Not as good as the first one, but still watchable.
676 Reviews
Good Action
jack_o_hasanov_imdb14 August 2021
Decent action flick, extremely harsh reviews/ratings are unjustified
Fleeeks8 June 2014
I didn't intend to review this movie but am doing so because I think a lot of the reviews are really slanted and uncalled for.
A lot of reviews of are calling out historical fallacies and giving the movie 1 star ratings. I think this is completely unjustified. This is entertainment and must be treated as such. HIstory aside, there's more than one element of pure fantasy in this movie, so one hardly expects the historical portrayal to be completely factual.
The storyline is average, the visual effects and action sequences are without doubt state-of-the-art. I generally hate never ending, mindless action sequences but the ones in this flick were quite watchable, there were even a few brilliant moments.
The best part of the movie for me were the characters, I find the Persians far more interesting - Xerses and Artemisia (Eva Green) are both fascinating. And my biggest gripe with this film is that these fascinating personalities didn't really have much to do. Sadly, the 300 franchise thrives mostly on action sequences and plot lines stay on the back-burner, I think that's where the opportunity of making brilliant sequel was lost and the viewer was left with a decent but forgettable action flick.
It'd be remiss of me not to give the gorgeous Eva Green a standalone mention, she looks amazing throughout and more than badass to fit her part. Her presence alone was worth the price of admission.
A lot of reviews of are calling out historical fallacies and giving the movie 1 star ratings. I think this is completely unjustified. This is entertainment and must be treated as such. HIstory aside, there's more than one element of pure fantasy in this movie, so one hardly expects the historical portrayal to be completely factual.
The storyline is average, the visual effects and action sequences are without doubt state-of-the-art. I generally hate never ending, mindless action sequences but the ones in this flick were quite watchable, there were even a few brilliant moments.
The best part of the movie for me were the characters, I find the Persians far more interesting - Xerses and Artemisia (Eva Green) are both fascinating. And my biggest gripe with this film is that these fascinating personalities didn't really have much to do. Sadly, the 300 franchise thrives mostly on action sequences and plot lines stay on the back-burner, I think that's where the opportunity of making brilliant sequel was lost and the viewer was left with a decent but forgettable action flick.
It'd be remiss of me not to give the gorgeous Eva Green a standalone mention, she looks amazing throughout and more than badass to fit her part. Her presence alone was worth the price of admission.
A far cry from the first 300
ronnie19626 March 2014
I can't understand why Zack Snyder didn't direct this sequel, and how someone who has never directed an action sequence before and just one feature film can be entrusted with a production of this magnitude. That would already be a recipe for disaster, even though in reality Snyder was supervising.
In an attempt to live up to it's predecessor, 300: Rise of An Empire is action-packed, presents impressive visuals and is very bloody. In fact there is more action, more blood, and more nudity than in the original 300. As for the plot, there really isn't much to chew on. A naval commander, Themistocles is supposedly trying to reunite Greece. Since the story takes place before, during and after King Leonidas leads his men to fight the Persians, it can be hard to follow at times.
Most of the acting was mediocre and couldn't quite compensate for the weaknesses in the story. The Australian actor cast as Themistocles in my opinion was a very bad choice, and comes nowhere close to what Gerard Butler did as King Leonidas in 300. He just doesn't bring that rugged heroic presence on screen as is expected. Interestingly I read somewhere that director Noam Murro insisted it would be Sullivan Stapleton who played this character, claiming he was 'the one'. Eva Green on the other hand is plays an excellent villain as Artemisia.
In an attempt to live up to it's predecessor, 300: Rise of An Empire is action-packed, presents impressive visuals and is very bloody. In fact there is more action, more blood, and more nudity than in the original 300. As for the plot, there really isn't much to chew on. A naval commander, Themistocles is supposedly trying to reunite Greece. Since the story takes place before, during and after King Leonidas leads his men to fight the Persians, it can be hard to follow at times.
Most of the acting was mediocre and couldn't quite compensate for the weaknesses in the story. The Australian actor cast as Themistocles in my opinion was a very bad choice, and comes nowhere close to what Gerard Butler did as King Leonidas in 300. He just doesn't bring that rugged heroic presence on screen as is expected. Interestingly I read somewhere that director Noam Murro insisted it would be Sullivan Stapleton who played this character, claiming he was 'the one'. Eva Green on the other hand is plays an excellent villain as Artemisia.
300
0U22 February 2020
Is it a 300 prequel, sequel, or set concurrently with the events of 300? Yes. It somehow manages to be all of the above, and manages to come up with a story that leads up to the events of the original and sorta what happens afterwards as well as creating a storyline of what was happening at the same time somewhere else. It's also always fun when original actors return in cameos to reprise their roles to give further character backstory especially the "this is madness!" guy who manages to get a quick story arc.
Not as good as the original, but still entertaining.
paulclaassen3 July 2018
A feast in so many ways! Unbelievably clear, brilliant photography. Very graphic, but never ceases to amaze. The film is ultimately not as exciting or entertaining as its predecessor, but nevertheless still fascinating. Plot flaws galore, it doesn't quite made sense why Themistokles went to Artemisia's ship, as it seemed like a suicide mission, but the sex scene that subsequently followed was indeed one to behold!
The film does become a bit repetitive and the slow motion overdone, but the eye candy more than compensates for this! Sullivan Stapleton makes a likable hero.
The film does become a bit repetitive and the slow motion overdone, but the eye candy more than compensates for this! Sullivan Stapleton makes a likable hero.
One for fans of mindless action
Leofwine_draca23 May 2016
Making a sequel to 300 must have been a daunting prospect. After all, the story of the Battle of Thermopylae was a self-contained war film with a very definitive ending seemingly at odds with the idea of a sequel. However, the makers of 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE have done a good job with this film, which offers more of the same while something different at the same time.
300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE is a deeply flawed film with plenty of problems, but nonetheless I enjoyed it. The film is packed full of war action - with a distinctive naval slant this time around - filmed in the same highly stylised way as in the first film. Thus we get lots of CGI blood sprays, slow motion hits, and superhuman feats. I'm easily pleased when it comes to well directed action, and this film doesn't disappoint in that respect.
Although the central characters lack the gravitas of Gerard Butler, Vincent Regan, and Michael Fassbender from the original film - and Sullivan Stapleton as the protagonist is seemingly devoid of charisma - this film does boast an excellent villainous performance from Eva Green. Green seems to be giving her all with her character in this one, relishing the opportunity to play a hard-bitten, ass-kicking female commander. She's by far the best character in the thing.
Elsewhere, RISE OF AN EMPIRE has some prequel stuff showing the rise of the Persian god king Xerxes, some concurrent stuff (a CGI composite of Butler is brought back in the same way they brought Schwarzenegger back in TERMINATOR SALVATION) and sequel antics. Unfortunately the storyline is very predictable and Lena Headey's character shouldn't have been included at all. But there are some spectacular set-pieces here, particularly the fiery attack in the water, and as mindless action it works well.
300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE is a deeply flawed film with plenty of problems, but nonetheless I enjoyed it. The film is packed full of war action - with a distinctive naval slant this time around - filmed in the same highly stylised way as in the first film. Thus we get lots of CGI blood sprays, slow motion hits, and superhuman feats. I'm easily pleased when it comes to well directed action, and this film doesn't disappoint in that respect.
