When the boy was born

like old Spartans
he was inspected.

lf he had been small
or puny or sickly or misshapen

he would've been discarded.

From the time he could stand, he was
baptized in the fire of combat.

Taught never to retreat,
never to surrender,

taught that death on the battlefield
in service to Sparta

is the greatest glory he could
achieve in his life.

At age seven, as
is customary in Sparta.

the boy was taken from his mother
and plunged in a world of violence.

Manufactured by 300 years,
a Spartan warrior society

to create the finest soldiers
the world has ever known.

The agoge is its goal.

lt forces the boy to fight,
starves him.

lt forces him to steal.

And, if necessary,
to kill.

By rod and lash,
the boy was punished.

Taught to show no pain,
no mercy.

Hunts to be tested,
tossed into the wild.

Let to pit his wits and will
against nature's fury.

lt was his initiation.
His time in the wild.

For he would return
to his people as Spartan

or not at all.

The wolf begins
to circle the boy.

Claws of black steel
burned this dark night.

Eyes glowing red,
jewels from the pit of hell itself.

The giant wolf sniffing,

savoring the scent
of the meal to come.

lt's not fear that grips him,

only a heightened
sense of things.

The cold air in his lungs.

Winds swept pines,
moving against the coming night.

His hands are steady.

His form... perfect.

And so the boy, given up for dead,
returns to his people.

To sacred Sparta, a king.
Our king!

Leonidas!

lt's been more than 30 years
since the wolf and the winter cold.

Now, as then, a beast approaches.

Patient and confident,
savoring the meal to come.

This beast is made of men
and horses, swords and spears.

An army of slaves,
vast beyond imagining,

ready to devour tiny Greece.

Ready to snuff out the world's
one hope for reason and justice.

A beast approaches.

lt was King Leonidas himself
who provoked it.

Subtitled by Mihai

300- Heroes of Thermopylae

My father taught me
that fear is always a constant.

By accepting it,

it makes you stronger.

My queen.

The Persian emissary
awaits Leonidas.

ln the end, the Spartan's true strength
is the warrior next to him.

So give respect and honor to him.
lt will be returned to you.

First, you fight with your head.

Then you fight with your heart.

What is it?

lt's the Persian messenger.
He awaits you.

Do not forget today's lesson.

- Respect and honour.
- Respect and honour.

Councilman Theron,
you found yourself needed for once.

My king and queen,
l was just entertaining your guests.

l'm sure.

Before you speak, Persian,
know that in Sparta

everyone, even a King's messenger,
is held accountable

for the words of his voice.

Now, what message
do you bring?

Earth and water.

You rode all the way from Persia
for earth and water?

Do not be coy or stupid, Persian.
You can afford neither in Sparta.

What makes this woman think
she can speak amongst men?

Because only Spartan women
give birth to real men.

Let us walk
to cool our tongues.

lf you value your lives
over your complete annihilation,

listen carefully, Leonidas.

xerxes conquers and controls everything
he rests his eyes upon.

He leads an army so massive
it shakes the ground with its march.

So vast it drinks
the rivers dry.

All the God-King xerxes
requires is this.

A simple offering of earth
and water.

A token of Sparta's submission
to the will of xerxes.

Submission?

Well, that's a bit of a problem.

See, rumor has it the Athenians
have already turned you down.

And if those philosophers and boy-lovers
have found that kind of nerve...

We must be diplomatic.

And of course, Spartans...

...have their reputation
to consider.

Choose your next words
carefully, Leonidas.

They may be your last
as king.

Earth and water.

Madman.
You're a madman.

Earth and water.
You'll find plenty of both down there.

No man, Persian or Greek...
No man threatens a messenger.

You bring your crowns and heads
of conquered kings to my city steps.

You insult my queen.

You threaten my people
with slavery and death.

Oh, l've chosen my words
carefully, Persian.

Perhaps you should
have done the same.

This is blasphemy.
This is madness.

Madness?

This is Sparta!

Welcome, Leonidas.

We have been expecting you.

The ephors.
Priests to the old gods.

lnbred swine,
more creature than man.

Creatures whom even Leonidas
must bribe and beg.

No Spartan king has gone to war
without the ephors' blessing.

The Persians claim their forces
number in the milions.

l hope, for our sake,
they exaggerate.

But there's no question we face
the most masive army ever assembled.

Before your plan is heard,
what do you offer?

We will use our superior
fighting skills,

and the terrain of Greece itself
to destroy them.

We will march north,
to the coast.

- We'll make sure...
- lt is august, Leonidas.

The full moon approaches.

Tha sacred and ancient festival.

Sparta wages no war
at the time of the Carneia.

Sparta will burn!

Our men will die armed

and your women
and children will be slaves or worse.

Now, we will block
the Persian coastal assault,

by rebuilding the great
Phocian wall.

From now, we will funnel them
into the mountain pass

we call The Hot Gates.

Now, in that narrow corridor,
their numbers will count for nothing.

Wave after wave of Persian attack
would smash against Spartan shields.

xerxes' losses will be so great,
his men so demoralized

he will have no choice
but to abandon his campaign.

We must consult the Oracle.

Trust the gods, Leonidas.

l'd prefer you trusted
your reason.

Your blasphemies have cost us
quite enough already.

Don't compound them.

We will consult the Oracle.

Diseased old mystics.

Worthless remnants
of the time

before Sparta's ascent
from darkness.

Remnants of a senseless
tradition.

A tradition even Leonidas
cannot defy.

For he must respect
the word of the ephors.

That is the law.

And no Spartan,
subject or citizen,

man or woman, slave or king
is above the law.

The ephors choose only
the most beautiful Spartan girls

to live amongst them
as oracles.

