Frank Miller - Lynn Varley : 300

Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book artist and writer best known for his dark, film noir-style comic book stories and graphic novels Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300. He also directed the film version of The Spirit, shared directing duties with Robert Rodriguez on Sin City and produced the film 300.

Lynn Varley is an award-winning colorist, notable for her collaborations with her former husband, comic book writer/artist Frank Miller, whom she divorced in 2005.
Varley colored other Miller books, including Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again, Elektra Lives Again, and Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot (with Geoff Darrow). She also colored the backgrounds for the 300 movie (2007), produced by Miller.

300 is a historically-inspired 1998 comic book mini series, released as a hardcover collection in 1999 .
In Greece , this comic was published in 1999 in 5 different parts and then, as a complete comic book in August 1999 .

Part 1. Honor. April 1999

Part 2. Duty. May 1999




Part 3. Glory. June 1999

Part 4. Combat. July 1999

Part 5. Victory. Aug. 1999

Written and illustrated by Frank Miller with painted colors by Varley,the comic is a fictional retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae and the events leading up to it from the perspective of Leonidas of Sparta.
300 was particularly inspired by the 1962 film The 300 Spartans, a movie that Miller watched as a young boy.
In 2007, 300 was adapted by director Zack Snyder into a successful film.

Every page of the comic was illustrated as a double-page spread. When the series was gathered into hardcover form, the individual pages were twice as wide as a normal comic.
Miller's art style for this project was similar to his " Sin City " work, although the addition of consistent color is an obvious difference.

300 was initially published as a monthly five-issue comic book limited series by Dark Horse Comics, the first issue published in May 1998.
The issues were titled Honor, Duty, Glory, Combat and Victory.
The series won three Eisner Awards in 1999: "Best Limited Series", "Best Writer/Artist" for Frank Miller and "Best Colorist" for Lynn Varley. The work was collected as a hardcover volume in 1999.

THE STORY

In 480 BC, King Leonidas of Sparta gathers 300 of his best men to fight the upcoming Persian invasion.
In what is likely a suicide mission, they and their allies plan to stop King Xerxes' invasion of Greece at the narrow cliffs of the "Hot Gates" (Thermopylae). The terrain prevents the Greeks from being overwhelmed by Xerxes' superior numbers.

Before the battle starts, Ephialtes, a deformed Spartan, begs Leonidas to let him fight but is rejected due to his hunchbacked form, which prevents him from lifting his shield high enough to be of use for the phalanx.
The Spartans and their allies successfully hold off the Persians for two days and nights.

During a break in the fighting, Xerxes meets with Leonidas and offers wealth and power in exchange for his surrender. Leonidas declines, and battle continues. In his depression, Ephialtes betrays the Greeks by telling the Persians about the existence of a small pass that allows Xerxes to attack them from behind.

Learning of the Persian maneuvers, the Greeks realize their position is indefensible, but the Spartans and a few others refuse to retreat. Before engaging the Persians for the last time, Leonidas orders one Spartan (Dilios) to leave, so that he might survive to tell their story.

On the third day Xerxes has the Spartans surrounded, their remaining allies (Thespians) already dead. He gives Leonidas one final chance to surrender and kneel to him. After some hesitation, Leonidas finally complies and throws down his arms. This, however, is a trick by Leonidas, and signals the Spartans to fight. Leonidas throws his spear at Xerxes, intending to make the "God-King" bleed, and succeeds. The Spartans are killed to the last man by arrows.

The story then shifts about a year later and ends as now-Captain Dilios relates the heroic sacrifice of Leonidas and his Spartan comrades to his troops before the historic Battle of Plataea.

THE FILM

300 is a 2007 American film adapted from a graphic novel of the same name by Frank Miller, a fictionalized retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae. The film was directed by Zack Snyder, while Miller served as executive producer and consultant. It was filmed mostly with a super-imposition chroma key technique, to help replicate the imagery of the original comic book.

King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) leads 300 Spartans into battle against Persian "god-King" Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro) and his army of more than one million soldiers. As the battle rages, Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey) attempts to rally support in Sparta for her husband. The story is framed by a voice-over narrative by the Spartan soldier Dilios (David Wenham). Through this narrative technique, various fantastical creatures are introduced, placing 300 within the genre of historical fantasy.

300 was released in both conventional and IMAX 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, although critics were divided over its look and style. Some acclaimed it as an original achievement, while others criticized it for favoring visuals over characterization and its controversial depiction of the ancient Persians.
( Info from Wiki )

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