300 (2007)

Both of my parents are from villages near the ruins of ancient Sparta, where there's an imposting statue of Leonidas, so I've always known who he was.  (We've even passed by the Leonidas monument in Thermopylae, on previous trips to Greece.)

Movie poster for "300" (2007)

I saw the 1962 film "The 300 Spartans" on TV as a kid, but it wasn't until I stumbled across the first issue of Frank Miller's "300" while browsing in a comic book store in Montreal, that I took a deeper interest in the story.

I re-read those "300" comic books with my wife, prior to our first trip to Greece (we had only been dating for a couple of months).  We later included color-photocopied panels from the series in a scrapbook that we made.

Zack Snyder's film adaptation in 2007 came as a pleasant surprise.  Our twin daughters had just been born, and my wife's friend Sue kindly watched the kids while we stole a quick date night to see the film.

I was blown away by Snyder's visuals.  He really captured the look and feel of Miller's art.  I haven't yet seen the sequel "300: Rise of an Empire" from 2014, but heard it wasn't as good (I plan to see it, anyway).

Most recently, Miller published the follow-up graphic novel "Xerxes: The Fall of the House of Darius and the Rise of Alexander" in 2018, (upon which "Rise of Empire" was partly based) which I also intend to check out.

X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

I started collecting X-Men comics after the Byrne/Claremont "Dark Phoenix" story arc, (my first issue was #148 (August, 1981) "Cry, Mutant").  I followed the series for years, up until issue #230 (June, 1988) at the beginning of the team's Australian phase.

Movie poster for "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006)

I saw the first X-Men movie in 2000 in Montreal with good friends Don and Suzanne (I forgot my wallet, so Don paid for me.  I promised to pay the next time we went to the movies, although we've never seen another movie together).

A couple of years later, I rented the VHS from the Blockbuster at Westdale Mall.  My wife was initially reluctant to do so, but ended up loving it.  (I think it was the first superhero movie she ever saw, predating even "Spider-Man").

I had a trade paperback of the Dark Phoenix saga, which my wife read and enjoyed.  We saw X2 in 2003 in the VIP cinemas at the Varsity theater, and were tantalized by a glimpse of a phoenix-like shape in the closing shot of Alkali Lake.

As a result, we were pretty excited to see "The Last Stand".  It was a really busy time in our lives, and I'm pretty sure that it was the only movie we saw in theatre, that year.  Unfortunately, it wasn't that great.

Thirteen years later, I saw "Dark Phoenix" with my son, which was a much better treatment of the Dark Phoenix saga, although still flawed.  If you've never read the comic books, do yourself a favour and check them out.

Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

By 2005, I was heavily into researching the Crusades for a project I'm still working on.  Although my interests focused mainly on the Fourth Crusade, I eagerly consumed any material leading up to it, and so was very excited to learn about "Kingdom of Heaven".

Movie poster for "Kingdom of Heaven" (2005)

I saw the movie with my cousin, Jim, at the Cineplex Cinemas on the Queensway, (which had replaced our old standby, Sherway Cinemas, back in 2001).  While newer, there was a certain charm to the older cinemas, which remains lacking, today.

The film is set in the mid-1180s, and follows a fictionalized account of the career of Balian of Ibelin.  The cinematography was gorgeous, augmented by an evocative score by Harry Gregson-Williams.

Unfortunately, Orlando Bloom was badly miscast as Balian.  This was compensated for by great performances by Edward Norton as King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, Ghassan Massoud as Saladin, and Eva Green as Sibylla.

The film drew criticism for its depiction of the relationship between Christians and Muslims during the period involved, having been more influenced in reaction to contemporary events, rather than by actual historical accounts.

As with "Troy", a Director's Cut of "Kingdom of Heaven" was later released, which I thought was a much better film, and even included a mini-doc on the historical aspects "Creative Accuracy: The Scholars Speak".

Troy (2004)

I brought a copy of Homer's "Iliad" with me on a trip to Turkey back in 1996, reading along as I traveled from Istanbul to the ruins of ancient Troy, near the port city of Çanakkale, before making my way down to Bodrum (where I caught a ferry to Greece).

Movie poster for "Troy" (2004)

For years, I would return to the Iliad every June, whether through historical fiction ("The Firebrand" by Marion Zimmer Bradley"), graphic novels ("Age of Bronze" by Eric Shanower), or literary non-fiction ("The War that Killed Achilles" by Caroline Alexander).

My wife and I took my mother to see "Troy" at the Cineplex Cinemas on the Queensway in Etobicoke, shortly after it was released.  (My wife was pregnant with our son, so it was kind of like his first movie, also).

I really enjoyed the film, and was annoyed by those who complained that it wasn't the Iliad.  After all, the name of the movie is "Troy" not "The Iliad".  The idea was to depict an imagined history that might have served as the basis for the epic poem.

Brad Pitt was perfect as Achilles (he attended the screening at Cannes with Jennifer Aniston), and there were so many memorable scenes (most notably the pivotal exchange between King Priam and Achilles, in which Priam begs for the body of his son).

Years later, I ordered the Director's Cut from Amazon.  I liked both versions of the film, but then, I love anything dealing with Greek mythology.  The Homeric epics in particular are timeless, and will resonate through the ages.