Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is Sparta! , 27 Nov 2006
This is one powerhouse of a graphic novel! Miller has taken the battle of Thermopylae and added his own unique take on this infamous event. Bodly drawn, superbly coloured and very graphic in its depiction of violence both on and off the battlefield, 300 needs to be read to be believed. This is a very brutal take on the battle and the novel itself takes no prisoners.Miller knows this and runs riot,adorning the book with superb creations such as Ephialtes,his depiction of the God like Xerxes and his own take on the vaunted Immortals. He also adds some further imagination to the tale by introducing some creatures of myth. Please don't construe this as a blow by blow historical account of the battle, it should not be treated this way. Miller is instead telling us of heroism, courage, steadfast devotion and the brutalities of battle,using a real historical event as his canvas for doing so. I cannot speak highy enough of this novel, and with a motion picture of the movie due out next year I predict many more will discover this fascinating tale where few fought against many.
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49 of 53 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
RE: M. Bolton, 23 Mar 2007
Sir
I think the fact that you have not read the novel destroys all credibility of your opinion.
Frank Miller's work is about as far from 'Hollywoodised' as you can get in terms of graphic novels being made into films. Robert Rodriguez had to quit the Director's Guild in order to keep Sin City true to the novel.
Nothing was 'adapted', the story is biased to Miller's point of view, that is his right as the author. Nowhere is it claimed that it is completely historically accurate - there are historical readings recommended on the final page, but of course, you didn't even get past the first.
The art work is beautiful and some of the famous quotes are accurate according to Herodotus. All Miller has done is blur the line between fantasy and reality, which surely is the point of a graphic novel and a film - it is not a documentary, nor is it a historical account, it is a story. It may be biased, giving a distorted view of the truth after the fashion of western historians labelling other cultures as savages and barbarians, but this doesn't detract from the fact that it is well illustrated and well told.
It is necessary to remind yourself that this is a work of fantasy, though i believe Frank Miller does the Spartans a disservice in his portrayal of them, and especially of Leonidas (in reality it was because, not in spite of the oracle that he went to war). The portrayal of the Persians is fantastical, but fits in with Herodotus' legendary accounts of dog-headed men and monsters and is justified in that the story is told from the point of view of the Greeks.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Everybody knows that if you want a tough, manly comic book, you should turn to Frank Miller., 15 Dec 2007
Frank specializes in violent, testosterone-driven morality plays that make you want to run right out and hurt people. After years of hard-hitting crime stories, Frank turned his attention to what is possibly the ruggedest, manliest story in history: the battle of Thermopylae. In 480 B.C. King Leonidas of Sparta led 300 men to defend Greece from the vast Persian army. "But," as the book's back cover says, "these warriors are more than men... they are SPARTANS." You only think you've seen bad-asses before. The Spartans set whole new standards for bad-assery. The story's all about 300 mostly naked, sweaty Greek men, but you don't for a second imagine that they're gay. In fact, you don't think of them as sexual at all -they're purely devoted to killing, and they're very good at it. Even if you begin this book unsympathetic to their brutal culture, by the end you'll be cheering for them. Frank did a great job writing and drawing this story, and Lynn Varley did a great job adding the colors. The extra-wide pages allow for huge, sweeping shots and incredible battle scenes. The book has high production values all around - you'll want to leave it sitting out because it's just so damn pretty. Great artwork. Lots of memorable lines. And bone-crunching, overwhelming violence like you've never seen before. Five out of five!!! I would also recommend reading Tino Georgiou's masterpiece--The Fates--if you haven't read it yet.
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