Although the central characters lack the gravitas of Gerard Butler, Vincent Regan, and Michael Fassbender from the original film - and Sullivan Stapleton as the protagonist is seemingly devoid of charisma - this film does boast an excellent villainous performance from Eva Green. Green seems to be giving her all with her character in this one, relishing the opportunity to play a hard-bitten, ass-kicking female commander. She's by far the best character in the thing.
Elsewhere, RISE OF AN EMPIRE has some prequel stuff showing the rise of the Persian god king Xerxes, some concurrent stuff (a CGI composite of Butler is brought back in the same way they brought Schwarzenegger back in TERMINATOR SALVATION) and sequel antics. Unfortunately the storyline is very predictable and Lena Headey's character shouldn't have been included at all. But there are some spectacular set-pieces here, particularly the fiery attack in the water, and as mindless action it works well.
300 on the Sea!
joebloggscity29 March 2014
Now the professional reviewers seemed to pan this before it had any chance. In some ways it happened to the prequel also. As a fan of the prequel I was willing to give this the benefit of the doubt. I'm happy I did but it's not a patch on the original.
We have here a film that focuses on another clan of Greek fighters battling against Xerxes' men, except this time it's on warships, so it's really '300 on the Sea'. Some old faces but the opposing captains of our sides this time are the wonderful Eva Green and the less convincing Sullivan Stapleton.
The film is wall to wall action and you'll be enthralled. It's even more violent than the first. The bad thing is that the dialogue is really poor and the story not as riveting, engrossing and rousing as the first. Say what you like but there's a lot of wonderful points in the first that is what has made it a cult favourite.
If anything the flaws of this highlight just what was best in the old one. The lead ain't no patch on Gerald Butler and is outshone by Eva Green as the temptress Persian battle queen. In fairness to our new lead, he is purposely more human than the old King Leonidas, and is a great warrior without the Spartan attitude. Yet that misses out what was quite a strong point of the previous film.
In many way its a paint by numbers sequel as such (although the timeframe of the film mostly parallels that of the first). If you enjoyed the first and and want more then you'll find it here. For everyone else, probably you won't miss much if you let this one pass by. For me as a fan of the original, it was fair enough but not in the same league as the first.
We have here a film that focuses on another clan of Greek fighters battling against Xerxes' men, except this time it's on warships, so it's really '300 on the Sea'. Some old faces but the opposing captains of our sides this time are the wonderful Eva Green and the less convincing Sullivan Stapleton.
The film is wall to wall action and you'll be enthralled. It's even more violent than the first. The bad thing is that the dialogue is really poor and the story not as riveting, engrossing and rousing as the first. Say what you like but there's a lot of wonderful points in the first that is what has made it a cult favourite.
If anything the flaws of this highlight just what was best in the old one. The lead ain't no patch on Gerald Butler and is outshone by Eva Green as the temptress Persian battle queen. In fairness to our new lead, he is purposely more human than the old King Leonidas, and is a great warrior without the Spartan attitude. Yet that misses out what was quite a strong point of the previous film.
In many way its a paint by numbers sequel as such (although the timeframe of the film mostly parallels that of the first). If you enjoyed the first and and want more then you'll find it here. For everyone else, probably you won't miss much if you let this one pass by. For me as a fan of the original, it was fair enough but not in the same league as the first.
Ruined absolutely ruined (spoiler alert!)
Annaparsons8597 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
This movie was absolutely a waste of my time and my money. I went to my local theater on March 7th which is also my birthday and I wanted to see the movie based on the performance of the first 300.
The first 300 had catharsis, it had actual character development and made you want to keep going. This new 300, "rise of an empire" was absolutely horrendous. Rise of an empire, what empire?
This Great War that united the Greeks was barely touched on. It was all about the blood and the guts and breasts. I don't mind nudity. I don't mind blood. But the way the director went about it only cheapened the experience. This movie has a line in it "you fight harder than you f***" (Artemisia). It could have been beautiful and filled with the promise of something both hilarious and invigorating if the scene it referred to had not been so vulgar. 300 Rise of an Empire was not worth the money I spent on it. There are books out there on this point in history, historical fiction books that have stronger character development than this script. The actors did the best they could with what they had, but writers and director, you owe the public an apology for this poor display of cinematic "genius". It was cheap, crude and not well thought out. I had higher hopes. Next time actually make something worth watching.
The first 300 had catharsis, it had actual character development and made you want to keep going. This new 300, "rise of an empire" was absolutely horrendous. Rise of an empire, what empire?
This Great War that united the Greeks was barely touched on. It was all about the blood and the guts and breasts. I don't mind nudity. I don't mind blood. But the way the director went about it only cheapened the experience. This movie has a line in it "you fight harder than you f***" (Artemisia). It could have been beautiful and filled with the promise of something both hilarious and invigorating if the scene it referred to had not been so vulgar. 300 Rise of an Empire was not worth the money I spent on it. There are books out there on this point in history, historical fiction books that have stronger character development than this script. The actors did the best they could with what they had, but writers and director, you owe the public an apology for this poor display of cinematic "genius". It was cheap, crude and not well thought out. I had higher hopes. Next time actually make something worth watching.
The Movie Lives on its Feet
Sahl_956 March 2014
300: Rise of an Empire was a little different from what I initially expected. Assumed it was a sequel. However, it is more of a companion movie - a different view point of the events in 300 and the events after and some events before.
I found the story to be entertaining. The Persians are still attacking Greece, but this time we watch from the view point of Athenian Themistocles (Sullivan Stapleton) while the events of 300 unfold elsewhere. The backstory of some old and some new characters were interesting to watch. The events which take place after 300 were awesome and led to some great battle scenes.
And whilst 300 had plenty of fantastic battle scenes, Rise has some equally fantastic naval battle scenes. Ships wrecks, beheadings, one on ones, and battles were all awesome and entertaining. Watching Themistocles engage in naval tactics was quite fun to watch. The one on one (or multiple) combats were a bit better than the original. I found them rougher and just more fun to watch. Eva green as Artemisia was amazing. She was terrifying at times and great fun to watch.
However, I did find a few scenes felt out of place and unnecessary. In saying that, the confrontations Themistocles and Artemisia more than made up for it.
The ending of the movie was satisfying and to repeat myself, so was the final battle scenes. They were incredibly fun to watch.
A very entertaining movie, especially since I was lucky to be able to watch them back to back on the big screen.
I found the story to be entertaining. The Persians are still attacking Greece, but this time we watch from the view point of Athenian Themistocles (Sullivan Stapleton) while the events of 300 unfold elsewhere. The backstory of some old and some new characters were interesting to watch. The events which take place after 300 were awesome and led to some great battle scenes.
And whilst 300 had plenty of fantastic battle scenes, Rise has some equally fantastic naval battle scenes. Ships wrecks, beheadings, one on ones, and battles were all awesome and entertaining. Watching Themistocles engage in naval tactics was quite fun to watch. The one on one (or multiple) combats were a bit better than the original. I found them rougher and just more fun to watch. Eva green as Artemisia was amazing. She was terrifying at times and great fun to watch.
However, I did find a few scenes felt out of place and unnecessary. In saying that, the confrontations Themistocles and Artemisia more than made up for it.
