there is a specific event that relates directly to Zeus, the king of the Greek gods. He was the god of the sky and thunder. As Leonidas and his warriors march through the valley to the ocean, they come across countless Persian boats as far as the eye can see, filled with warriors ready to fight. But, instead of anxious or nervous, Leonidas replies to the soldiers who spot the Persians with an arrogant grin. He then says, “it does look like rain,” hinting at the fact that Zeus is going to help them. The scene then goes on to the boats being destroyed by wild waves, insane rain, and booming thunder and lightning while the narrator explains that it is, in fact, Zeus controlling the weather. Greek gods, like Zeus, relate directly to the Roman gods we spoke about in class. The Roman version of Zeus would be, Jupiter. Greece and Rome base their religion around the same gods, just with different names.
The editors and producers of the film made quite a few details in the movie inaccurate for cinematic purposes. For example, the setting and the scenery. In the earlier scenes of the movie, which take place in Sparta, the architecture is inaccurately illustrated. A specific instance is when Leonidas is marching through Sparta, the columns on the buildings are short, round, and had no ridges on them. A true Greek column would be taller and skinner, with ridges and different styles and designs at the top of the column. They also would make the mountains black and the sky was always dark orange or red, due to the comic book effect the writers were trying to achieve. Which in my opinion does create a good dramatic effect, but it is inaccurate because the scenery in Greece is full of bright greens and blues. As the film continues the Spartans are faced with intense adversity, whether it be fighting giant mutants, facings thousands of Persian warriors, or unrealistically surviving without food, water or heals for ended soldiers. As the battles continue more and more Spartans are killed and the Spartans become weaker. All of the dead Spartans go out fighting or while slaughtering an enemy, as Spartan should. Leonidas sends a single warrior back to Sparta with a message. The warrior is Delios, who is revealed to be the narrator the whole time telling the story. At this point he is the only remaining of the three hundred Spartans who originally went to war. All of the remaining Spartans were showered with thousands of Persian arrows, including Leonidas. Delios, a year later, then explains through a motivational speech, to a new and improved Spartan army which included ten thousand Spartans and twenty thousand other Greek allies, that the only thing King Leonidas and his warriors wanted was to be remembered by the people as fearless warriors who had a great legacy, which was achieved.
