Project Evaluation

“If You Go Down To The Woods Today…” is based upon four AS-Level students who are attempting to create a horror film for their media coursework in a local forest. The first scenes work well for the students but after a numerous amount of strange noises and disturbances they realise they are not the only people in this forest. As they try to venture around the forest to find what is making these freak noises they soon see that this creature is not a force to be reckoned with.

The link below shows our media presentation that talks about and shows many features that we propose to include in our horror film. The pitch includes an initial idea for our film, similar products where we hope to incorporate some of their key features and the pitch also includes our storyboard.

http://samroyston.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/media-presentation.pptx

The second slide of our presentation provides a synopsis for our film and gives the viewer the basic story-line. In our group after many discussions we decided to base our film around four A-level students who are attempting to film their own mini horror film for their coursework. But, whilst filming, their thoughts turn into reality and they become part of the film they were attempting to create.

Our film was based around the “found footage” aspect so the main basis of our film was not scripted. Although, we did script the start of our film to ensure our audience grasped what we were attempting to film. We thought that if we scripted the “found footage” aspect of our film it would sound as if the series of events were planned where as we were trying to get over the effect that we genuinely didn’t realise what danger we were in. The storyboard was planned more effectively as we knew what we wanted to happen during our film so this could be created to our exact need. But, we couldn’t plan all of our storyboard as we wanted our “found footage” to be original and unexpected. If we planned this, as said for the script, it would seem as if we wasn’t genuinely terrified. Our storyboard included relatively detailed images that gave an idea of what we wanted to get across in our film. It also included camera shots and angles that we hoped to use during our film. As were trying to incorporate the “found footage” aspect into our film we needed to ensure that the viewer knew which parts were “found footage” and which parts were the students intending to film their A level project. To do this, we decided to place different filters where the filming sequences changed.

This Evaluation includes details on;

• How we filmed and edited our film idea
• What codes and conventions we included in our horror film and where we got theses ideas from
• How our project enticed our target audience
• What kind of media institutions would mass produce our film

Below is our horror film, “If You Go Down To The Woods Today..”.

Research and Planning

Each genre has its own codes and conventions that could be identified to determine which genre it would be placed in. Before we produced our film we researched British Horror which helped us with the production of our film. On my blog, you will see this post where we talk about the codes and conventions used in horror and films that contain the codes and convention. Our film was set in a forest so it contained a horror code and convention straight away and this also had the advantage of a desolate setting. We need not want to use features such as blood and visible attacks as we did not want to ruin the film. If the death or attack looked fake or over the top then this would ruin the effect we wanted the film to have. The main convention that works well is the contrast from start to end. As you can see from the film above, events start well for the A-Level students but by the end of the opening sequences, three students are dead, one student is mentally disturbed, there is a mystery attacker on the loose and nobody knows what truly happened on that day in the forest. Overall, I believe the codes and conventions we have included in our film are used effectively and make people grasp the fact that this is a horror film.

We have done a lot of research on film institutions during this media course so far and we believe that our film would be aimed at a small independent film institution. This could be institutions such as Warp Films and Film Four that have produced other successful independent films such as This is England that made it big in 2006. This film started off with a small budget of just £1,500,000 which is microscopic compared to the budget of films such as Avatar which has been reported to have had a budget in the regions of the £500,000,000. There is proof that small independent films can be successful as This is England made a Gross Revenue of £7,000,000 and it also had its fair share of awards. The film was ranked fourteenth in The Guardian’s list of 2007′s Best Films and fifteenth in Empire’s Movies of the Year. The film won the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film at the 2007 British Academy Film Awards and it also won the Best Film category at the 2006 British Independent Film Awards, Thomas Turgoose winning the Most Promising Newcomer award. It would also be accepted by a small independent film institution because it would pass the British Culture Test. This is a variety of tests/selection processes that determine whether a film can be classed as British or not. This ranges from things such as the nationality of the main characters from where the film was set and produced.

One of the main codes and conventions that are present in horror films is the dark. Darkness is used effectively in many types of horror films. The reason darkness works so well is because it creates suspense, tension and the fact of the unknown. Darkness is an element that is seen as a disadvantage to a human. If you can’t see as best as possible (daylight), then how are you supposed to know what is accompanying you? Darkness is used in a variety of films such as The Descent, The Hole, The Grudge and I am Legend. For this reason we wanted to incorporate this into our film as it would add to the horror effect we were trying to create.