The ending of the movie was satisfying and to repeat myself, so was the final battle scenes. They were incredibly fun to watch.
A very entertaining movie, especially since I was lucky to be able to watch them back to back on the big screen.
Glorious style of visuals & fight sequences makes for an enjoyable action flick...
edwardanthony96 March 2014
Gloriously employing Zack Snyder's style of slow-fast continuous shots, as well as taking the scale and dynamics to the next level, this is a worthy sequel to the awesome 300. It has pretty much the same weaknesses and strengths of its predecessor, but improves on what made the first film a success.
A pretty obvious notion is that no other film does better with the long continuous shots of action with the occasional slow motions. This is a wonderful style to marvel on, for those who like these kind of things (I do!). This is the main reason I came to watch this, yet it is not the only thing that impressed me. But before moving on, I want to further claim that I seriously enjoyed these style of shots and frankly, all...ALL of the action sequences. They are just marvellous and glorious to watch and from minute one, I was attached and just smiling on every fight sequence.
Still on the matter of action sequences, they are better in visual quality & dynamics of the setting, although I suspect the reason may be the budget and resource constraint on the first film. If Snyder had this the last time, it would be as good as this. Fortunately, Rise of an Empire, even in the hands of new director Noam Murro, didn't mess it up and brilliantly improves upon it. And though the quality of visuals were not perfect (such as the blood effects), the style is just so gratifying to watch. One last thing, the soundtrack is genuinely amazing, and is unbelievably fitting for the scenes. Even before the action begins, my heart pumps up, and during the fight itself, the soundtrack did good to enhance the suspense of the action. Words are not enough to explain it...you have to listen to it first hand.
Actions aside, the plot was overall a straightforward one, except for those which relates to the original 300, which I was quite impressed of. Despite the lack of drama & humour, and the limited emotional range of the characters, some of the characters were great. I was initially skeptical of the main character, and though he may not have outdone Gerard Butler's Leonidas, Themistokles is still quite the likable action hero. And while I had a great feeling about the villain, Eva Green's Artemisia really stole the show on every scene she was in. As further praise, if the producers do intend to make another sequel, they will need one hell of villain to top off Artemisia.
Overall, this is a very very entertaining movie, if what you're looking for is fun, action, and visuals. They did extremely well in these aspects, and make it such a wonderful film for a great time in the movies.
VERDICT:
Good: Excellent style, Improved visuals, Highly entertaining fight sequences, Brilliant soundtrack, Amazing characters
Bad: Lack of drama & humour, Less compelling plot
SCORE: 7.0
(blockbusted9.blogspot.com)
A pretty obvious notion is that no other film does better with the long continuous shots of action with the occasional slow motions. This is a wonderful style to marvel on, for those who like these kind of things (I do!). This is the main reason I came to watch this, yet it is not the only thing that impressed me. But before moving on, I want to further claim that I seriously enjoyed these style of shots and frankly, all...ALL of the action sequences. They are just marvellous and glorious to watch and from minute one, I was attached and just smiling on every fight sequence.
Still on the matter of action sequences, they are better in visual quality & dynamics of the setting, although I suspect the reason may be the budget and resource constraint on the first film. If Snyder had this the last time, it would be as good as this. Fortunately, Rise of an Empire, even in the hands of new director Noam Murro, didn't mess it up and brilliantly improves upon it. And though the quality of visuals were not perfect (such as the blood effects), the style is just so gratifying to watch. One last thing, the soundtrack is genuinely amazing, and is unbelievably fitting for the scenes. Even before the action begins, my heart pumps up, and during the fight itself, the soundtrack did good to enhance the suspense of the action. Words are not enough to explain it...you have to listen to it first hand.
Actions aside, the plot was overall a straightforward one, except for those which relates to the original 300, which I was quite impressed of. Despite the lack of drama & humour, and the limited emotional range of the characters, some of the characters were great. I was initially skeptical of the main character, and though he may not have outdone Gerard Butler's Leonidas, Themistokles is still quite the likable action hero. And while I had a great feeling about the villain, Eva Green's Artemisia really stole the show on every scene she was in. As further praise, if the producers do intend to make another sequel, they will need one hell of villain to top off Artemisia.
Overall, this is a very very entertaining movie, if what you're looking for is fun, action, and visuals. They did extremely well in these aspects, and make it such a wonderful film for a great time in the movies.
VERDICT:
Good: Excellent style, Improved visuals, Highly entertaining fight sequences, Brilliant soundtrack, Amazing characters
Bad: Lack of drama & humour, Less compelling plot
SCORE: 7.0
(blockbusted9.blogspot.com)
Less than 300
Prismark105 August 2014
This is a flawed sequel-prequel to 300 focusing on Themistocles the legendary leader of the Athenian forces who killed King Darius during the battle of Marathon. The King's son Xerxes swears revenge as he is transformed into a campy looking warrior king and launches total war on the Greeks. He is supported by a female Persian General of Greek origin, Artemisia (Eva Green) who wants revenge on the Greeks who killed her parents and raped her as a child.
Themistocles has got together a band of farmers to train and take on the Persian army in some crafty sea battles.
300 the sequel is all over the place in tone and consistency. It lacks the graphic novel look of the original. Its inconsistent, whereas the Spartans were born and trained fighters, here the farmers suddenly become victorious warriors as if the screenwriters have a grudge against Persians or modern day Iran!
The Greeks might value freedom but raped and enslaved a little girl. The Persians might value autocratic rule but made a female Greek, a general.
Even Lena Headey the narrator and the wife of Gerard Butler in the original is transformed into a tough warrior Queen. The violence is bloody and brutal but the film has a whiff of homo erotic campiness mixed with bland acting leaving only Eva Green to steal her scenes as Artemesia the ruthless fighter and temptress.
Themistocles has got together a band of farmers to train and take on the Persian army in some crafty sea battles.
300 the sequel is all over the place in tone and consistency. It lacks the graphic novel look of the original. Its inconsistent, whereas the Spartans were born and trained fighters, here the farmers suddenly become victorious warriors as if the screenwriters have a grudge against Persians or modern day Iran!
The Greeks might value freedom but raped and enslaved a little girl. The Persians might value autocratic rule but made a female Greek, a general.
Even Lena Headey the narrator and the wife of Gerard Butler in the original is transformed into a tough warrior Queen. The violence is bloody and brutal but the film has a whiff of homo erotic campiness mixed with bland acting leaving only Eva Green to steal her scenes as Artemesia the ruthless fighter and temptress.
Vulgarity vs. Romance.
supatube5 March 2014
"300: Rise of an Empire" will be no surprise in delivery other than it is possibly better than the first? There will, still, be fight scenes reminiscent of flawless dance moves, and the great choreography is what lends the film to being a great 'dance' movie (hello Step-Up 3hundred). The difference in approach comparatively between the two films would be the perverse nature of the second's delivery of the story at hand. The first had a far more romantic predisposition.
The story is more or less the same - Persians are descending onto Greece and taking over. The epicenter for the second take on the Persian take over is Athens and its people. The men are not as perfectly ripped as the Spartans. The soldiers are made up of various sized men (but there's still a great amount of shiny muscle) and not nearly as romantic in appearance as the perfect Spartans.
