300 & Tactics

[Tladatsi]

I watched the movie 300 last night. There is a scene where the King explains to a hunch-backed Spartan why he cannot fight with them. He cannot hold his shield up the proper way so that he can be part of a phalanx. The King explains that the strength of the Spartan soldier is his comrades working together as team, each supporting and protecting the others (which is true enough). In the first battle sequence that is exactly what they do. It was very interesting to see real hoplite tactics in use.

(Of course the rest of the movie they do the exact opposite, fighting separately and individually outside of the phalanx, completely undercutting what the King told the hunchback.)

[Nicholas]

I watched the movie 300 last night. There is a scene where the King explains to a hunch-backed Spartan why he cannot fight with them. He cannot hold his shield up the proper way so that he can be part of a phalanx. The King explains that the strength of the Spartan soldier is his comrades working together as team, each supporting and protecting the others (which is true enough). In the first battle sequence that is exactly what they do. It was very interesting to see real hoplite tactics in use.

(Of course the rest of the movie they do the exact opposite, fighting separately and individually outside of the phalanx, completely undercutting what the King told the hunchback.)

Are you asking a question or simply making an observation?

[Tladatsi]

Are you asking a question or simply making an observation?

Just an observation.

(BTW, open the pod bay doors Hal)

[Nicholas]

Just an observation.


Just checking. I'm always happy to put what I'm learning in college as a history major to good use :teeth:


(BTW, open the pod bay doors Hal)

I'm afraid I can't do that Dave...

[Darth Executor]

(Of course the rest of the movie they do the exact opposite, fighting separately and individually outside of the phalanx, completely undercutting what the King told the hunchback.)

That's precisely what I was thinking. One more reason to skip over the stupid story part and just watch the fight scenes.

[Paintbucket]

Well, there were more than the 300 Spartans at the battle. And the phalanx was the standard tatics of the day, as it was solid defensively and could quickly convert to offense. But then again, this was a movie.

[Nicholas]

I was just able to see the movie (I waited to check out the DVD from the library) and it was not as exciting as I thought it would be. I was impressed that they managed to stick a few actual historical truths in the movie, but alot of it was just silly.

[Paintbucket]

It was for Hollywood, not history. I liked it anyway, but it was grossly inaccurate.

[Spinyn00bman]

WHAT?? No large animals took part in the battle??
























:wink:

[Nicholas]

It was for Hollywood, not history. I liked it anyway, but it was grossly inaccurate.

I expect that, but I like to pick apart movies as if I were my own Mystery Science Theatre 3000.

I need to watch some more of those sometime...

[I-am-batman]

yeah, there were some innacuracies, I don't know a whole lot about it, but I know closer to the begining they did take the phanlax style, which I know that was what they did, but then they all started to do their own thing... and it got weird after that.... But still entertaining as a movie.

[Tladatsi]

Well, there were more than the 300 Spartans at the battle. And the phalanx was the standard tatics of the day, as it was solid defensively and could quickly convert to offense. But then again, this was a movie.

Yeah, I try not to hung up on historical accuracy too much. The problem has more to do with story development. The story really hinges on the hunchback who betrays the Spartans and shows the Persians the route around Thermopylae. He wants to fight with the Spartans but the King won't let him because his physical disabilities prevent him from fighting in a phalanx, specifically, interlocking the shields. This is quite true, the key to the success of the phalanx was the teamwork of the soldiers/hoplites, making their shields one, thrusting their spears together. Desperate to be soldier, he joins the Persian army (which had, ironically, tens of thousands of Greeks from Ionia and Aolia). For him, it was better to fight as a soldier with any army.

However, when the movie abandons this fighting style, then the whole plot device collapses. Why not let the hunchback fight? No one else is fighting as team, why not let him as well? My annoyance is with the how this undercuts the key element of the storyline. Whether it was historically accurate is beside the point.

Imagine a version of Hamlet where it turns out that his uncle did not really kill his father. There is no play.

[Paintbucket]

Mystery Science Theater 3000 is always good.

A Hamlet with out killing Claudius? That would give Freud a fit to analyze...