Forests or woods are a great code that illiterate the sense of danger and isolation. It’s the fact that if something goes wrong, you are alone, and you are not close to any human contact that gives the woods a scary feeling. Also, people do not know what is in the forest as they do when in the city so this reinforces the fact of the unknown when in a forest or woods. Many horror films use the forest as it possesses a great amount of hiding places and camouflage to enforce the fact that someone is watching or following you. This was great for our film as we wanted our characters to feel scared, alone and out of place and this setting gave us the perfect chance to put our ideas into action.

Screaming is also a code and convention that is associated with the production of horror films. Anyone screaming, whether it is a man, woman or child tells the audience that something has frightened them or something has gone terribly wrong. But, most films use a young woman or girl to portray the screaming code. A woman screaming gives the stereotypical view of a woman helpless and scared which the director wants the audience to feel also. Countless number of films use this convention such as The Descent and The Strangers. Unfortunately, we did not have any girls to use as characters so we could not use a screaming girl convention. Although, we did use this convention but used Tom and Sam as the people screaming and shouting. The gives the audience the feeling that if two males are scared and screaming then something disturbing must be happening.

Knocking at the door is a factor used to enforce the horror genre. Knocking at the door usually means that something bad is on the other side of the door. This is a great factor to use as you never know what is on the other side of the door so this gives a climax whether it is an anti climax or not but this rises the tension and insecurity of the audience.

Red writing is usually related to horror films as audiences associate the red writing with blood. Whether the credits are written in a red font or red writing is found in the film this gives the sense of peril or threat. The red writing is also related to curses. This is evident in the Grudge when they find red writing, which seems to be blood, on the wall with a message. If you have watched the film then the writing is the start of a cursed storyline.

Masks are habitually recurrent in a number of horror films. Masks administer the factor of an unseen attacker and automatically increase the sense of danger. Masks come in a variety of shapes and sizes such as balaclava’s, food sacks, china dolls, hockey masks and many more which tells the audience that the attacker does not want to give away his identity. This is also good for the film as it keeps the audience guessing at what or who is the attacker. In our film, we did not use the mask idea but still used the convention of an unseen attacker. We liked this idea because it kept the audience and guessing and didn’t give any of the story line away.

Further research and planning is shown on the next blog page and the end of this page.

The Preliminary Task seemed like a tiny task compared to our horror film. It was based mainly on the types of shots you used and camera techniques rather than the script and narrative of the short clip. In the horror project, the roles were revered, yes we needed good shots to make the film look good but they weren’t as important as getting the narrative over to the audience. Also, with the Preliminary Task, the editing was minimal and nothing needed to be added to the final task clip. Once again, this was different, as the horror project needed hours of editing along with added special effects, filters and text. I have learnt about the importance of making my film and narrative believable and interesting than just doing the basic requirements. During our horror project we did not use many of the techniques such as match on action and the 180 degree rule. This is mainly because our film did not involve many long sequences of speech and was mainly based upon handheld camerawork.

Screen Grab Evaluation

Screen Grab 1

This Screen Grab shows the Titles for the film. We chose the font of the title to suit the type of film we were going to create. This scary and eery looking font was relevant to the genre of film we were focusing on and created in iMovie. The colour for the font is white, we were going to edit the font and make it red, but we thought it didn’t look as good as white. I think that the audience would have grasped the fact it was a horror film by the type of font we used if they hadn’t already. We also include a common convention that is used in many horror films, forests. It is relevant to the film title and we thought it would be appropriate to include this when the film title appeared.

Screen Grab 2

In Screen Grab 2 we see the characters in their “pretend ruined camp” which is part of the plot for their media coursework. In this shot we see the main place that the students choose to set their film and it holds many codes and conventions for a horror film such as the dark compact forest and the ruined camp. This part of the camp is also visible when the students attempt to flee from the mystery creature. This is one of the first times we see the date and time in the bottom right hand corner and the recording symbol in the bottom left corner. We added these via an editing technique in iMovie.

