WT is correct when he says that there is no exact parallel for Americans... though I suppose that maybe in the distant future if Cuba becomes a major threat to the US and they produced a movie glorifying the Bay of Pigs it would be somewhat the same.
This is an obvious overreaction by the Iranian people since, as Maha said, the vast majority of American audiences(and more than likely the film makers) don't know that Persians came from modern day Iran.
I think we can glean two things from this story... this reaction is being inflamed by the Iranian government for propaganda reasons and this might be a little insight into an all too real fear the Iranian people have that they are on the brink of a new disastrous war.
posted
This article has some interesting historical facts about Spartans and how they were changed for the movie.
quote:Spartan children were, indeed, taken from their mothers and given a martial education called the agoge. They were indeed toughened by beatings and dispatched into the countryside, forced to walk shoeless in winter and sleep uncovered on the ground. But future kings were exempt.
And had Leonidas undergone the agoge, he would have come of age not by slaying a wolf, but by murdering unarmed helots in a rite known as the Crypteia.
quote: [In the movie], Xerxes is eight feet tall, clad chiefly in body piercings and garishly made up, but not disfigured. No need – it is strongly implied Xerxes is homosexual which, in the moral universe of 300, qualifies him for special freakhood. This is ironic given that pederasty was an obligatory part of a Spartan's education. This was a frequent target of Athenian comedy, wherein the verb "to Spartanize" meant "to bugger." In 300, Greek pederasty is, naturally, Athenian.
[ 03-15-2007, 06:35 AM: Message edited by: Wandering Tuor ]
From: My place | Registered: Jan 2002
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posted
All this talk of Greek/Persian history makes me wonder why Hollywood has never made a movie about The Battle of Marathon? Great story...
From: Sverige! | Registered: Oct 2002
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posted
And here are a few excerpts from this article, which clearly explain that this is an artistic vision of a real battle from history. It's not to be taken seriously, just enjoyed for it's pure entertainment value. This movie is based on the comic book version of this battle.
"Frank took an actual event and turned it into mythology, as opposed to taking a mythological event and turning it into reality," says Snyder, who blended Miller's bold vision with his own to make the feature film. "That's the refreshing thing about it. He wanted to get at the essence, as opposed to the reality, of what a Spartan is. If you go to Thermopylae, the statue of Leonidas is a nude; he's got a shield and spear and a helmet and that's it. Frank went to Thermopylae and I'm sure he saw that and went, 'Okay, this is how we have to do it.'"
Based on the epic graphic novel by Frank Miller, 300 is a ferocious retelling of the ancient Battle of Thermopylae in which King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) and 300 Spartans fought to the death against Xerxes and his massive Persian army. Facing insurmountable odds, their valor and sacrifice inspire all of Greece to unite against their Persian enemy, drawing a line in the sand for democracy. The film brings Miller's (Sin City) acclaimed graphic novel to life by combining live action with virtual backgrounds that capture his distinct vision of this ancient historic tale.
To illustrate 300, Miller synthesized his substantial research--which took him to the cliffs of Thermopylae itself--with the trademark style he brought to such legendary graphic works as Sin City and The Dark Knight Returns. He pared down the Spartans' uniform (roughly half his body weight in uniform and weapons) down to its most essential and symbolic features and peppered the story of the historic 480 B.C. battle of Thermopylae with elements of prior and subsequent clashes between Xerxes and the Greeks.
From: New Orleans | Registered: May 2002
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posted
Thingo - That would make a good movie. 300 is making a bazillion dollars, so maybe they'll go ancient Greece again.
From: My place | Registered: Jan 2002
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posted
Ironically enough... that scene was in the trailer. I was wondering what that large pit was.
From: Sverige! | Registered: Oct 2002
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quote:where the government controls the media almost totally
I think Thorongil struck at the heart of the issue here. They have no concept of free speech and, in my opinion, the government is just looking for another reason to hate on the West.
From: pants | Registered: Jan 2002
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posted
I often think that the events of 1066 would make a supurb film for Hollywood, I mean the Historical implecations, the drama of the occasion, the differenting opinions, which side would you be on etc, but for some strange reason, Hollywood has never made a film out of it.
From: Bagshot Row, Hobbiton, The Shire! | Registered: Sep 2006
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posted
Ahasuerus = another form of Xerxes (neither is the same as the 'correct' ancient Persian form).
I know little about Iranian culture, but do they really think of themselves as having been fighting off 'the West' for centuries? It's true that western dealings in the 20th century were at times pretty unfortunate and patronising to a country with Iran's ancient identity; however surely the threat for most of the past few centuries has come rather from their fellow (Sunni) Muslims. Persia and the Ottoman Empire went to war with each other again and again (for 'heresy is worse than unbelief').
-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- Whereas the light perceives the very heart of the darkness, its own secret has not been discovered.
From: Perth, Scotland | Registered: Jun 2001
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Truth-loving Persians do not dwell upon The trivial skirmish fought near Marathon. As for the Greek theatrical tradition Which represents that summer's expedition Not as a mere reconnaisance in force By three brigades of foot and one of horse (Their left flank covered by some obsolete Light craft detached from the main Persian fleet) But as a grandiose, ill-starred attempt To conquer Greece - they treat it with contempt; And only incidentally refute Major Greek claims, by stressing what repute The Persian monarch and the Persian nation Won by this salutary demonstration: Despite a strong defence and adverse weather All arms combined magnificently together.
-- Robert Graves
From: My place | Registered: Jan 2002
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posted
Hmm. According to this article, the loudest protests against the movie aren't from Iranians but from Iranian expats in the U.S. and Canada.
The article doesn't give many specifics as to why Iranians anywhere object to the film though. An Iranian journalist is quoted as saying that the film "gives the wrong outcomes to battles". To what does this refer?
From: My place | Registered: Jan 2002
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