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Rating: 3.7/5
Review: "300: Rise of an empire movie review"

After the big hit Zack Snyder's 300 made in 2007, it took a long time for another movie to be released. Fast forward to 2014 where the anticipated but somehow a bit unnecessary sequel is released. However it is not actually entirely a sequel as it is happening during and after the event of 300. It is also a prequel as the opening scene features Xerxes on becoming who he is. 300: Rise of an empire is as entertaining as what 300 sets out to be; bloody action-packed entertainment.

The story: This is a prequel and sequel. The movie opens with Xerxes becoming the powerful king. And then the most of movie takes place during the event of 300. The movie even adds in scenes from 300 to make the whole story flows. The stylised slo-mo action scenes are still retained however the blood spatter seems worse. The CGI blood spatter looks low-budget. There are more action this time round and interestingly most of them take place in the raging sea. This has a better climax featuring an all-out battle scene accompanied by the pumping score. It seems that nudity is also a tradition in 300. This amps up by having a rough sex scene. Acting wise is alright. 300 takes the look of six packs more seriously than acting. Sullivan Stapleton, the new main lead, does an okay job aside from showing his six packs. Eva Green plays the deliciously evil and ruthless main villain, Artemisia. Lena Headey and Rodrigo Santoro, who play Queen Gorgo and Xerxes respectively, have limited screen time to make any impact. The pumping and epic score by Junkie XL is good.

Overall: Fans of 300 will definitely watch this. This more or less is almost the same as the first one. Delivering highly stylised bloody slo-mo action is the strong point of the franchise. I'm sure it is not a spoiler that it is hinted to have a third movie. By the look of its decent box office, it won't be a surprise if the third one is released in the near future. But let's hope that it can deliver something new without being tired.

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