Just got back from the movie. HOLY SHIT
I intended on going to the 10:15 showing, and got there around 9:35. Once I drove past the window I could see a massive amount of people in line. At first I thought they were there to see something else, but rather quickly it became clear that the majority of the crowd was there for 300. The 10:15 showing was sold out, so I had to go to the 10:45. The crowd was huge, and luckily I was first in line to pick the best seat (middle seat in the middle row=you see everything). People laughed at the funny lines and actually cheered during some scenes (like the one where the queen shows her Spartan side, with a sword). On a funny note...there was this guy sniffing throughout some of the movie. It was mainly audable during the more quiet, emotional parts of the movie. Because of this it sounded like he was crying or something. So out of nowhere this dude right behind me yells out.
Dude: NO CRYING ALLOWED IN SPARTA
Sniffling Guy: I have a cold mother****er
Dude: THIS IS MADNESS
I felt the movie was amazing. I went in expecting an extremely gratuitous, over the top epic and that's what I got. What I was most surpised at was that the acting and dialogue wasn't nearly as cheesy as I expected. Like many fantasty epics, the movie is full of various speeches, and all of them are great.
But I didn't go to the movie for speeches, I went for the AWESOME-ness. The action was simply amazing. I loved the slow motion mechanics used throughout the movie. All of the battles are not slow motion, though: there is a nice mix between some more shaky cam sequences and some slow motion sequences; clearly the slow motion sequences are featured more. The battle with the Immortals (and that giant thing) was truly the highlight of the action for me. Perfectly executed
I never read the graphic novel so I don't know how truthful it was to the source material, but I found it to be rather truthful to various facets of history. The way the Spartans fought was pretty damn accurate, and seeing it brought to life was quite impressive.
Overall I found the movie to be just what I was looking for: a BADASS kick in the balls. The action was tight, the story was badass, and the music was very good. Perhaps my only complaints outside of the dramatic acting (which I anticipated) was the lack of character development. I love watching epics like Jason and the Argonauts or Clash of the Titans, and these movies usually introduce a cast of characters who you can't help but root for and hope they survive. While this was done with a couple characters to a certain degree, I would have liked to see more.