300

Retrosexuals ahoy. Like Sin City, Zack Snyder’s pounding adaptation of Frank Miller’s Greco-Roman graphic novel falls somewhere between live action and anime had the illustrations been provided by Tom of Finland. This thrilling baby-oiled account of the Battle of Thermopylae, when a handful of Spartan and Greek soldiers vaingloriously held off a vast invading Persian army, reinvents the swords-and-sandals flick as faithfully realised comic-book panels. Heading up the muscle-beach men is The Phantom Of The Opera’s Gerard Butler as Leonidas, who wisely gives an earnest turn against completely heightened visuals. Recreating all the kinetic splendor of Miller’s work, 300 turns the CGI all the way up to 11 as actors perform against blank screens on which backgrounds are drawn. (Hey presto. Ready-made sets.) Shallow and vacuous it may be, but once your eyes adjust, it’s a brave new world. Next up for director Snyder is The Watchmen, a project neither Paul Greengrass nor Terry Gilliam have managed to get off the ground. It’s a suicide mission worthy of his 300 heroes. Go on if you think you’re hard enough.