The 300 Spartans

1962
Approved
1h 54m

IMDb RATING

6.5/10

7.8K

YOUR RATING

Play trailer2:37

1 Video

84 Photos

Historical Epic Sword & Sandal Adventure Drama History War

A small Army of Greeks spearheaded by three hundred Spartans do battle with the whole invading Persian Army.A small Army of Greeks spearheaded by three hundred Spartans do battle with the whole invading Persian Army.A small Army of Greeks spearheaded by three hundred Spartans do battle with the whole invading Persian Army.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.5/10

7.8K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Videos1

Trailer 2:37

The 300 Spartans

Photos84

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Sir Ralph Richardson has only four scenes, despite being second billed.

Goofs
While most of the Spartans wear the correct headgear, Leonidas and his officers wear Roman legionnaire style helmets that wouldn't be around for about 200 years. (This may have been so that they could easily be identified.)

Quotes
Hydarnes, Commander of the Immortals: [Xerxes has sent an emissary to demand the Spartan surrender] yesterday, we only probed your positions. When we attack today, our arrows will blot out the sun!
Leonidas, Spartan King: Good; then we will fight in the shade.
Hydarnes, Commander of the Immortals: Leonidas; you cannot win this fight.
Leonidas, Spartan King: Every day we stand is another day for Greece.
[Starts to walk off]
Hydarnes, Commander of the Immortals: Leonidas, wait! Xerxes says that if you and your men lay down your arms, he will allow you to leave peaceably.
Leonidas, Spartan King: [In Greek] Come and take them!

Crazy credits
Opening credits prologue: In the Year 480 B.C. King Xerxes of Persia set in motion his enormous slave empire to crush the small group of independent Greek states-the only stronghold of freedom still remaining in the then known world . . .

Connections
Edited into The Time Tunnel: Revenge of the Gods (1966)

User reviews123

Review

Featured review

Not bad for 40 years ago.

I was a teenager when I first saw this film. I was raised on the ancient spectacle films of the 50's and 60's and feel this one holds up quite well. No, it's not perfection with respect to history. The Spartans were hardly democratic or benevolent. But, they were fiercely proud, great warriors and very independent. The film does a fine job choreographing the 2-3 day battle, given the budget and FX limitations of the early 60's. Very similar to "Helen of Troy" in these respects. Richard Egan was excellent as Leonidas but the script was very limiting for him and the rest of the cast. I will look forward to seeing the film that results from Steven Pressfield's "Gates of Fire". Hopefully 40 years of technology will create a true epic, as befitting an action (unknown to most school kids today) that helped preserve and push Western Civilization.