Screen Grab 3

During this Screen Grab we see the more adventurous side to the characters as their filming session has been ruined by an unexpected visitor. This is related to the target audience for the film as we belive many teenagers are willing to try new things and the teenage age group being naive. They go to investigate what they believe is watching them and experience many codes and conventions such as being isolated, being watched and the fact that they are in a forest and can’t see everywhere clearly. We also see the one of the characters outfits from this shot. The general jeans, trainers and hoody is what is expected and enforced by the press of modern society. But these clothes also helped with the more athletic filming sequences.

Screen Grab 4

In this Screen Grab we used the code and convention of a person being left behind, trapped or in danger as one of the characters falls and is left behind. This creates the impression that all the characters are selfish as not one of them stops to help their “friend” who is in danger. The shaky camerawork and disorientation of the viewer evident in Cloverfield confronts the audience with a sense of panic and worry. There is also a bit of irony in this shot as Sam falls over a tripod which was supposed to help him in his coursework but instead, hinders him in his escape.

Screen Grab 5

Screen Grab 5 gives the sense of refuge and safety as the characters are hiding and the creature is nowhere to be seen. Once again, this includes codes and conventions such as a false sense of security, a mystery attacker and being lost in a terrifying situation. We also how the filters we included affect how the characters look during this shot. There was a variety of screen filters in iMovie that we could have edited into our final product but we thought this was the best one as it resembles the standard black and white camera and also includes slight hints of colour.

Screen Grab 6

Screen Grab 6 really brings out the personality of certain characters. The cameraman through the whole film, Brett, shows his survival instincts that are shown in many films such as The Descent and The Hole. The fact that he is running from a mystery attacker into areas he does not know also shows us that he is not thinking straight and is in a panic just to get out of the area. As much of our camerawork was handheld, for this shot, we needed a base for the camera to be placed on. This was done by placing Toms jumper on a small bush and it was my job to place the camera on the jumper as if i had dropped it. Fortunately, I did it first time and the camera dropped perfectly!

Screen Grab 7

This Screen Grab is interesting because it seems just like a static shot to many viewers but is relevant to the film. It gives the audience understanding of when the film changes from the “A Level Media Project” to the actual events that occur while filming. We realised that our film would be complicated and misleading to our audience if it carried on in one continuous sequence. Therefore, we needed to split up each sequence of filming. We experimented with fading to black but and fading back into filming but it didn’t work very well. We then had a brain wave and realised that this type of break up shot would be ideal as it relates to the idea of making a film.

Screen Grab 8

Screen Grab 8 shows the after events of what happened in the forest. We have one escapee as with the film, The Descent, who tries to unravel the events evident in the film. This shot uses the convention of a mad or mentally disturbed person which feature in many horror films. This tells the audience that what this person has seen, has scarred them mentally, and therefore creates tension and anxiety which are needed to create a good horror film. Our newest character, Mr. McCarthy, was dressed perfectly for this shot. His smart attire with his tie and watch gives the impression that this character is important. This also backed up by the fact that he is standing over Brett to show he has more power and a bigger influence.

Screen Grab 9

Screen Grab 9 is the final shot of our 2 minute film opening. This holds many codes and conventions such as the “forest”, evident with the shrubbery across the creatures face. We also see the mystery attacker for the first time and we only get to see its eyes. There is also the fact that it has white eyes which is not common amongst the human race and gives this creature the mystery factor. This shot was used by placing Jack in a huge conifer bush where we could certain branches across his face and ensure the setting would be dark behind him as if he were still in the forest.

Compare and Contrast

In this part of my evaluation, I am going to compare one of the characters from my film to a character in a worldwide blockbuster. The two images above show Brett from my film and Daxos, an Arcadian soldier from the film, 300. Although, these seem completely different, they do have many similarities. In the film, we see Brett as an arrogant, cocky individual who seems to find time for a laugh in whatever situation. When the students are looking for they mystery creature, Brett is thirsty to find this creature and makes wise cracks all the time. Daxos relates to Brett as the first time we meet him, he makes jokes about how the Spartans have only bought 300 soldiers when on the warpath. Later on in the film we see Brett fleeing from the danger and looking out for himself. Fortunately for him, he makes it away from the creature. This has its similarities to Daxos as when Daxos is faced with the choice of fighting with the Spartans to an almost certain death, he flees from the battle and is not seen again. This shows his cowardice and fear. We later see Brett talking to his teacher in a mentally disturbed state. This shows the extremities that a fearful situation can have on the younger mind.

