Ohh.... This trailer is a little different then the first one I saw.... It shows a little more action in it..... So far it still looks promising...IMHO
Herodotus is a little dry, but he certainly serves better than Pressfield.
Pressfield is a hack. He has made quite a little niche market for himself by churning out cliche-ridden and clumsy fictionalized accounts of classic history. He does so on a regular and reliable basis with increasingly diminished returns. He may look ok when compared to some of the lowest grade mass market paperback writers, but that's certainly no mark of distinction.
By the way, just because Pressfield's book is the only popular modern novel of Thermopylae doesn't mean that it is a good book. When culture offers kitsch as the only option, it does not automatically render it a good option.
To get back on topic, Pressfield's hackery would have certainly served as better source material for a film than Miller's buffoonish cartoonery. The trailer speaks volumes in that regard. Michael Mann would likely have done wonders with Gates of Fire and transcended the source, but here it looks as if we are left with nothing but one hack compounding another.
looks good... but i reserver judgement until the final product arrives.
we've been burned 2many times.
re: hamming it up, we haven't seen a decent action-flick in a while. perhaps this will fill the void. i hate newer movies striving SO hard to be so serious. we need more movies that "ham it up" more =).
Well, I'll allow the dictionary to describe Pressfield for me (from Merriam-Webster):
Hack : a person who works solely for mercenary reasons : HIRELING b : a writer who works on order; also : a writer who aims solely for commercial success
cliche: 1 : a trite phrase or expression; also : the idea expressed by it 2 : a hackneyed theme, characterization, or situation 3 : something (as a menu item) that has become overly familiar or commonplace
clumsy: 1 a : lacking dexterity, nimbleness, or grace b : lacking tact or subtlety 2 : awkward or inefficient in use or construction
kitsch: 1 : something that appeals to popular or lowbrow taste and is often of poor quality 2 : a tacky or lowbrow quality or condition
Also, to further clarify kitsch:
"Because the word was brought into use as a response to a large amount of art in the 19th century where the aesthetic of art was confused with a sense of exaggerated sentimentality or melodrama, kitsch is most closely associated with art that is sentimental, mawkish, or maudlin; however, it can be used to refer to any type of art that is deficient for similar reasons—whether it tries to appear sentimental, glamorous, theatrical, or creative, kitsch is said to be a gesture imitative of the superficial appearances of art. It is often said that kitsch relies on merely repeating convention and formula, lacking the sense of creativity and originality displayed in genuine art."
To call my favorite book kitsch is to call me lowbrow. No worries. I can't speak for Pressfield's later works, just Gates of Fire. And it moved me immensely, for it was written by someone who understands the mind of a career soldier, and looked at the greatest military stand of all time. C'est la vie. Many critics seem to agree with my opinion, which means as little to me as Paul disagreeing with it I love the book deeply.
Back to 300...the video quality makes a huge difference. I think the musical choice works very well for the trailer. I am glad it has a release date. I can't wait to see it. I'd love to see the trailer on the big screen. Perhaps at The Fountain
if you watched the making of/behind the scenes they've been doing... most of hte background/landscapes are CG =). it's incredible where CG can take us. hopefully the writing/dialogue is on par with the quality of the fx.
i already love the ham the main char. guy in the trailer is espousing. love the ham!!! but no cheese please. i bet there'll be more sandwich jokes from hereon =).
that having been said, i am a child of the postmodern age and its use of "kitsch" as roughly synonymous with "camp". which again fails accurately to describe pressfield's book.
but i suspect that, at bottom, we have enormously inconsonant ideas concerning art and the philosophy of art. and this isn't the place to go into either...
Saw the trailer for this before The Departed. It rocked. I had never heard of this, but I am now stoked to see it. A perfect appetizer for The Departed, BTW.
The bootleg trailer that was out before the official trailer is a FAR superior trailer. I was partly in shock when I saw this trailer in front of THE DEPARTED. If I hadn't seen the original bootleg trailer, I don't think I'd be as psyched. Do yourself a favor and seek out the bootleg.
I didn't see this feature, but it was obvious from the trailer. I felt this was an oppressive trailer, in its trying to be cool and "hard." (please don't look up the dictionary on me for that one! ) Still might check it out, but the trailer for Sin City was a lot more appealing to me.