300

The 480 B.C. battle at Thermopylae—in which, according to legend if not history, 300 Spartan warriors repulsed the advances of an invading Persian horde—is lavishly visualized in this bloody, lifelike computer-animated spectacle. Gerard Butler is the voice of warrior King Leonidas, who tries to buy time for his embattled people by holding off the army of Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro) while Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey) pleads with Sparta's ruling body for additional military support. Zack Snyder's highly stylized adaptation of Frank Miller's innovative graphic novel is practically a literal translation, with each lovingly crafted frame resembling a comic-book panel sprung to life. Snyder feigned innocence when confronted by critics who claimed 300 is a thinly veiled propaganda piece that tacitly endorses the U.S.'s present-day conflicts with Muslim extremists, but it's hard to believe that he didn't anticipate such a reaction. Regardless, 300 is grand entertainment. Highly recommended. [Note: Available in either widescreen or full screen versions, or a two-disc widescreen version, DVD extras on the two-disc “special edition” include audio commentary (by director Zack Snyder, writer Kurt Johnstad, and cinematographer Larry Fong), 12 webisodes on production design, cast, stunt work, wardrobe, and other production features (39 min. total), a “Fact or Fiction?” featurette (25 min.), “Frank Miller Tapes” interviews (15 min.), a six-minute “making-of” featurette, “Who Were the Spartans? The Warriors of 300” (5 min.), the four-minute photo montage “Making 300 in Images,” three deleted scenes with an intro by Snyder (3 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a visual knockout of a film.] (E. Hulse)