Target Audience

The Target Audience for my film is teenagers of all ages and older. This, I think, is because the film would interest this age range as it has characters of the same age group that the audience can relate to. This is also because, from previous research, I found out that teenagers watch the most horror films. The audience member that I have chosen can be briefly described and stereotyped. As with most teenagers, this audience member,  shops at high street shops such as Topman, River Island and other popular mainstream shops. The television channels that attract this audience are dramas and comedies such as Shameless, Family Guy, Hollyoaks, Skins and The Cleveland Show which would be the main television programs watched by this age group.

Location

To the left is an aerial image of the forest area where we chose to set our film. This area was perfect as it was close to the area we live in, it was a relatively dark and gloomy forest and had all the aspects for a setting we needed. The forest is a common convention for the horror genre also so it was relevant to our film. Although we had to move around the forest for different parts of our film no setting was further than 5 minutes away from the other so it was convenient for us to film.

Equipment

Below I have listed all of the equipment that we have used in order of importance during the process of making our film.. These range from actual filming equipment to the use of the internet and editing programmes.

Our camera was the most important piece of equipment we needed to make our film. Without this, the film would not have happened. The fact that our camera was a High Definition (HD) Camera also made a lot of difference with our final product. It enhanced the overall spectrum of the film by sharpening images and defining objects and colours much better than a normal camera.

The Apple iMacs we also had available to use were also of great importance. This was like our base for the film. It is where all of our work was saved and edited so without this, the film wouldn’t have been as good as our final product.

iMovie is also an important piece of equipment we used. This programme on the Apple iMacs was our editing equipment. The programme had a variety of special effects, filters and editing techniques that we could use to our advantage to improve the overall perception and final product.

You Tube, the biggest broadcasting internet channel in the world, was used to release our film and for our audience to see the film for the first time. It was easily accessible from anywhere with an internet connection so our target audience, with efficient marketing, could watch our film and give us feedback on our project.

The tripod is an important piece of equipment normally when filming as we found out when we did our Preliminary Task. But our plot mainly focused on the hand held recording technique. This meant the tripod was used for one or two shots and was not of great importance.

Interviews

Below are two interviews that we have created after our film was produced. It shows Sam and Tom, two of our group, talking about a variety of issues that deal with our horror project. There is a second interview with a fellow student who has agreed to be filmed giving his feedback after watching the film.

What constitutes a British film?

Prior to release of a film, if wanted, the film is submitted by the institution and scrutinized by the UK film council to determine whether it is adequate enough to be considered as a British film. The benefits that this brings to this institution is that it receives a large amount of funding that can be used in a variety of ways and the institution is also issued with large cuts of taxes. When submitted the film is viewed by a variety of employees at the UK film council where it is later given a score out of 31. For the film to be granted as a British film it has to achieve a score of over 16 points. The actual scoring system that the UK film council abide by can be found at; http://www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/culturaltestpoints. As you can see from the link, the scoring system is divided into four sections where a number of points can be awarded. These four sections are;

Cultural Content

Cultural Contribution

Cultural Hubs

Cultural Practitioners

In the Cultural Content section you can be awarded up to 16 points. Realistically, a film could achieve a British status just by achieving full marks within this section. This section is then further split up into smaller sub-sections where the film is assessed. These smaller sub-sections are “Films set in the UK”, “Lead characters British citizens or residents”, “Film based on British subject matter or underlying material” and “Original dialogue recorded mainly in English language”. Each of these sections can earn a film up to four points and this relies on how well the film fits within these boundaries. The first sub-section of Cultural Content deals with the issue of where the film is based. If a film is set in the UK for the whole of the film then it will surely receive all four points that are available. This is evident with the film “This is England” as the characters within the film are not situated in any other countries and the whole film is set in the UK. The next contends with the nationality of characters and where they’re considered as residents. If the cast for a film had a number of characters with different cultures and nationalities then this would not receive a large amount of points. The third sub-section is also worth four points and is about what the film is based upon. If the material shown within the film deals with the issues of gun crime within the UK then this would be rewarded with a high number of points. The final sub-section deals with the dialogue that is present within the film. Many films such as “Football Factory”, “Happy Feet” and “Music and Lyrics” all have the original dialogue of the English language. Therefore, they would receive the full amount of points on offer.

