It’s safe to say that there’s not another filmmaker working today whose work has been quite as polarizing asZack Snyder’s. While he’s been praised by some as a bold auteur who challenges traditional notions of storytelling, his overused physical gimmicks and bland writing in projects likeRebel MoonandJustice Leaguehave been sharply critiqued by others. The debate over Snyder’s style has been bolstered any time he’s had the opportunity to work within established properties. While skeptics were actually impressed by his reinvention ofGeorge A. Romero’s classic zombie filmDawn of the Dead, responses to his series of dour, downbeat films in the DCEU were less enthusiastic. That being said, none of Snyder’s projects have been as controversial ashis 2007 adaptation of theFrank Millergraphic novel300.
Despite its faults as a work of historical fiction,300had an immediate effect on Snyder’s career. The praise for his unique visual style, matched with the film’ssurprise box office success, allowed him to work on more ambitious projects likeWatchmenandSucker Punch. Although300may have been the film that Snyder owes his career to, it’s not exactly a property that’s worth revisiting; the disappointment of the prequel film300: Rise of an Empireseemed to shatter any of Warner Bros.’ dreams of kicking off a franchise. Nonetheless, the announcement thatSnyder is in talks to direct and produce a300prequel seriesfor Max is more than a little concerning.300is a deeply harmful film thatdoesn’t need a continuation.
King Leonidas of Sparta leads 300 of his best warriors to defend Greece against the massive invading Persian army led by King Xerxes. Outnumbered and facing insurmountable odds, the Spartans make their stand at the narrow pass of Thermopylae, using their superior tactics and fighting skills to hold off the Persians.
‘300’ Has Deeply Xenophobic and Islamophobic Themes
Set in the events leading up to the Battle of Thermopylae,300centers on the rise of the Spartan Army and their charismatic leader, King Leonidas I (Gerard Butler). Leonidas certainly did not earn his position of leadership through a family bloodline; he fought for years within Sparta’s brutal training program to prove that he was the most brutal child of his generation.300doesn’thave a shred of historical accuracy, as it completely misrepresents the dynamic between the Spartan Army and their Greek allies as they stood up to defend their city-states against the Persian dictator Xerxes I (Rodrigo Santoro). Nonetheless, it does reframe the most important details of the battle for the sake of dramatic tension; Sparta’s army of only 300 men is crushed in defeat by the more overwhelming numbers of the Persian Empire. While a decisive victory, the Battle of Thermopylae wascritical to the larger Greco-Persian Warthat resulted in Persia’s withdrawal from Greece.
300’s lack of historical accuracy isn’t necessarily its major problem. There are plenty of beloved historical biopics that fictionalize aspects of the true story for the sake of making a more entertaining film. However,300is coded with deeply xenophobic stereotypeswhen it comes to the Persian characters. Even though Islam was not a developed religion at the time of300’s historical events, several visual and cultural similarities can be drawn between the Persian characters and historical Muslim societies.The race-baiting nature of the conflictevoked controversy during300’s release, with Iranofficially denouncing the film and banning itfrom the country.
‘300’ Excuses Harmful Stereotypes
Perhaps even more disturbing thanthe film’s denial of historical realitiesarethe parallels that it draws to the modern day.The Spartan Army, framed as heroic in both Miller and Snyder’s eyes, is a broadly fascist society that solves any and all issues through violence. It’s not even violence that is framed through the perspective of a revenge narrative, as the Spartans seem to have the Persians for their very existence, with the film portraying them as sexually flamboyant and culturally liberal. The message of300is simple; the Spartan forces’ brutality is completely justified if it is to defend their way of life from “foreign invaders.”
Say What You Will About the DCEU, Zack Snyder Got This Right About Batman
Zack Snyder and Ben Affleck knew how to bring the Dark Knight from page to screen.
300also has many offensive characterizationsof minorities that have made it age very poorly. WhileLena Headeywould go on to play strong female characters in projects likeGame of ThronesandDredd, her300character Queen Gorgo is a shallowly written, subservient wife who does nothing but appease her husband, Leonidas. The film also has strong ableist connotations, as Leonoidas at one point publicly shames a “hunchback” Spartan, claiming that he has no place in his army. In a film that is all about the power of a community rising up against an oppressor, it’s very clear that300is a fantasy for only a certain viewer, andnot the type of war moviethat is made to empower all audience members, regardless of race, gender, or creed.
Zack Snyder Returning to the 300 Franchise Seems Like a Step Backward
300may not have been beloved among critics, but it certainlyinspired a number of historical epicsthat attempted to capture Snyder’s unique blend of slow motion and haphazard violence. Unfortunately, this ultimately became a harmful trend that led to disappointments likeHerculesandPompeiiamong others, and effectively spelled the end of the genre’s renaissance. When compared to the practical action sequences of modern classics likeMad Max: Fury Roadand the John Wickfranchise,300’s over-the-top visuals now seem completely out of touch.Ironically, Snyder is one of the few filmmakers who still utilizes this style without any sense of irony.
The issue with a300prequel ultimately lies in Snyder himself. He can’t be blamed for adapting Miller’s graphic novel faithfully, butSnyder has continuously demonstrated a willingness to adhere to his own vision, regardless of any valid critique.Snyder continued to push for the release of his version ofJustice League, despitelegitimate criticisms about his characterization of Batman. While the Rebel Moon franchise earned disastrous reviews, that doesn’t seem to have impacted Snyder’s future opportunities. His potential return to the world of300does not suggest that Snyder will be changing anything about his controversial style.
