Xerxes finally reaches a cave and bathes in an otherworldly liquid, emerging as the 8-foot tall "God-King". Darius's naval commander, Artemisia, claims that Darius' last words were in fact a challenge and sends Xerxes on a journey through the desert. Darius's son, Xerxes, witnesses his father's death, and is advised to not continue the war, since "only the gods can defeat the Greeks". Released on Blu-ray 3D™, Blu-ray™ and DVD on Monday 29 September 2014.Queen Gorgo of Sparta tells her men about the Battle of Marathon, in which King Darius of Persia was killed by General Themistokles of Athens ten years earlier. It’s miles better and, minus the 3D gimmick, cheaper too.
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If that’s your cup of tea – fine.Īctually, if that’s your cup of tea, watch TV series Spartacus in its entirety instead. Until then it’s more grunting, dismembering and hyperboles about honour. Neither of them is portrayed as a wailing damsel in distress, but as fierce and fearless warriors who care about their respective peoples with just as much fervour as the men around them.Īs far as 300: Rise of an Empire’s audience is concerned though, the plight of women isn’t at the top of their list, so Green goes topless and Gorgo only comes out swinging at the end. Artemisia is a believable antagonist and Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey from Game of Thrones) briefly gets in on the sword-slinging action.
Unlike the testosterone-fuelled 300, women are actually given the chance to shine. The Casino Royale star with her cut-glass accent and sparkling eyes was the perfect choice, but that could just be my girl-crush talking. Stapleton looks lost when he’s not charging or screaming, and Jack O’Connell, always a scene-stealer in Skins, pales into the background here. The ragtag cast are either all sub-par actors or they simply made the best of a clunky script.
Still, there is a gratuitous shot of Eva Green’s Artemisia getting her bare breasts squeezed to pique your interest in the lull. Conversations between characters sound stilted and feel like filler until the next frenzied bout of hacking and slashing begins. The slo-mo gets rinsed, and while it was visually impressive in the first film, the novelty of it soon wears off here.Ĭoupled with the ear-splitting score it makes for dramatic viewing, but it’s the bits in between – the talky, plot development bits – that let Rise of an Empire down. This isn’t a world steeped in reality and accordingly everyone looks like a god: bronzed bodies, milk-skinned women and Xerxes in all his golden, Accessorized splendour.Īction scenes move along at a fair old lick, the camera whizzing its way around, settling on a scuffle just long enough to see someone get stabbed in the face. There’s probably more blood and limbs splattering onto the screen than dialogue, and aside from a dodgy shot of Themistokles ( Strike Back’s Sullivan Stapleton, somewhat dead-eyed) riding a horse across a splintering ship, everything looks glossy and seamless. Set alongside the events of Zack Snyder’s 2006 movie, the sequel to 300 focuses on Greek general Thermistokles as he tries to take down Persian forces led by god Xerxes and his right hand woman Artemisia.ģ00: Rise of an Empire continues the ultra violence and stylised visual effects that made 300 great.
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