Cultural Contribution is the second section within the cultural test and only has one sub-section within it. The section is called “Film represents/reflects a diverse British culture, British heritage or British creativity”. As you can see form the sub-section title, the points that can be awarded in this section are based upon how the film represents a British culture, heritage and creativity. The viewers will look for iconic British eras such as the skinhead culture and the asian culture which form part of the heritage and creativity of Britain. This section as a whole is only worth four points.

The third section of the British culture test is called Cultural Hubs. The main aim of this section is to determine where the film was shot, where visual and special effects were performed, the studio used and where the music, audio and pictures were produced. I believe the UK film council do not take this as seriously as the sections above as you can only achieve three of the thirty-one marks that are available within this section. If the film was shot in Britain but the music was recorded in America then the film would not be able to achieve all three marks available.

The final section of the Culture test is the Cultural Practitioners section. This section is split into several sub-sections where one point is awarded for each sub-section. These sub-sections are based upon the key figures that are associated with making a producing a film. These sub-sections are “Director”, “Scriptwriter”, “Producer”, “Composer”, “Lead actors”, “Majority of cast”, “Key staff” and “Majority of crew”. For example, if the Director and Producer were American while the Scriptwriter and Composer were British, then the film would be awarded two points towards the sixteen needed to achieve a British film status.

Codes and Conventions of Horror

The codes and conventions of a film are what make a film genre recognisable. Horror is recognisable by a variety of different codes and conventions. If  the start of a film featured an all action gun fight with explosions and crazy stunts then you would expect the film to be suited in the Action genre. If a film began with the main character experiencing a series of unfortunate events with it featuring slapstick comedy then you would expect this to be suited in the Comedy genre.

I am firstly going to talk about some of the films I have watched prior to writing this blog and then explain some codes and conventions in further detail.

The Descent

Producer: Christian Colson

Director: Neil Marshall

Budget: £3,500,000

Distributors: Pathe, Lionsgate

The Descent is the story of a group of thrill seeking, adrenaline junky girls who love getting together and challenging themselves. For them, this seems like a regular cave exploration but later on they realise it’s not just their friends they are accompanied by. Unknown creatures, described as evolved bats that are blind and  react to sound, begin to seek out their intruders.

This film possesses a great deal of codes and conventions commonly associated with the horror genre. In the first ten minutes I noticed the following:

• tension between characters
• blood and gore
• bullet holes
• scratch marks
• unknown noises and figures
• darkness
• screaming
• forest setting
• skulls and bones
• idea of claustrophobia
• contrast of film, good times at start followed by bad times at the end
• desolate setting

We want to incorporate many of these codes and conventions into our film. The main ones we are focusing on are the desolate forest setting,  unknown noises and figures, darkness and the contrast from the start to the end. Using these ideas may help improve our

Trailer for The Descent

The Hole

Producers: Jeremy Bolt, Lisa Bryer, Pippa Cross

Director: Nick Hamm

Budget: £4,520,000

Distributors: Pathe, Buena Vista

The Hole is a classic example of a social gathering going completely wrong. It shows the events of four students hiding and partying in an abandoned, underground air shelter trying to avoid a school trip to Wales. They are lead into the shelter by a “friend” who leaves them in there and locks the only exit. After three days inside the shelter they realise they have been left in their on purpose and start to turn on each other.

During the first ten minutes of the film, I noticed the following codes and conventions:

• shining/ flashing lights as if you were in the hole.
• screaming
• flashbacks
• festering/rotting
• gargoyles/skulls
• bass music of a heartbeat
• obscured face of attacker
• claustrophobia
• sense of being trapped
• tension between characters
• unexplained noises/occurences

Trailer for The Hole.

The Grudge

Producers: Sam Raimi, Robert Tapert

Director: Takashi Shimizu

Budget: $10,000,000

Distributors: Sony, Universal Studios

The Grudge initially confused me as it is set in Japan but is actually considered as a British film. Other areas of the film must have passed the British Culture Test. This film tells the story of a truly horrifying curse that has been bestowed in the place of a death aggravated by extreme rage and sorrow. As a person dies, this curse is passed from victim to victim and tells the story of an extreme chain of supernatural horror.

After watching the start of the film, I recognised the following:

• red credits
• red writing emphasising curse, death and fury.
• unexplained suicide
• fear of the unknown
• flickering lights
• confined spaces
• unseen attacker
• unexplained noises
• cobwebs
• eery background music
• unexplained creature/attacker

Trailer for  The Grudge.

