Directed by: Noam Murro
Casts: Sullivan Stapleton, Eva Green, Rodrigo Santoro, Lena Headey
Genre: Drama, Action & Adventure
Release Date: 6 March 2014
Based on Frank Miller's latest graphic novel "Xerxes", 300 - Rise of an Empire takes place before, during and after the events of 300. Themistokles (Stapleton) attempts to unite all of Greece in the war against the Persians but finds himself lack of time as the Persian navy led by the vengeful Artemisia (Green) advances with massive forces. With King Leonidas and the 300 Spartans facing off against Xerxes (Santoro) in Thermopylae, Thermistokles must gather whatever men and courage he can to face off against the Persian navy at sea in the Battle of Artemisium while hoping that the blood and sacrifice will eventually unite Greece to change the course of the war.
Praises: The visuals are nothing short of gratifying. I cannot stress just how beautiful the film has illustrated the Battle of Artemisium with the manipulation of colour, lighting, camera angles, sound and special effects. The use of slo-mo is clever and non-jarring. Although helmed by a different director than its predecessor, there is still evident that the film remains faithful to the standards of violence and gore set by 300. The scene where the Greek ships engaged and impaled the Persian ships is simply breathtaking with beauty. At least it didn't make me feel short-changed for choosing to watch this film in IMAX.
A film is only as good as its villain right? Precisely. Though panty-baldy Xerxes is as ominous as ever, he has lesser screen time this time around (because he is busy having his army trampled by Leonidas). The one that truly steals the show is none other than Eva Green who portrayed the beautiful, smart but yet cruel and vengeful Artemisia. Her character is well layered, enough for you to pity her circumstances but loathe her malevolence. Green's performance is solid and enticing, putting the shrill and thrill in me as I watch her every gracious movement. The decision to have a female central villain is well appreciated, as it puts balance in the overwhelming testosterones present in the film. She is basically the reason why this film is worth watching.
Complains: Let's be frank. Both films in the saga attempts to please the fanboys who enjoy lots of actions, violence and blood. It did not set out to be thought-provoking or plot-heavy. 300 - Rise of an Empire delivers what it promised; lots of hacking, slashing, decapitating and guts spilling out. But it does not conjure the same adrenaline that the first film did. Whereas 300 did it with style and packed with intensity, the sequel focuses too much on beauty and loses the raw brutality and edge found in battles. Not only does it not have any lasting impact but it's also easily forgotten compared to what we saw in 300.
Stapleton's take on Themistokles isn't exactly bad and pretty much watchable, but again it's not as memorable as Gerard Butler's Leonidas. He failed to give us a leader that we will actually want to care for and did not carry his presence on-screen well enough. The other supporting casts played one-dimensional characters to fill out the screen which is totally unimpressive.
Rating: 6.3/10
Hit or Miss: Overall, I enjoyed the film; not as much as I did with 300 but at least it did not put me to sleep and I get to watch Eva Green dominate the screen. I am captivated by the film's beauty but the action scenes certainly didn't get my heart pumping. A step down from 300, but it's the first step towards better films in cinema for the year 2014 (gosh the misery of watching horrible films for the past 2 months). And of course, seeing Gerard Butler from archival footages is pleasant too. Hit.
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