Curiously, I had it in my mind that Brian Tyler had written the music for 300, indeed he seems an ideal choice, but it is in fact Tyler Bates who, disappointingly, doesn't have a brother called Master. My only previous "experience" of Bates' work is the worthless garbage he foisted upon the world for Devil's Rejects, a score so bad I only listened to half of it. Fortunately, 300 presents a wider canvas, but then so did Titus for Elliot Goldenthal, on which portions of 300 lean heavily. As Mr Southall pointed out, 300 is likely to sell in far vaster numbers with most listeners not having a clue that some of the best parts - Returns a King and Remember Us, plus hints in Come and Get Them - are almost pure Goldenthal. Mind you, 300 doesn't have quite the manic tonal shifts of Goldenthal's masterpiece (don't read my review, it's old and my view on it has improved immensely since then), but it does have spades of Zimmer-ish percussion and ethnic wailing, not to mention a dose of Horner's Troy, but then all such historical epics are just starting to sound the same these days anyway (which is probably why Yared's Troy was rejected as it doesn't and all the better for it).
As a piece of entertainment, 300 is a decent enough effort. It doesn't have some of the longeurs of Horner's Troy, but it lacks the distinctive themes of Gladiator, after which parts of the film are clearly modelled (although most historical epics these days owe more than a little to Ridley Scott's original which still remains the benchmark for the recent swathe of such movies). Having said that, Bates' work is hugely derivative and shows little personality of its own and the best parts are too similar to other, better works by significantly more talented composers. I can't find myself judging it as harshly as Mr Southall as it's not exactly a dull listen, but as a disposable piece of overblown derivative nonsense, it fits the bill nicely. Like the movie. For those who are interested, the Amazon page has an interview with Bates and director Zack Snyder where they discuss the score. Goldenthal, Zimmer and Horner don't get a mention. Quelle surprise!
Rating ~ Total Time ~ 59:54
300 is every gay historical epic lover's wet dream; men with improbably pert pecs, six packs and little leather skirts, leaping about athletically and stabbing each other in heroic combat, with orating in the breaks to forward the plot. There are some equally busty women, but 300 is really all about the men. Mind you, the Spartan ideology of freedom seems to come at the immense cost of ethnic cleansing its own people (throwing out the babies that are less attractive than the placenta) and sending teenagers to fight scarily thin, but terrifying looking wolves. Still, as long as the Spartans are free, then that's all peachy. As Matt and Trey say in the song, Freedom Isn't Free. Still, the comic book come to life style of the movie is terrific entertainment with the kind of old fashioned acting which is all charisma and screen presence, not character building or depth; Gerard Butler almost making up for his abominable turn in the utterly dreadful movie version of ALW's Phantom of the Opera.
