300 (2006) (continued)

            In addition to these stereotypes, there is also the fact that in the movie the Spartans are portrayed as the brave soldiers who are full of justice while the Persians are portrayed as the “evil side” (Borza). This flattering portrayal of the Spartans is not true as “they were always conquering neighbouring areas to build their slave labor” (“300: The Movie Vs Real Life”). Through the inaccurately glowing portrayal of the Spartans in the movie 300, the movie gives a major bias to the viewers on how they view both sides of the battle, and how they see the Persian side to be the cruel, and unnecessarily vicious side. In addition to this bias, is how the ancient Iranian women are portrayed as sexual objects as they dance around the throne room of Xerxes which is very inaccurate as many Iranian women were priestesses, guardians, and even warriors (Farrokh). This contrasts with how the women of Sparta are accurately portrayed as strong bold individuals in society. They were even allowed to own property (“Women in Sparta”). The way in which the directors showed the strong women of Sparta and portrayed the Spartan soldiers as valiant and right as opposed to the way in which they inaccurately depicted the ancient Iranian women, and in how they portrayed the Persians as tyrants is a way for them to make the battle that the movie is portraying more interesting with the idea of a “villain”. Throughout the movie, the directors also use stereotypical ideas of groups of people to depict certain characters, therefore being heavily historically bias.

 

        Overall, while the movie 300 has many accurate parts such as the battle it is based on, and the fact that many of the historical figures included in the movies were real people, it also has many historical inaccuracies, and employs many aspects of bias. The directors of the movie consistently portray the Spartans as the “good guys” of the film, and the Persians as the “bad guys” of the battle, which changes the viewers' perception of the movie, and goes along with the accepted idea of Spartans being strong and brave. The fact that the movie is based off of a comic book also influences the movie in how the soldiers are portrayed as bare chested warriors, which makes them seem more immune to the violence around them. In addition to this, the directors left out the part where the 300 Spartans were joined by other forces to fight the Persian armies, making the inaccurate idea of there being only 300 soldiers against Xerxes’ vast army more impressive and dramatic. Through these ways, the directors of the movie change the movie around so that it is not fully historically accurate to make the movie more appealing to the movie’s viewers, using common accepted ideas of certain ethnic groups and historical bias.