The sex scene is more sadomasochistic and less love making. The passion between "King Leonidas" and his queen in "300" is filled with affection and attachment whereas the scene in "300: Rise of an Empire" is riddled with force, power and control. The sexual tension in both scenes are similar in sexual tension but both portray a very different tone, one more romantic than the other.
The lighting is impeccable and the story lent well to the way in which the 3D was utilized. Instead of aspects 'popping' out at you they seemed to go deep. The landscapes had so much depth that it was hard not to make the correlation between the depth "300: Rise of an Empire" was reaching to in terms of the Persian take over. As it was not the next installment of "300" but more insight into the original story, as the story goes deeper than Sparta and the army of 300.
Eva Green is outrageously good and compelling to watch and to some degree is the "Leonidas" of "Rise of an Empire". Not to say that Sullivan Stapelton was overshadowed but his role was more meticulous and thought out, very much like the Queen in "300". The two pull the opposite sides of a war story firmly together. Not to mention how smoking hot both of them are.
Like the first, "Rise of an Empire" is undoubtedly clothed in beauty, from the moonlighting to the muscled bodies, the supple breasts to the eloquent sprays of blood, the film is about an aesthetic which is part of the story. Is it masking a lack of story? definitely not, it is the story.
"300" was ground breaking at the time of release, "Rise of an Empire" merely perfects that first step into a world of a different, and maybe more enigmatic, way of story telling. 7.5/10
The story is more or less the same - Persians are descending onto Greece and taking over. The epicenter for the second take on the Persian take over is Athens and its people. The men are not as perfectly ripped as the Spartans. The soldiers are made up of various sized men (but there's still a great amount of shiny muscle) and not nearly as romantic in appearance as the perfect Spartans.
The sex scene is more sadomasochistic and less love making. The passion between "King Leonidas" and his queen in "300" is filled with affection and attachment whereas the scene in "300: Rise of an Empire" is riddled with force, power and control. The sexual tension in both scenes are similar in sexual tension but both portray a very different tone, one more romantic than the other.
The lighting is impeccable and the story lent well to the way in which the 3D was utilized. Instead of aspects 'popping' out at you they seemed to go deep. The landscapes had so much depth that it was hard not to make the correlation between the depth "300: Rise of an Empire" was reaching to in terms of the Persian take over. As it was not the next installment of "300" but more insight into the original story, as the story goes deeper than Sparta and the army of 300.
Eva Green is outrageously good and compelling to watch and to some degree is the "Leonidas" of "Rise of an Empire". Not to say that Sullivan Stapelton was overshadowed but his role was more meticulous and thought out, very much like the Queen in "300". The two pull the opposite sides of a war story firmly together. Not to mention how smoking hot both of them are.
Like the first, "Rise of an Empire" is undoubtedly clothed in beauty, from the moonlighting to the muscled bodies, the supple breasts to the eloquent sprays of blood, the film is about an aesthetic which is part of the story. Is it masking a lack of story? definitely not, it is the story.
"300" was ground breaking at the time of release, "Rise of an Empire" merely perfects that first step into a world of a different, and maybe more enigmatic, way of story telling. 7.5/10
300 Rise of an empire - Trial for the rise of a sequel.
hem-available-8917 March 2014
300 Rise of an Empire - A screen blotted in duskiness and gore with full 1 and half hours action. The movie presents double the barbarian ways of slaughter and kills weighing against the First part in the series. Series, for the label, can be termed as a shear piece of intelligence rather than seeing it as a pre-planned plot. The movie has been twined with the first part very intelligently sparing the final scene where the spectator leaves the theatre confused whether David Wenham playing the role of 'Dillios' is in the battle field with 10000 Spartans ready to face the Persion Army or in the Naval fleet standing alongside Lena Headey, Queen Gorgo. Apart from that the plot is perfect with small flaws of course here and there.
The story unveils the flash from the past how Xerxes became the God King, cleansed and furbished with Voodoo, wearing only little dress for either a God or a King though. The movie also introduces Artemisia, the naval commander and mother of evil plots. Eva Green who plays the role of Artemisia has played an exceptional part in the movie providing an exquisite style for the movie. Her negative looks and attitude are perfect for her role and adds to the impression on her character in the movie. The Movie Director with the support of a brilliant script has made sure that people who go to watch the movie in-order to see the Spartan ways of killing and fighting will never be missing anything. Themistocles who plays the role of the King and Supreme commander of the Greek army has been portrayed as a brilliant commander in the fleet and land. To be frank he does nothing else rather than some two three tricks to try to tumble the Persian ships. Other than that Athenisia does the trick by repeatedly saying that Themistocles is intelligent. I really wonder why. He also is seen trying to sacrifice, part of his brilliance I suppose, his fellow mates and army to stir up the Spartans into a war forging alliance with them.
The movie, as regards the graphics and cinematography, is too good. And it has certainly succeeded in turning out to be a spine-chiller in many ways. The story is about the Greeks trying to forge an alliance with the Spartans. Spartans are sparse in the movie. But the waiting and longing for 300 part three will definitely be on the rise as the ending of the second movie is in such a fashion where the spectators are left bereft of the hi-fi flair and fighting skills of the Spartans and that too even after they see them launching an attack after a long wait– the attack is to come in the next part. The movie is not advisable for those who hate seeing beheading and fresh body parts getting lacerated and ripped. But for others who wish to see hundred percent action and style in the best graphical way possible, the movie is worth buying ticket for.
The movie in a nut shell is an attempt to elongate the history of 300 Spartans to multiple sequential movie parts. The plot and cinematography is excellent provided you watch it in 3D. It's definitely the best movie in English language running in theaters at present. Just go for watching people getting killed, nonstop action and finally to increase your yearning for the next part to get released. And as for Themistocles, though a bit less strongly built than the Spartan Leonidas but better compared with Dillios, he can be expected to give a cracker in the next part leading the united Greece with Spartans alongside them. Flaws are there, but in terms of entertainment and dialogues, none will be disappointed.
The story unveils the flash from the past how Xerxes became the God King, cleansed and furbished with Voodoo, wearing only little dress for either a God or a King though. The movie also introduces Artemisia, the naval commander and mother of evil plots. Eva Green who plays the role of Artemisia has played an exceptional part in the movie providing an exquisite style for the movie. Her negative looks and attitude are perfect for her role and adds to the impression on her character in the movie. The Movie Director with the support of a brilliant script has made sure that people who go to watch the movie in-order to see the Spartan ways of killing and fighting will never be missing anything. Themistocles who plays the role of the King and Supreme commander of the Greek army has been portrayed as a brilliant commander in the fleet and land. To be frank he does nothing else rather than some two three tricks to try to tumble the Persian ships. Other than that Athenisia does the trick by repeatedly saying that Themistocles is intelligent. I really wonder why. He also is seen trying to sacrifice, part of his brilliance I suppose, his fellow mates and army to stir up the Spartans into a war forging alliance with them.
The movie, as regards the graphics and cinematography, is too good. And it has certainly succeeded in turning out to be a spine-chiller in many ways. The story is about the Greeks trying to forge an alliance with the Spartans. Spartans are sparse in the movie. But the waiting and longing for 300 part three will definitely be on the rise as the ending of the second movie is in such a fashion where the spectators are left bereft of the hi-fi flair and fighting skills of the Spartans and that too even after they see them launching an attack after a long wait– the attack is to come in the next part. The movie is not advisable for those who hate seeing beheading and fresh body parts getting lacerated and ripped. But for others who wish to see hundred percent action and style in the best graphical way possible, the movie is worth buying ticket for.
