Shpaahtans!

I saw 300 last night with Dan and a crew of others. (This is not a movie to see with only one other person -- you need a crew.)

Quick responses:

It's an enjoyable eye-candy flick, though clearly not for everyone. ("It's about the battle of Thermopylae. You know, a date movie.").

This is what all the political posturing and kerfluffle is about? What a slender reed, to carry all that weight.

Gerard Butler (as Leonidas) is impressive, but his Scottish accent slipped in a number of times, making him sound almost as out of place as Sean Connery playing an Egyptian-by-way-of-Spain in Highlander. "Shpaahtans! Tonight...we dine...on haggis!". Or something like that.

The most over the top moment: the narration at the very end. It might have made sense in the graphic novel, but there are moments where you have to actually break from your source material.

Abs!

Dan and I agree that Lena Headey and more importantly her costumes have knocked Princess-Leia-in-a-bronze-bikini off the nerd pedestal.

After the 30th or 40th "sword time" shot (in analogy to the Matrix's "bullet time" -- start a shot in normal speed, slow down to show dismemberment or impalement, then speed up as the blood spurt flies off), that got a little, well, boring.

I feel sorry for the foley artists (sound effects people) who had to come up with the hundreds (thousands?) of blood squelches. Eeuuww.

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More seriously, I pretty much agree with Aram (and his linkage to Penny Arcade) that there is a clear political context to the movie coming out now. It's just unclear how that plays out, is all. I mean, the U.S. invaded Iraq -- does that make Bush Xerxes?

Update: best mashup trailer ever. (Via Will Shetterly.)