re: movies. Have you guys seen 300?
I found 300 fairly enjoyable, but I felt that the writing didn't live up to how seriously the movie took itself. The movie was
earnest, man. The actors were completely in the moment and didn't ever seem embarrassed by yelling loudly at people two feet in front of them.
Technically it was wonderful. Amazing fight choreography, seamless effects shots (helped by the fact that every shot was basically an effects shot), decent sound, really good makeup and sets that looked otherworldly but completely fit each other. I did find some of the eviscerations to be more anatomically correct than strictly necessary.
If you know the book it is based on, the movie is essentially a shot-for-shot remake. This leads to a couple of problems, but nothing major -- just mostly you wonder why the Spartans spend so much of their day posing. Though I was familiar with it I hadn't read it, so mostly I just spent the movie mentally dividing it into 'levels' and 'boss fights,' which really really fits.
I suppose I should mention that I'm entirely incapable of turning off my meta-thought process during a movie, which both makes them much more entertaining and ruins my ability to enjoy them as they are. It's why I go to so few of them, because I can't watch Batman without wondering how much damage he's caused to the building trim of Gotham City over the years.
I guess what I'm saying is that it wasn't a bad movie. The plot is decent, the writing is decent (if hackneyed), and it looks stunning. You just can't let your mind wander to thoughts like "Xerxes' crew would totally dig on BMEzine." 'cause then you can't stop giggling and imagining their MySpace pages.