The movie in a nut shell is an attempt to elongate the history of 300 Spartans to multiple sequential movie parts. The plot and cinematography is excellent provided you watch it in 3D. It's definitely the best movie in English language running in theaters at present. Just go for watching people getting killed, nonstop action and finally to increase your yearning for the next part to get released. And as for Themistocles, though a bit less strongly built than the Spartan Leonidas but better compared with Dillios, he can be expected to give a cracker in the next part leading the united Greece with Spartans alongside them. Flaws are there, but in terms of entertainment and dialogues, none will be disappointed.
Terribly stupid and pointless
jo-185-5671717 March 2014
How could you mess up a sequel to 300? The story of the first movie was simple and straight forward, yet jam packed with wit and beautiful details...and came along with a look that was fresh and sexy, very self assured and uncompromising.
Rise of an Empire is a joke compared to the original and a huge let down for anybody who appreciates good (or even visually appealing) movies. The story is unnecessary complicated but doesn't make much sense. While the visuals in the first movie seemed stylized and fresh, ROAE seems cheap, the 3D never really impresses (enough to justify it's use) and I had a hard time finishing the movie, partly because I couldn't believe how they could do this to the franchise...and how Zack Snyder is still part of this...I don't think he sleeps well these days.
Typical Hollywood sell out of a creative original idea. Really surprising to me are all those good reviews all over the place, but I guess quality standards are just ridiculously low these days.
Avoid if you can!!!!!
Rise of an Empire is a joke compared to the original and a huge let down for anybody who appreciates good (or even visually appealing) movies. The story is unnecessary complicated but doesn't make much sense. While the visuals in the first movie seemed stylized and fresh, ROAE seems cheap, the 3D never really impresses (enough to justify it's use) and I had a hard time finishing the movie, partly because I couldn't believe how they could do this to the franchise...and how Zack Snyder is still part of this...I don't think he sleeps well these days.
Typical Hollywood sell out of a creative original idea. Really surprising to me are all those good reviews all over the place, but I guess quality standards are just ridiculously low these days.
Avoid if you can!!!!!
An Epic ... Fail
deburton9 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
As I loved The 300, I expected a fascinating mix of action, pathos and inspired history in this sequel. What I received was an uninspired, pathetic and unmoving piece of non-history. The bright spot was Artemisia's portrayal; what was, frankly, boring was the meaningless violence. Meaningless, because the viewer was given no reason to care for the main character, Themistokles, nor for Athens, nor for the Greeks as a whole. The back stories for why both Artemisia and Xerxes turned vengeful were compelling. (Though, as a PhD historian, I can attest they are both ludicrously false.) But for the Greeks, there simply is no backstory, no reason to care for them at all. "Oh, Athens is burning, ... meh." What is worse, the actual history could have given a plot that the film sorely lacked -- a tiny, terrified democracy is convinced, by free speech and a weird prophecy, to allow itself to be physically destroyed. Then the Greeks allow all to ride on Themistokles' desperate gamble, to trick the Persian fleet into attacking them in the straights of Salamis. (By the way, Artemisia actually tries to convince Xerxes to NOT send the fleet in.) The film gives us no portrayal of Athens, democracy, weird prophecies, or Themistokles' true brilliance. Nor does it reveal that the nascent Western world was balanced on a knife edge. Instead, we are expected to believe that a horse and Sparta come to the rescue. Pathos has become simply pathetic. Not even Ozzy's excellent "War Pigs" could keep people seated during the credits.
Good cinematography, decent story.. silly fight scenes
apollobez28 March 2014
Watch this movie the day of release in IMAX 3D.. The visuals were great.. typically my experience has been that some 3D action films seem cluttered or too busy in the jumble of battle or the like, but there was real continuity and division between the elements in each of the battle scenes making the movie easy to take in, in this format..
The story, besides some historical theatrics on the life of Xerses, is a "day in the life of" type format that runs concurrently and does incorporate the 1st films elements in an effective way. No big plot twists or that kind of thing, but a solid "this is how it would feel to have been there" film.
Now, I don't know what some critics where expecting going in, but I myself, wasn't looking for some spell binding drama with this movie so I truly don't see the frustration some of these people are feeling.
Now I must say, the slow motion, cup of blood tossing, death blow scenes, were way over used and to the point of being ridiculous. This technique should have been used maybe once or twice. Now with that being said, I give the film a solid 7, and definitely, knowing what I know now, don't regret seeing it in IMAX 3D, (the only format for watching big special effects productions, in my view).
The story, besides some historical theatrics on the life of Xerses, is a "day in the life of" type format that runs concurrently and does incorporate the 1st films elements in an effective way. No big plot twists or that kind of thing, but a solid "this is how it would feel to have been there" film.
Now, I don't know what some critics where expecting going in, but I myself, wasn't looking for some spell binding drama with this movie so I truly don't see the frustration some of these people are feeling.
Now I must say, the slow motion, cup of blood tossing, death blow scenes, were way over used and to the point of being ridiculous. This technique should have been used maybe once or twice. Now with that being said, I give the film a solid 7, and definitely, knowing what I know now, don't regret seeing it in IMAX 3D, (the only format for watching big special effects productions, in my view).
Disappointing in many ways but watchable.
Mankindfails17 May 2014
What I really liked about the first movie was that it had a unique feeling never seen before or since. It was like if someone would tell this legendary epic tale around a fire like in old times and while the story was told you had the surreal images like if they came out of the mind of a young lad imagining all this in his head.
This epic effect is completely gone in this one... You never get that feeling no even for a minute. This one is more like the show Spartacus. Of course it was a deception for me but it could still have been a really good movie despite that. They kept the look, the colours, the exaggerated fighting moves, a bit of the mythical stuff and such. At least it still looks like the first one.
The big problems are the poor choice of actors and the fact that the story is pretty lame, unimpressive, boring and banal.
The main actor isn't bad but he's not special in any ways and he really doesn't look Greek, most Greeks don't look Greek, in fact the more they have an important role the less they look Greek. Greeks are not Americans... For example this guy called Hans Matheson... Look him up on IMDb ... He looks like a young British RedCoat or something... Certainly not a Greek soldier...
Anyways... I gave it 7 because being related to the first one still makes it a watchable movie but it sure was a deeply flawed failed sequel.
This epic effect is completely gone in this one... You never get that feeling no even for a minute. This one is more like the show Spartacus. Of course it was a deception for me but it could still have been a really good movie despite that. They kept the look, the colours, the exaggerated fighting moves, a bit of the mythical stuff and such. At least it still looks like the first one.
The big problems are the poor choice of actors and the fact that the story is pretty lame, unimpressive, boring and banal.
The main actor isn't bad but he's not special in any ways and he really doesn't look Greek, most Greeks don't look Greek, in fact the more they have an important role the less they look Greek. Greeks are not Americans... For example this guy called Hans Matheson... Look him up on IMDb ... He looks like a young British RedCoat or something... Certainly not a Greek soldier...