Representation and Narrative

Representation and Narrative are key to ensuring a film is successful along with various other factors. As we are focusing on British Horror I am going to talk about representations that are shown in films which relate to both Britain and Horror. The standard way to interpret the film being British or not is by listening to the accents of the main characters. As I stated earlier when talking about the British Culture Test that the more characters that are of British origin, the more points they will receive towards their target tally of sixteen points. If you come across the main characters with a stereotypical British accent such as Cockney, Scouse, Geordie or a typical posh upper class accent then you can normally presume that the film is British.

Another focal point of representing Britishness is the weather associated with the film. If the film’s weather was hot and tropical then you would automatically assume that the film was not set in Britain. Many British films involve weather such as rain and snow to reiterate the British theme.

The Mini Cooper is a typical car that would be found in a British film. If you asked people to name a car that relates to Britain, nine out of ten people would automatically say the Mini Cooper without even thinking. The Mini was one of the quickest selling and mass produced cars in Britain’s history and is seen in Britain on a daily basis. An example of the Mini Cooper being used is in “Four Weddings and A Funeral”.

Land Rover’s and wax jackets tie in together when talking about Britishness being represented within a film. These are associated with hunting which is a common representation of Britain. Hunting was once one of Britain’s finest blood sports and is a vital part of Britain’s history.

Another easy way to interpret if a film is british or not is to look for significant landmarks that are associated with Britain. An example of these are Big Ben, The Houses Of Parliament, Tower Bridge, The London Eye and many more. If these are evident in a film then the film is more than likely to be British. An example of this is in “28 Days Later”.

Recognisable television programmes are an element that are put in films to help determine whether it is a British film or not. Dawn of the Dead involves an iconic British television programme, Big Brother, which lets the audience know where the film is set. Also, if a film involves someone watching a television programme such as the BBC, we take this as Britishness attempting to be represented.

Characters are represented in a variety of different ways in all types of films. But, in the three films I watched prior to writing this blog, there has always been the sense of a weak character. In “The Hole”, there was a character called Liz Dunn who might as well have not been at school as no one really payed any attention to her. But, as the famous saying goes, it is always the quiet one you need to watch out for. Liz Dunn, becomes this awe inspiring character that she, earlier on in the film, aspired to be. This is also evident in “The Grudge” as the weak character seems to be an elderly woman who can’t look after herself. As the film progresses, we see this character isn’t as weak as we first thought as she is misleading and is evidently the strong minded one.

List Of Events

1. The group of student filmmakers make their way to their planned setting where their ‘camp’ has been erected for their A Level project.
2. The students begin their filming and attempt to film and shoot as many planned shots for their film as possible.
3. While on a break from filming, they hear a crude scream/noise from the forest around them, and go to investigate.
4. The students then run away from the mysterious being that is following them and one of the students goes missing.
5. They then take refuge in a place they think is safe, but the noises get closer towards them.
6. One of the students is truly terrified, panics and runs away from the other students.
7. The students that runs away survives and talks to his teacher about the events that have occurred. (This is because the school now have the found footage).

For our preliminary task we decided to focus on the crime genre out of the three possibilities. We chose the crime genre as we thought it would work most effectively and we had the resources to make this genre work. Our plot was based on a police interview where the suspect had been arrested for having a large amount of drugs in his house. The drugs were found after a police search. We decided to involve two police officers as we thought we could show the “good cop, bad cop” convention that are found in many televised crime programmes. Three main skills had to be performed when filming our preliminary task. We had to show a character opening a door, show shot reverse shot and match on action. Shot reverse shot is a technique that often shows a conversation between two people. The first character is shown looking at the other character who is often off-screen and then the second character is shown looking back at the first character. The viewer gathers the fact that they are looking at each other so they must be talking to each other. Match on action occurs when action starts in one shot and continues through to the second shot. An example of this could be when someone is filmed entering a door in the first shot from outside and the second shot sees the character coming through the door from the inside. Below I have included our storyboard and a link to our preliminary task.

