“300” from director Zack Snyder (“Watchmen”, “Man Of Steel”) is essentially “Gladiator” meets “Sin City” as historical realism goes out the window in favour of stylish violence. This is not an accurate portrayal of the ancient world yet it is an entertaining movie filled with entertaining battles.

Sparta’s King Leonidas (Gerard Butler “The Bounty Hunter”, “Law Abiding Citizen”) and a force of a mere 300 men go to defend their civilisation and the wider European continent from the seemingly unstoppable Persian forces under the command of Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro “The 33”). Outnumbered and with traitors among Sparta’s politicians, the epic confrontation takes place in 480 B.C. at Thermopylae.

Gerard Butler is really good as King Leonidas. He’s like an exaggerated version of Russell Crowe’s Maximus from “Gladiator”. The other Spartan warriors were good. I was less fond of the villainous Xerxes. The movie has a striking visual style like the “Sin City” movies, unsurprising when you realise both are based on graphic novels from Frank Miller. The visual style helps to bring the characters to life. Also, like “Sin City”, “300” has various characters that are more like monsters than people. I did not really care for these horrific creatures because they seemed like a step to far into the realms of fantasy.

“300” may not have the most thrilling story but I enjoyed the visual style, some of the over the top dialog and the action sequences. The combat scenes kept me engaged because they are relentless blood-soaked endeavours that see the heroic Spartans keep the waves of Persians from advancing. The movie received ample criticism from the Iranian government, claiming that the negative depiction of Persians amounted to American propaganda. I do not remember the Italians complaining about films with nasty Roman soldiers. I enjoyed “300” a lot more than “Sin City” and I recommend it.