300: Rise of an Empire is a 2014 American fantasy war film directed by Noam Murro. It is a follow-up to the 2007 film 300, taking place before, during, and after the events of that film with a fictionalized retelling of the Battle of Salamis. The main actors in the film are Eva Green (Casino Royale), Lena Headey (Underworld) and Sullivan Stapleton (Strikeback series, Gangster Squad)
I went into this film expecting a lot, the original 300 in my opinion was great. It was something different, a memorable film filled with gory action, but still enough of a story to make it worth watching. Unfortunately, the sequel isn’t as great as the original. Although it’s filmed in exactly the same way (which I love), the acting is brilliant and it has more gore and battle scenes than you can shake a bloody stick at, it just isn’t as good. There’s something missing. It’s like fish without chips. About halfway through the film I realised what it was, the story. Don’t get me wrong, it’s ok, but nothing compares to the story of Leonidas and his 300 spartans. The story is also quite muddled, flashing back and forth between past and present, which is a little annoying.
To sum up, the acting is brilliant, the way the movie was filmed is brilliant, the battle scenes and bloody action are brilliant, but the story? Meh. It’s worth seeing (especially if you have seen or are a big fan of the original), but take it for what it is, 2 hours of epic battle action, gore and good acting. 7.5/10
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