Rating: 
Summary: Exciting,dramatic recreation...
Review: THE 300 SPARTANS does creditable job of recreating one of the most famous Last Stand battles in history. Director Rudy Mate makes excellent use of on-location sites to render the mytho-historical Battle of Thermopylae fought in August of 480 BC. An elite, 300 man-guard of Sparta's Battle King Leonidas arrayed itself in the narrow "Hot Gates" pass.[North of Athens and Thebes, but far north east of Lacedaemon/Sparta. This is critical,because Sparta's senate initially voted to defend much closer-to-home portion of the Peloponnesian Peninsula near the strategic land bridge of the Gulf of Corinth]. Xerxes,invading Persian Monarch and would-be world conqueror, myriad legions were averred so numerous that their force "drank the streams dry" marching to the attack.Richard Egen does excellent job as Leonidas. He is charismatic yet characterisically laconic leader of Lacedaemons whose "warrior cult" society was legendary even to its Greek City-State peers,embodying The "RETURN HOME WITH YOUR SHIELD...OR ON IT!" victory or death ethic. David Farrar is fine as haughty despot Xerxes who none the less conveys astonishment(and once when a desperate,final Flying-Wedge assault by the Spartans threatens him personally)and respectful fear. Sir Ralph Richardson's role as Athenian senator who struggles to cobble unity from fiercely independent Hellenic poleis is "instructive" and understated.As noted,the background romance involving Diane Baker and a Spartan soldier initiate is essentially filler; Mate employs it well,however, to introduce a Greek traitor who discloses the mountain pass which allows Persians to flank...annihilate...the Spartans and their small cohort of allies. THE 300 SPARTANS may not be epic film making but it's quite good. It's interestingly attentive to detail(wicker shields for Persians;the Lambda signum on shields of Spartans...dressed in red cloaks so enemies cannot see them bleed.)Photography is fine using both panoramic sweep and jump-cut close-up's. Battle scenes are convincing(lacking CGI magnus/extravagance)effectively conveying claustrophobic chaos and terror of close, no-quarter combat. This is an exciting,dramatic recreation of one of the signum battles of history. Overwhelming odds are confronted by resovled courage. It's the right stuff of myth that both chides the spirit as well as excites the imagination.
Rating: 
Summary: 300 FAILURES
Review: The film incorrectly depicts the Spartans as freedom fighters in a free society, as if they represented human rights in a modern sense, and contrasts them with the Persians, depicted merely as cruel opressors ruled by a tyrant. When the ancient Greeks labelled the Persians Barbarians, they didn't mean they were a horde of morons with no culture; the ancient Greeks referred to any non-Greek as a Barbarian. The Spartans were a militaristic society and a predecessor of fascism. They had slaves and only the physically fit were accepted as full citizens. To be fair, women had more independence in Sparta than in Athens, but only as a consequence of the men's constant engagement in military service. Admittedly, one cannot expect historical accuracy in the epic genre, but the film doesn't provide a shred of insight into Spartan society. Even if you don't care one iota about history, for pure entertainment--let alone artistic--value, 300 SPARTANS is worthless. Just for starters, the script, acting, design and score are awful.
Rating:
Summary: Go Stranger and tell the Spartans: faithful, here we fell
Review: The narrow pass of Thermopalyae is long gone, with centuries of sendiment building a large plain. The location of the statue of King Leonidas of Sparta set up along the highway does provide a sense of how narrow the geography was in 480 B.C. when a small force of Spartans and other Greek warriors held up the advance of King Xerxes and his Persian army (the parallels to the Alamo are palatable). When I visited Greece last week I was glad we were able to stop at the monument for a few minutes, not so much because of what I had read in the history books about the Battle of Thermopalyae but because of the 1962 film "The 300 Spartans." Granted the acting in this film from director Rudolph Maté is wooden, on a par with the Trojan Horse and the ships that turned out to the wooden walls of Athens that defeated Xerxes at Salamis. But there is still something substantial to the battle sequences, as when Xerxes sends his Immortals against the Spartans and when the Spartans make a final valiant charge to kill the Persian monarch. The basic political history of the times is covered in the film; Greece was debating whether or not to send soldiers that far north to stop the invaders and the Spartans decided not to send troops until a religious festival was over. Consequently, King Leonidas (Richard Eagan) left with his personal bodyguard of 300 soldiers. There is a trivial romantic subplot involving a young Spartan soldier and the girl he tried to leave behind, as well as an exiled Spartan King, Demaratus (Ivan Triesault) who tries to educate Xerxes (David Farrar) about the worth of these 300 soldiers. In the end, the Spartans are betrayed by a Greek traitor who tells the Persians of a pass through the mountains where they can attack from the rear. Leonidas learns of the treachery in time to evacuate the rest of the Greek army, but the Spartans will never retreat. This was one of the last films directed by Maté, a respected cinematographer ("Pride of the Yankees," "Lady From Shanghai") who directed movies as different as "D.O.A." and "When Worlds Collide." The battle sequences are the best part of "The 300 Spartans," making excellent cinematic use of the contrast between the Spartans in their gold armor and red cloaks versus the black draped Persians with their wicker armor. Eagan does not do much with the role of Leonidas, but he certainly gives the character the requisite sense of honor and nobility. But perhaps the most memorable part of this film, which is one of the most cherished from my youth, is the marching music of the Spartans written by Manos Hadjidakis. Clearly I am not alone in that regard. "The 300 Spartans" is not a great film, but it has its moments and the tale is worth the telling. Recently Frank Miller ("Batman: The Dark Night") did his own graphic novel version of this story, which may well inspire Hollywood to remake this film. It is certainly a tale worth telling again.
