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MOVIES / REVIEWS
Rating:
Nothing subtle about grrrrisly '300'
BY TIM MILLER
ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Grrrrr ... “300" has made it to the big screen and ... grrrrr ... it‘s about a tough band of Spartan warriors and ... grrrrr ... they take on thousands and thousands of Persian soldiers and ... grrrrr ... there‘s lots of decapitations and bloodletting and ... grrrrr ... they really like it.
Zack Snyder (“Dawn of the Dead") directed the film, which is based on a graphic novel by Frank Miller (“Sin City"). The story is set in ancient Greece, where Sparta is being threatened by the ridiculously huge Persian army ruled by Xerxes, who claims to be a fearsome god and projects all the masculinity of you-know-who in “The Crying Game."
Rushing out to protect Sparta are 300 soldiers led by King Leonidas (Gerard Butler). These guys have no problem in the manliness department. These dudes, scantily clad to show off their Chippendale-like massive physiques (Six-packs? These guys have 12-packs!), growl and sneer and kick butt on the battlefield. And black-bearded Leonidas is the buffest and toughest of the bunch.
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Now Showing
 What: "300"
Star rating: H1/2 (out of four)
Starring: Gerard Butler and Lena Headey
Directed by: Zack Snyder
Written by: Snyder, Kurt Johnstad and Michael Gordon
Running time: 117 minutes
Rating: R (for graphic battle sequences throughout, some sexuality and nudity)
Where: Entertainment Cinemas in South Dennis; Heritage Theaters in Sandwich; Regal Cinemas in Harwich, Hyannis (Cape Cod Mall) and Mashpee; Wellfleet Cinemas
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And, boy, can he give a speech. This guy is the Knute Rockne of Sparta (or, for those who prefer Shakespeare to Notre Dame football lore, the Henry V of Sparta). If he isn‘t chopping up some opponent on the battlefield, he‘s delivering tough-guy inspirational speeches to his men, barking out such lines as “Eat a good breakfast, kids, ‘cause tonight we‘ll be ordering fast food in hell." Well, something like that.
Back at home, his queen, Gorgo (Lena Headey), who‘s pretty tough herself, works to gain support for her husband from Sparta‘s senate, whose members aren‘t inclined to take on Xerxes‘ army. Her primary obstacle is the powerful politician (Dominic West), a weasel who‘s interested in having his way with milady.
But enough of these subtleties. “300" is mostly about the Spartans slicing, dicing and decapitating their rivals (and, occasionally, getting sliced, diced and decapitated themselves), with lots of blood spurting (cool!), along with a couple of side trips to Adolescent Sexual Fantasyland (the king and queen rolling around in bed - nudity included!).
Like the film version of Miller‘s “Sin City," “300" is amazing visually - a comic book/reality hybrid that often takes your breath away. But that‘s not enough to compensate for the repetitive posturing, pontificating and savagery. This tale of courage is supposed to be an inspiring thrill ride. Who‘d have guessed it would turn out to be so boring?
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Tim Miller is the Times' entertainment editor. He can be reached at 508-862-1140 or tmiller@capecodonline.com
RATING SCALE: Four stars (best) to bomb (worst)
RATING: R (for some strong killings, language, drug material and brief sexual images)
RUNNING TIME: 165 minutes
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Week of Friday, April 20, through Thursday, April 26, 2007