Anyways... I gave it 7 because being related to the first one still makes it a watchable movie but it sure was a deeply flawed failed sequel.
Forget the haters, if you enjoyed 300, you will enjoy this movie.
SciFi_Man25 July 2015
Like many people, I heard all the negative reviews and I put off watching this movie until tonight, 7/26/2015. And I was sucked in to the awesomeness of this sequel, and have no idea why people hated on it.
Questionable front page review gave this a 1/10 review. 1/10? This is one of the worst movies ever? Not by a long shot. Was it over the top? YES. Was it violent? YES. Was it entertaining? ABSOLUTELY.
I think that for some odd reason, some movies become popular to put down (1 out of 10?), however, I watched an entertaining, similar to 300 movie, which makes sense as it was a sequel.
I would dare say, the naval battles, the origin of Xerxes, and the crazy final battle make this exactly equal (or a bit better) than the first. The sea battles are amazing, it must be CGI (because how could they have that many people rowing war boats) but it looked amazing.
In conclusion, if you enjoyed 300, then this sequel holds up! Will watch again.
Questionable front page review gave this a 1/10 review. 1/10? This is one of the worst movies ever? Not by a long shot. Was it over the top? YES. Was it violent? YES. Was it entertaining? ABSOLUTELY.
I think that for some odd reason, some movies become popular to put down (1 out of 10?), however, I watched an entertaining, similar to 300 movie, which makes sense as it was a sequel.
I would dare say, the naval battles, the origin of Xerxes, and the crazy final battle make this exactly equal (or a bit better) than the first. The sea battles are amazing, it must be CGI (because how could they have that many people rowing war boats) but it looked amazing.
In conclusion, if you enjoyed 300, then this sequel holds up! Will watch again.
You just wanna watch the first movie instead of this piece of...
lars_46 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
So the Movie starts off with a pretty OK fighting scene.
Take care of this moment because this is probably the only scene that will live up to your expectations.
I will not over analyze the Movie because its just not Worth the effort.
The Movie was plain simple boring. Every scene was just taking your expectations away bit for bit and makes you realise the inevitable truth that this Movie will take Place on the goddamn ships the whole time. Except of course when they are have shitty romantic speeches about freedom and how awesome it is to be lame.
The true heart of the first 300 was the brilliant fighting scenes and the simple principle: - You want to change how we live? - Oh yeah? F you and everyone that looks like you, you shitheads! We rather F our mothers than surrender.
The sequel is the complete opposite: - Ooh, look at us. We have to have this bullshit democracy and F up Everything because we have our freedoms. Lets be lame and use Home-Alone-Traps for defense instead of real fighting scenes pumped up with some Persian-hating testosterone.
I Went to the Cinema this evening expecting a sure to be awesome Movie and all I got was this bullshit.
Im gonna spend my remaining Days praying that all the involved people in this Movie will spend the rest of their lives flipping Burgers at Burger King.
Take care of this moment because this is probably the only scene that will live up to your expectations.
I will not over analyze the Movie because its just not Worth the effort.
The Movie was plain simple boring. Every scene was just taking your expectations away bit for bit and makes you realise the inevitable truth that this Movie will take Place on the goddamn ships the whole time. Except of course when they are have shitty romantic speeches about freedom and how awesome it is to be lame.
The true heart of the first 300 was the brilliant fighting scenes and the simple principle: - You want to change how we live? - Oh yeah? F you and everyone that looks like you, you shitheads! We rather F our mothers than surrender.
The sequel is the complete opposite: - Ooh, look at us. We have to have this bullshit democracy and F up Everything because we have our freedoms. Lets be lame and use Home-Alone-Traps for defense instead of real fighting scenes pumped up with some Persian-hating testosterone.
I Went to the Cinema this evening expecting a sure to be awesome Movie and all I got was this bullshit.
Im gonna spend my remaining Days praying that all the involved people in this Movie will spend the rest of their lives flipping Burgers at Burger King.
Awesome graphic-novel art splendor
PadmeAgnes6 March 2014
"Greece" is under attack of Xerxes of Persia (ca. 480 BC). While Leonidas of Sparta is fighting in Battle of Thermopylae ("300"), Themistokles of Athens is preparing a sea battle at Salamis (this movie).
Don't expect deep historic drama, wrong genre. This is graphic-novel art splendor and a strong sequel of 300. I was highly entertained and completely drawn into this world with amazing graphic art scenery and a high Asian Martial Art feel fight scenes. 3D is working during the sea battles but not really required. The introduction of Artemisia, Themistokles and Xerxes becoming the GodKing of Persia were cool but might be a bit confusing as it wasn't always obvious that these were flashbacks in the current story.
Sullivan Stapleton as Themistokles did well, not Gerard Butler though. Lena Headey as Queen Gorgo was again a graceful power lady, GoTh made her even stronger in character. Rodrigo Santoro as Xerxes is again hot, especially as his younger self. Eva Green as Navy Admiral Artemisia was one mean, bad lady, strong like in Kingdom of Heaven and occasionally I was more on her side than on the Greek's ... and her costumes are just ... fantastic!
If I could rate half points, it would rate it 8,5 because 300 was in my opinion stronger, funnier and more dramatic but 9 rates are for films that I will see again ... and I will see this one again, mainly due to Artemisia, she was awesome.
Ps If you don't like bloody scenes, it might be not your type of film
Don't expect deep historic drama, wrong genre. This is graphic-novel art splendor and a strong sequel of 300. I was highly entertained and completely drawn into this world with amazing graphic art scenery and a high Asian Martial Art feel fight scenes. 3D is working during the sea battles but not really required. The introduction of Artemisia, Themistokles and Xerxes becoming the GodKing of Persia were cool but might be a bit confusing as it wasn't always obvious that these were flashbacks in the current story.
Sullivan Stapleton as Themistokles did well, not Gerard Butler though. Lena Headey as Queen Gorgo was again a graceful power lady, GoTh made her even stronger in character. Rodrigo Santoro as Xerxes is again hot, especially as his younger self. Eva Green as Navy Admiral Artemisia was one mean, bad lady, strong like in Kingdom of Heaven and occasionally I was more on her side than on the Greek's ... and her costumes are just ... fantastic!
If I could rate half points, it would rate it 8,5 because 300 was in my opinion stronger, funnier and more dramatic but 9 rates are for films that I will see again ... and I will see this one again, mainly due to Artemisia, she was awesome.
Ps If you don't like bloody scenes, it might be not your type of film
Plenty of action but doesn't live up to the charm from the first one
nightshadow10123 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
After several years since the first 300, we are finally rewarded with the long awaited sequel only to be disappointed with its depiction in the end.
300: Rise of the Empire tells the story of Greek general Themistokles who attempts to unite all of Greece by leading the charge that could change the course of war. It puts him against a massive force of the Persian army led by the mortal-turned-god Xerxes and his naval commander Artemesia.
In the start of the film we are presented with Queen Gorgo telling her men about the Battle of Marathon. From there Lena Headey's character can only be heard narrating the story as the film continues to move forward while she only has few scenes.. Back track and we are seen with nice action sequences, the slow motion effect, the 3D that is done right, and the special effects of the battle.Noam Murro tries to tell the story starting with before, during and after the events of 300 but unfortunately he has left me as a viewer scratching my head as to what moment in time are we in during the course of the film.