Rating:
Summary: Not quite 4 stars, but good Solid Epic.
Review: The only reason I have not heaped more stars on this 1961 classic is the lack of extra's on the DVD, although the Widescreen reproduction is good, the picture and sound crisp, and overall a great package. Recently referred to in "The Last Samurai" whilst drawing parallels of futile "last stands", this movie is beginning to attract a new audience, as well as enthrall those who remember it the first time around. With the renewed interest in the genre (Troy / Alexander the Great) at theaters now, and in post production respectively, this is a timely release. Another plus is that this movie is seldom seen on countless reruns on TV like so many, and is a worthy addition to any fans collection. In a similar way to Troy, there is an air of inevitability to the story which heads for the ill fated battle at Thermopylae. Some policital bungling and bad planning pits Richard Egan and his elite but small army against the ravages of Xerxes (he who commanded an army of 1,000,000)at the aforementioned pass, and the end result though predictable is stirring. Some interesting metaphors abound (as was the practice at that time) comparing the political problems of 1961 to the historical aspects of the movie, but otherwise this is a solid picture. The battle sequences are a bit tame by todays standards, but there is a wonderful dramatic quality to the direction and script, often missing in todays CGI festooned reproductions. Oldy but Goody - Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: Great story - cheesy movie
Review: The supreme cheesiness is what you get from this B movie made in the 60's. The only thing Spartan about this movie is the production values. If you're really interested in this story read Steven Pressfield's Gates of Fire or Frank Miller's graphic novel 300. Now those were Spartans! If you have time, check out THE source and read Herodotus.
The one good thing about the movie is that I believe it actually takes place at the actual battle site. I can't be really sure because the movie is so cheesy it doesn't have any credits in the end. It just ends then nothing.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, the dvd we've all been waiting for!
Review: This is one of those movies where the action makes the movie great! I agree with other reviewers that the acting isn't all that great & the romance plot is downright silly. However, the battle scenes are some of the best I've ever seen! The final defiant stand of the remaining Spartans amid a hail of arrows is truly moving, inspirational, & unforgettable! I've only studied the battle a little, but from what I've read this movie is very accurate. You can see in this film the strict honor code of the male Spartans in Ancient Greece, who refused to retreat or surrender. For the action & the historical accuracy, this is a must-see for military history buffs!
Rating: 
Summary: Really great!
Review: This is the finest movie I've ever seen on ancient warfare, even besting Alexander the Great ... and that's really saying something! Am I glad I had the foresight to tape it many years ago, when it appeared on TV! $96.95 is one hellova price to pay for a movie ... in any format!
Rating:
Summary: A Tragic Story
Review: This is the story of sports fans gone amuck. The year was 1999, the Michigan State Spartans just lost to Duke in the NCAA Tournament. Rather than celebrating the accomplishments of a season that was better than expected, some people decided to riot. This is a movie about the events proceding, during and after the riots. The cinematography on the riot scene is too cool for words. If you want to see a movie about the American version of hooligans, see this one.
Rating:
Summary: Just Bad
Review: This movie was a disappointment as it was a poor depiction of an historical event. The acting was below average and the battle recreations were very inaccurate, often having a single lines of warriors facing the Persians rather than the standard eight-deep formation which the Spartans almost surely used as it would be to their advantage.
Rating:
Summary: Very Credible Job
Review: This was one of the last of the great sword-and-sandal epics. Unlike many before it or since, it managed to get the facts generally correct. The story, recorded in Herodotus, concerns a small band of troops from Sparta who held off the advance of the Persian army in the 5th century B.C. In doing so, they gave their fellow Greeks time to organise a larger army. Themes include: democracy vs. despotism, and sacrifice for the sake of the common good. Ever stoic Richard Egan (star of "Pollyanna," "Esther and the King," and other fun films) does a great job of projecting the inner strength of Spartan leader Leonidas. This film is not to be missed and ranks with other memorable epics of the 1960s, such as "The Long Ships". Note: this is newly remastered and should not be confused with the botched version released some months prior.
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