I didn't intend to review this movie but am doing so because I think a lot of the reviews are really slanted and uncalled for.
A lot of reviews of are calling out historical fallacies and giving the movie 1 star ratings. I think this is completely unjustified. This is entertainment and must be treated as such. HIstory aside, there's more than one element of pure fantasy in this movie, so one hardly expects the historical portrayal to be completely factual.
The storyline is average, the visual effects and action sequences are without doubt state-of-the-art. I generally hate never ending, mindless action sequences but the ones in this flick were quite watchable, there were even a few brilliant moments.
The best part of the movie for me were the characters, I find the Persians far more interesting - Xerses and Artemisia (Eva Green) are both fascinating. And my biggest gripe with this film is that these fascinating personalities didn't really have much to do. Sadly, the 300 franchise thrives mostly on action sequences and plot lines stay on the back-burner, I think that's where the opportunity of making brilliant sequel was lost and the viewer was left with a decent but forgettable action flick.
It'd be remiss of me not to give the gorgeous Eva Green a standalone mention, she looks amazing throughout and more than badass to fit her part. Her presence alone was worth the price of admission.
