History can play tricks on certain films, endowing them with importance and fame long after their initial premiere, with no direct contribution from their creators. One such example is the 1962 historical epic, The 300 Spartans, which, despite its modest beginnings, has become the ultimate inspiration for a similar film made nearly half a century later.
Set in Ancient Greece in 480 BC, the plot of The 300 Spartans revolves around a pivotal event in the annals of Greek and Classical history. The story begins with the vast Persian army of King Xerxes (played by David Farrar) crossing from Asia into Europe, intent on conquering Greece and avenging the defeat his father, Darius, suffered ten years earlier at the hands of the Athenians in the Battle of Marathon. Greece is a patchwork of small, often feuding city-states, many of which choose to submit to the invaders rather than resist. The strongest of these, Sparta, renowned for its military prowess, decides to fight, and its king, Leonidas (played by Richard Egan), forms an alliance with the Athenian statesman Themistocles (played by Ralph Richardson), who has anticipated the Persian advance and built a strong navy. However, the Athenians still require a strong land force, and this is to be provided by the Spartans, whose participation in the upcoming clash would rally other Greek city-states to join them in defending a small, strategically important strip of land near Thermopylae. Leonidas, however, is bound by Spartan laws that forbid its regular army from leaving the city during religious festivals; he and his personal retinue of 300 soldiers are, however, permitted to leave, so he rushes to Thermopylae to make his legendary stand against the large enemy force.
The 300 Spartans was made at the height of the popularity of sword and sandal epics, with 20th Century Fox investing 7 million US dollars in its production, which, though small compared to the bloated production of Cleopatra, was impressive for its time.
The film boasts everything such spectacles were expected to have: a relatively simple and easily understandable story based on the writings of famous historian Herodotus, lush Eastmancolor cinematography by renowned Geoffrey Unsworth in Cinemascope picture format, spectacular scenes of combat, a likeable musical score by famous Greek composer Manos Hadjidakis, and even some scantily clad female dancers thrown in for good measure.
The film was shot on location in Greece, with the Greek Royal Family and government providing enthusiastic support in the form of logistics and hundreds of soldiers serving as extras in the battle scenes. In return, the film not only promoted and celebrated Greece but also underlined its importance as the cradle of Western civilization and a bastion of freedom and all ideals opposed to Oriental despotism coming from the East. The film was often interpreted, and with good reason, as a metaphor for the ongoing Cold War, with Xerxes and his Persian hordes standing for Soviet Communists.
Directed by Rudolph Maté, who had earned fame as a cinematographer before switching to directing, The 300 Spartans is a testament to his skill, using the terrain and clever shot compositions to make hundreds of extras look like thousands. The battle of Thermopylae, as reconstructed in the film, is not only accurate but actually makes sense from a tactical standpoint, which is not always the case with films of this genre.
However, all this hard work is occasionally compromised by wooden dialogue and an unnecessary romantic subplot involving young Spartan soldier Phyllon (played by Barry Coe) and King's niece Ellas (played by Diane Baker). The film is helped by decent acting from Richard Egan, Ralph Richardson, and David Farrar, the latter a former British matinee idol who chose the role of the despotic villain as a way to end his relatively short acting career.
Despite its flaws, The 300 Spartans is an impressive piece of work, surpassing most historical epics with similar ambitions. While the film failed to impress contemporary audiences, one of its viewers was a young Frank Miller, who would later become one of the greatest comic book artists in the world today. Maté's work left such a strong impression on Miller that he, decades later, gave it homage in the form of the graphic novel 300, which has since become his best-known work. This, in turn, was further enhanced by Zack Snyder's 2006 film adaptation, which indirectly spurred unexpected interest and new appreciation for this underappreciated piece of 1960s cinema.
RATING: 7/10 (+++)
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