Continuing with our theme of “films for fanboys/girls only that may be unsatisfying for the uninitiated” (that phrase could be used to help kids get over their stutter) is this sequel to 300.
What Works: I had a hard time with this movie mostly because I never held the original “300” to the high esteem so many young males did—-it sucks on TV, and even in the theaters the baroquely digitized visuals got old after about thirty minutes—-and this one doesn’t beat it in any category except one: Eva Green. Her kinda-antagonist/kinda-lover is the most ambiguous and interesting character either of these films have ever had. The ten minute stretch explaining her traumatic backstory and how she motivates Xerxes into becoming a God-King is the best in the film (almost….alllllmost on the level of Game of Thrones or Tolkien) and Green plays every scene like a neurotic Angelina Jolie meets Tim Burton, I’ve never seen an actress pull off steely and unhinged so well and at the same time.
What Doesn’t Work: Sullivan Stapleton’s general is a weak replacement for Gerard Butler’s crazed King. [I may have thought Butler’s acting was borderline retarded in the first film but at least his energy kept the performance from being swallowed up by the visuals.] He looks alternately confused and nervous, but he doesn’t command the screen at all.
Plus, I had that same feeling I did during the first “300” which was that a little bit went a long way, and I grew tired of the mess by the end of it. The first one isn’t even very good but it’s cleaner (some of the plot dynamics here are confusing) and livelier.
What I Would Have Done Differently: Not every movie that makes 100 million dollars needs to get a sequel. This is one of those movies.