Despite the slow motion action sequences, the film started to get pale. It begins with the introduction of new characters. Some of them weren't given enough quality time to be developed so therefore I didn't care for them if they lived or died. Even a few returning characters irritated me, particularly Xerxes who thinks he's so tough rambling on about how he is a god king yet the only tough thing he did was he slapped Artesmesia then goes back to sit on his throne. Pathetic!
The CGI in this film was a bit over the top. The blood seen when people were killed looked so cheesy it looked like it came straight out of a video game! In fact it felt like I was watching a video game and not a movie during the 2 hour run. Next, the light in the background in the sky. In the first film it shone through the skies and the actors faces with the right balance and tone, but in here it was a bit too distracting and it couldn't really find its place properly.
Lastly, the aggressive sex scene. This didn't really serve no purpose to the actual story. But like everything else in the industry "sex sells!"
In general, the film isn't disastrously bad but unfortunately it left an uneasy feeling in my stomach that just didn't sink right. It didn't live to the charm the first one had and that was something about its sequel I was afraid off.
As was said in the film, "Seize your glory!" only this film didn't obtain so much victory in my heart.
300: Rise of the Empire tells the story of Greek general Themistokles who attempts to unite all of Greece by leading the charge that could change the course of war. It puts him against a massive force of the Persian army led by the mortal-turned-god Xerxes and his naval commander Artemesia.
In the start of the film we are presented with Queen Gorgo telling her men about the Battle of Marathon. From there Lena Headey's character can only be heard narrating the story as the film continues to move forward while she only has few scenes.. Back track and we are seen with nice action sequences, the slow motion effect, the 3D that is done right, and the special effects of the battle.Noam Murro tries to tell the story starting with before, during and after the events of 300 but unfortunately he has left me as a viewer scratching my head as to what moment in time are we in during the course of the film.
Despite the slow motion action sequences, the film started to get pale. It begins with the introduction of new characters. Some of them weren't given enough quality time to be developed so therefore I didn't care for them if they lived or died. Even a few returning characters irritated me, particularly Xerxes who thinks he's so tough rambling on about how he is a god king yet the only tough thing he did was he slapped Artesmesia then goes back to sit on his throne. Pathetic!
The CGI in this film was a bit over the top. The blood seen when people were killed looked so cheesy it looked like it came straight out of a video game! In fact it felt like I was watching a video game and not a movie during the 2 hour run. Next, the light in the background in the sky. In the first film it shone through the skies and the actors faces with the right balance and tone, but in here it was a bit too distracting and it couldn't really find its place properly.
Lastly, the aggressive sex scene. This didn't really serve no purpose to the actual story. But like everything else in the industry "sex sells!"
In general, the film isn't disastrously bad but unfortunately it left an uneasy feeling in my stomach that just didn't sink right. It didn't live to the charm the first one had and that was something about its sequel I was afraid off.
As was said in the film, "Seize your glory!" only this film didn't obtain so much victory in my heart.
The story is a long way from reality
ashkan_gh12 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
The story is a long way from reality, Persian characters all have come from the mind of the patient's Writer, This movie is more damaging to Persians and no purpose other than. However, the only thing that did not distort history and not more.
If you had looked at Persepolis historical symbols only once, Fully understand all the characters and dress and culture and created a devastating. Xerxes is no way that someone that you've built and only open the doors you had a history of insulting installment. In the end, I'm not bothered because I know with such films history can never change.
If you had looked at Persepolis historical symbols only once, Fully understand all the characters and dress and culture and created a devastating. Xerxes is no way that someone that you've built and only open the doors you had a history of insulting installment. In the end, I'm not bothered because I know with such films history can never change.
Sequel to 300 is surprisingly good, entertaining, exciting
Andy-2966 March 2014
The long awaited follow up to 2007's hit 300 is exciting, very entertaining. There is a new director (the little known Noam Murro from Israel), but the recharged, operatic style, with heavy use of digital imagery, that made the first movie famous is back again. It can be said that this is not technically a sequel, as both movies happen more or less simultaneous chronologically: the first movie took place in the Battle of Thermopylae (480 BC). The new one, after an introduction in the Battle of Marathon (490 BC), centers on the Battle of Salamis, in 480 BC, around the same time as Thermopylae. (Of course, I know you don't go to movies like this to learn about history).
Sorting out from their defeat at Marathon, the new Persian emperor Xerxes decides to take revenge in the form of a large seaborne invasion of Greece. His main admiral is the incredibly sexy but brutal Artemisia, who is Greek born but was saved when she was a little girl by a Persian and has lived in the Persian court ever since, thirsting for revenge against her native land. The Greek side, on the other hand is commanded by the brave, honest Athenian Themistocles.
As Themistocles, Australian actor Sullivan Stapleton is fine, though he lacks somewhat the charisma Gerard Butler showed playing Leonidas in the first film. But Eva Green as Artemisia is magnificent, magnetic, by far the most charismatic character of the film. Rodrigo Santoro is back as (a very fantastic) Xerxes. Lena Heady reappears briefly as Gorgo, Queen of Sparta. There are very fine action scenes involving naval battles, but the movie's best scene has Artemisia bringing Themistocles to her boat to ostensibly discuss peace, but it all ends up in a heated sexual rump.
Sorting out from their defeat at Marathon, the new Persian emperor Xerxes decides to take revenge in the form of a large seaborne invasion of Greece. His main admiral is the incredibly sexy but brutal Artemisia, who is Greek born but was saved when she was a little girl by a Persian and has lived in the Persian court ever since, thirsting for revenge against her native land. The Greek side, on the other hand is commanded by the brave, honest Athenian Themistocles.
As Themistocles, Australian actor Sullivan Stapleton is fine, though he lacks somewhat the charisma Gerard Butler showed playing Leonidas in the first film. But Eva Green as Artemisia is magnificent, magnetic, by far the most charismatic character of the film. Rodrigo Santoro is back as (a very fantastic) Xerxes. Lena Heady reappears briefly as Gorgo, Queen of Sparta. There are very fine action scenes involving naval battles, but the movie's best scene has Artemisia bringing Themistocles to her boat to ostensibly discuss peace, but it all ends up in a heated sexual rump.
300: Rise of an Empire is again visually stunning, wickedly entertaining.
sheance11424 March 2014
The bar is set high for sequel films especially onto the successful ones because everyone is expecting more from it. And in times like these; sequels or franchises are a trend. One can be seen from Marvel which gave the success on not only creating sequels but creating an entire universe as a whole.
Sequels or prequels tend to give excitement to people especially upon hearing from its public announcement, and when Warner Bros. decided to impart that information last year, I was excited.
The first film, 300, was visually entertaining, taking a whole new level of filmmaking. Although, the movie Sin City has the same kind of visual approach about filming in green screen and emphasis on the blood splatting; Zack Snyder took it up the notch. The whole film felt like a High Dynamic Range (HDR) shot that Digital Camera's give, and the slow- motion capture says it all.
The storyline tells the 2nd war between the Greeks and Persians, and how did that came to be by iterating the account of the 1st Greco-Persian War by Lionidas' wife, Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey), making the movie a prequel-sequel alike.
