So... does anyone really believe that a movie by War on Terror fan Frank Miller (one of my favorite comic authors, by the way) about a group of brave men, believing their life of freedom and democracy to be at risk, leaving home to fight the Persian enemy over there so they don't have to fight them at home, while a group of corrupt and cowardly politicans squabble over whether to send more troops and support... is just about a battle in ancient Greece?
I know, I know... written awhile ago. But still.
This is a powerful movie about a nation who raises its sons in a militaristic culture. It's a beautifully done piece of art, even if it is a bit hard to watch at times (I think there are parts I would have enjoyed a lot more before becoming a father myself...) The depiction of Xerxes (whom many think is the king in the biblical story of Esther) was wild, but in Leonidas there was (finally) a hero who was more compelling than the villian (a persistant problem in the movies)...
I have very mixed feelings about this movie- I enjoyed it on so many levels, but shudder to think of the timing, politically, and then socially of young men watching this and not understanding that knowing how to fight is good, but knowing how not to fight is even better.