The beginning of the film shows a young Leonidas working his way through the harsh training environments of Spartan law. The climax of this is when the young Leonidas kills a giant wolf using a spear made by himself, after which he returns to Sparta and is crowned king. Years later, Persian messengers arrive at Sparta demanding its submission to King Xerxes. Offended by their threats and behavior, Leonidas and his guards kick the messengers down a well. Knowing that these actions will precipitate a Persian attack, Leonidas visits the Ephors, ancient priests whose blessing he needs to convince the Spartan council to authorize going to war. The Ephors consult the Oracle Pythia, who decides that Sparta must not go to war. When Leonidas leaves a messenger from Xerxes appears, rewarding the Ephors for their covert support and revealing that they have been corrupted by Xerxes.

Boldly, Leonidas follows his plan anyway, deciding to set out with only 300 soldiers. While he does not require the council’s permission for this, taking such a small force seems to be a certain suicide mission. Leonidas hopes that the sacrifice of himself and his men will spur the council to defy the Ephors and persuade all of Greece to unite against the threat to freedom and democracy from King Xerxes.

Along the way to Thermopylae, the Spartans are joined by other Greeks and the group of 300 encounter a town burning on fire, apparently caused by Persians. Only a young child is left to live. Meanwhile, Leonidas encounters Ephialtes, a hunchbacked Spartan whose parents fled Sparta to spare him certain infanticide. Ephialtes asks to redeem his father’s name by joining Leonidas, warning him of a secret path the Persians could use to outflank and surround them.Leonidas is sympathetic to the eager warrior but rejects him, as Ephialtes cannot properly hold a shield, which would compromise the Spartan’s formation.

Prior to the battle, the Persians demand that the Spartans lay down their weapons. Leonidas refuses and uses the narrow terrain to repeatedly destroy the advancing Persian army. Xerxes personally approaches Leonidas to persuade him to surrender, offering Leonidas wealth and power in exchange for his loyalty. Leonidas declines, Xerxes sends in the Immortals, whom the Spartans dispatch. As the Spartans continue to defeat Xerxes’ forces, Ephialtes defects to the Persian king and reveals the location of the secret path. When they realize Ephialtes’ treachery, the Arcadians retreat.

Leonidas orders a reluctant Aristodemus to return to Sparta to tell the Council of their sacrifice. In Sparta, Gorgo, Queen of Sparta reluctantly submits sexually to the Theron in exchange for help in persuading the Spartan council to send reinforcements to Leonidas. Theron publicly betrays the Queen prompting Gorgo to kill him out of rage, spilling open a bag of Persian coins from his robe. The exposure of Theron’s treachery, along with their Queen’s plea, prompts the Council to unite against Persia.

Meanwhile, at Thermopylae, the Persians use the goat path to surround the Spartans. Xerxes’ general demands their surrender, again offering Leonidas titles and prestige. Leonidas seemingly bows in submission, allowing one of his men to leap over him and kill the general instead. A furious Xerxes orders his troops to attack. As Persian archers shoot at the remaining Spartans, Leonidas rises and hurls his spear at Xerxes, cutting the King on the cheek. Visibly disturbed by this reminder of his own mortality, Xerxes watches as all of the Spartans are slaughtered by a massive attack of arrows.

300 world premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 14, 2007, in front of 1,700 audience members. 300 was released in theaters in the United States on March 9, 2007, and on DVD, Blu-ray, and HD DVD on July 31, 2007. The film’s opening was the 24th largest in box office history. It grossed $28,106,731 on its opening day and ended its North American opening weekend with $70,885,301, breaking the record held by Ice Age: The Meltdown for the biggest opening weekend in the month of March. The film also set a record for IMAX cinemas with a $3.6 million opening weekend.

300 generally received mixed reviews as it got a standing ovation at its world premiere but when watched later by the press, many left and some even booed at the end. Rotten tomatoes received a 60% thumbs up from their users and metacritic received a rating of 51 out of 100 from their users. As such a popular film it has been reviewed by many different types of media and critics. Some people reviewed it as “a possible redeemer of modern moviemaking” and one critic even said it left him with “a feeling of power”. Others did not seem to share the same ideas as one critic called it “as violent as Apocalypto and twice as stupid”, with another critic writing “300has one-dimensional characters who talk like professional wrestlers plugging their next feud”. Despite positive and negative reviews it is said that Mark Canton, Gianni Nunnari and Bernie Goldmann have started on a sequel meanwhile Frank Miller is writing the follow-up graphic novel.