It narrates how the God-King Xerxes wanted his vengeance from the Greeks because of Themistocles' (Sullivan Stapleton) honest mistake upon demising his father and having the gut that Xerxes would one day be a threat, but ignoring that intuition of his.
Also, the Persian Naval commander Artemisia's (Eva Green) story of her original Grecian roots showed how ruthless Greeks were to her and her family that made her lustful for revenge.
The Story
The movie is based on an unpublished novel by Frank Miller, who also did the original 300, that depicts the epic war story of the 1st and 2nd Greco-Persian war. The story of the 2nd movie is interrelated to the original 300 and a proceeding account reaching to an end.
300: Rise of an Empire's story is much crispier than the original. There are more battles than the first, and it was interesting, seeing rivals strategize to win.
The depth of the emotion was already set from the first movie (thanks to it), and now a threat is far more revealing and invigorating.
I love the fact that my eyes and ears were totally onto the movie, making me keen to every details there are, and having the feeling that you don't want to miss something, most especially the mot juste which is a 300 trademark, (e.g. 'THIS IS SPARTA!') that creates more tension in the film, and this time it's 'SEIZE YOUR GLORY'.
Screenplay
The best thing about 300 movies is that the graphics are very well defined and the scenes are captivating. The slow-motion takes place and it's a numerous positive things to it. Although I sense that I guess if you'll add all the slow-motion scenes, it kind of adds to the time frame of the movie which makes it reasonably long. But, it's proprietary and needed for the justification of the film though.
Besides the long slow-motion scenes are the muscles and abs which are the proprietary of all.
Just kidding.
OVERALL
300: Rise of an Empire is the sequel that is properly well executed. The sequel, 300: Rise of an Empire is again visually stunning, wickedly entertaining.
300: Rise of an Empire is an American film, sequel to 300, directed by Noam Murro, produced by Zack Snyder (Man of Steel, 300) and starred by Sullivan Stapleton, Eva Green, and Lena Headey. The film was released on March 7, 2014.
(This review can be seen on my blog, One Setting at a Time)
Sequels or prequels tend to give excitement to people especially upon hearing from its public announcement, and when Warner Bros. decided to impart that information last year, I was excited.
The first film, 300, was visually entertaining, taking a whole new level of filmmaking. Although, the movie Sin City has the same kind of visual approach about filming in green screen and emphasis on the blood splatting; Zack Snyder took it up the notch. The whole film felt like a High Dynamic Range (HDR) shot that Digital Camera's give, and the slow- motion capture says it all.
The storyline tells the 2nd war between the Greeks and Persians, and how did that came to be by iterating the account of the 1st Greco-Persian War by Lionidas' wife, Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey), making the movie a prequel-sequel alike.
It narrates how the God-King Xerxes wanted his vengeance from the Greeks because of Themistocles' (Sullivan Stapleton) honest mistake upon demising his father and having the gut that Xerxes would one day be a threat, but ignoring that intuition of his.
Also, the Persian Naval commander Artemisia's (Eva Green) story of her original Grecian roots showed how ruthless Greeks were to her and her family that made her lustful for revenge.
The Story
The movie is based on an unpublished novel by Frank Miller, who also did the original 300, that depicts the epic war story of the 1st and 2nd Greco-Persian war. The story of the 2nd movie is interrelated to the original 300 and a proceeding account reaching to an end.
300: Rise of an Empire's story is much crispier than the original. There are more battles than the first, and it was interesting, seeing rivals strategize to win.
The depth of the emotion was already set from the first movie (thanks to it), and now a threat is far more revealing and invigorating.
I love the fact that my eyes and ears were totally onto the movie, making me keen to every details there are, and having the feeling that you don't want to miss something, most especially the mot juste which is a 300 trademark, (e.g. 'THIS IS SPARTA!') that creates more tension in the film, and this time it's 'SEIZE YOUR GLORY'.
Screenplay
The best thing about 300 movies is that the graphics are very well defined and the scenes are captivating. The slow-motion takes place and it's a numerous positive things to it. Although I sense that I guess if you'll add all the slow-motion scenes, it kind of adds to the time frame of the movie which makes it reasonably long. But, it's proprietary and needed for the justification of the film though.
Besides the long slow-motion scenes are the muscles and abs which are the proprietary of all.
Just kidding.
OVERALL
300: Rise of an Empire is the sequel that is properly well executed. The sequel, 300: Rise of an Empire is again visually stunning, wickedly entertaining.
300: Rise of an Empire is an American film, sequel to 300, directed by Noam Murro, produced by Zack Snyder (Man of Steel, 300) and starred by Sullivan Stapleton, Eva Green, and Lena Headey. The film was released on March 7, 2014.
(This review can be seen on my blog, One Setting at a Time)
This movie is an insult to any Persian
zohrabi6413 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
I'm a Persian, I watched the movie last night and I think it was really unjust to our history, and it's not making it OK by simply saying that it was made upon a comic book, there are many points which I couldn't close my eyes on and this is why I'm writing this. if you don't care about the accuracy of historical events you will probably enjoy the movie and in that case you don't need to read this review just move on to the next. But if you are aware of the conflicts between the east and west, the history of Greko- Persian wars and relationships etc you will suffer thorough the movie and here is why: 1- The history is twisted in the movie and very one sided 2- The movie makers present Persians as terrorists since they use suicide bombers to win the battle which is a shame, how could they relate something that accrued just in the recent history to a great nation like Persia!. 3- The Persian king Xerxes, is presented as a cowered, Darius, father of Xerxes was killed by Themistokles, a Greek general, and before his last breathes he tells Xerxes that "do not repeat my mistake, only gods can defeat Greeks"! while Darius never left Persia to attend this war and he was not killed by Themistokles and until this day, Iranians are visiting his tomb and paying him respect. 4- The customs for Iranian soldiers and the king himself are simply Arabic customs, the general who trained Artemisia is a black person, with my respect to Arabs and every other racial group, I'm I the only one who notices this movie and feels deeply sorry for the racist movie makers?! Is it hard to tell Persians and Arabs and Blacks apart? It's just sick man who are these wild, not civilized people with long beards in this movie? With a simple look at the statues of Persepolis you can find out how Persians looked like. 6- Muhammad Dandamayev a Russian historian, mentions in his famous book "A political history of the Achaemenid empire"; that after the Spartans killed the Persians messengers they realized what a big mistake they did and sent two soldiers to Persia so they can be killed instead of the Persian messengers and Xerxes tells them "I would be like a nation that violated the internationally known values and performed a disrespecting act of cowardliness" apparently this scene was shown as a remarkable thing to do in the movie 7- Last and most important point is in the movie, the Persians did not care about the slaves and the soldiers who were killed but the Greeks were defending not only their country but the freedom and democracy and apparently they don't have any slaves working for them, while slavery was widely spread at that time and it wasn't like the recent slavery of African people, the color did not matter and the Greeks were using them to build their citadels like Acropolis, surprisingly the Persians were paying workers to build Persepolis! the reason I remember this one in particular is that it was discovered just recently, archaeologists found some payment receipts made of rocks if I'm not mistaken belonged to workers who participated in building Persepolis from different nations. Democracy does not have the same meaning as the democracy we know nowadays, it's funny how this movie reflects the American perspective toward Middle-east.
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