Their beauty is their curse.

For the old wretches
have the needs of men...

...and souls as black as hell.

Pray to the winds.

Sparta will fall.

All Greece will fall.

Trust not in men.

Honor the gods.

Honor the Carneia.

The king's climb down
is harder.

Pompous, inbred swine.

Worthless, diseased, rotten.

Corrupt.

Truly you're in the God King's
favor now.

Oh, wise and holy men.

Yes.

And when Sparta burns,
you shall bathe in gold.

Fresh oracles shall be delivered
to you daily,

from every corner
of the Empire.

Your lips gonna finish
what your fingers have started.

Has the oracle rogued you
of your desire as well?

lt will take more than the words
of a drunken adolescent girl

to rogue me of my desire
for you.

Then why is it distant?

Because it seems now
l'am a...

...slave and captive
of luxurious old men.

The oracle's words can set fire
to all that l love.

So that is why my king
loses sleep

and is forced from
the warmth of his bed?

There's only
one woman's words

that should affect
the mood of my husband.

Those are mine.

Then what must a king do
to save his world

when the very laws he has sworn
to protect force him to do nothing.

lt is not a question of what
a Spartan citizen should do,

nor a husband, nor a king.

lnstead ask yourself,
my dearest love:

What should a free man do?

- This is all of them?
- As you ordered. 300.

All with born sons
to carry on their name.

We are with you, sire.
For Sparta, for freedom.

To the death.

He is your son.

He is too young
to have felt a woman's warmth.

l have others to replace him.

Astinos is as brave
and ready as any.

No younger than we were the first time
you stood next to me in battle.

You are a good friend.

But a better captain...
There is none.

My good king.

My good king,
the oracle has spoken.

The ephors have spoken.
There must be no march.

lt is the law, my lord.

The Spartan army must
not go to war.

Nor shall it.

l've issued no such orders.

l'm here just taking
a stroll, stretching my legs.

These 300 men are
my personal bodyguard.

- Our army will stay in Sparta.
- Where will you go?

l hadn't really thought
about it, but l...

...now that you ask,
l suppose l'll head north.

The Hot Gates.

Move out!

Move out!

What shall we do?

- What can we do?
- What can you do?

Sparta will need sons.

Spartan!

Yes, my lady?

Come back with your shield
or on it.

Yes, my lady.

Goodbye, my love.

He doesn't say it.

There's no room for softness,
not in Sparta.

No place for weakness.

Only the hard and strong
may call themselves Spartans.

Only the hard, only the strong.

We march.

For our lands, for our families,
for our freedoms.

We march.

Daxos, what a pleasant surprise.

This morning is full
of surprises, Leonidas.

We've been tricked.
Can't be more than a few hundred.

- This is a surprise.
- Silence!

We heard Sparta
was on the warpath.

We were eager to join forces.

lf it is blood you seek,
you're welcome to join us.

But you bring only this handful
of soldiers against xerxes?

l see l was wrong to expect Sparta's
commitment to at least match our own.

Doesn't it?

You there.

- What is your profession?
- l'm a potter, sir.

And you, Arcadian, what
is your profession?

- Sculptor, sir.
- Sculptor.

- And you?
- Blacksmith.

Spartans, what is your profession?

See, old friend?

l brought more soldiers
than you did.

No sleep tonight.

Not for the king.

All his forty years
have been a straight road

to this one gleaming
moment in destiny.

This one radiant clash
of shield and spear,

sword and boone
and flesh and blood.

His only regret is that he has
so few to sacrifice.

We're being followed.

lt has followed us since Sparta.

My king, look!

What happened here?

Where are all the people?

Persians.

l put their number around 20.

Scouted path.

But these footprints.

Leonidas.

Child.

lt's quiet now.

They came with mist
from the blackness.

With their claws and fangs
they grabbed us.

Everyone... but me.

The villagers... They found them.

Have the gods no mercy?

We are doomed.

Quiet yourself.

The child speaks
of the Persian ghosts.

Known from the ancient times.

They are the hunters
of men souls.

They cannot be killed
or defeated.

Not this darkness.

Not these lmmortals.

lmmortals?

We'll put their name
to the test.

lnto the Hot Gates we march.

lnto that narrow corridor
we march.

Where xerxes' numbers
count for nothing.

Spartans, citizen soldiers,
freed slaves.

Brave Greeks all.

Brothers, fathers, sons.

We march.

For honor's sake, for duty's sake,
for glory's sake, we march.

Look!

Persians.

lnto hell's mouth, we march.

That's our seas,
motherless dogs,

as they're embraced by the loving
arms of Greece itself.

Come.

True.

lt does look like rain.

Zeus stabs the skies
with thunderbolts.

And batters the Persian ships
with hurricane wind.

Glorious.

Only one amongst us
keeps his Spartan reserve.

Only he.

Only our king.

My queen.

My queen, the courtyard is
no fitting place for a married woman.

l'm afraid gossip and protocol are
the least of my worries now, councilman.

Such secrecy needed.

How am l to trust
beyond the walls of my own home?

Even here, Theron has eyes and ears
which fuel Sparta with doubt and fear.

You speak as if all Sparta
conspires against you.

l wish they were
only against me.

Many on our council would vote
to give all we have

and follow Leonidas.

But you must show them favor.

And you can arrange me
to speak to the council?

lf it is reason they want,
l will let them know.

Know what, my queen?

Freedom isn't free at all.

That it comes with
the highest of costs.

The cost of blood.

l will do my best to gather
our council

and its chambers shall be filled
with your voice.

- l'm in your debt.
- Nope.

Leonidas is my king
as well as yours.

l saw those ships
smash on the rocks.

How can this be?

We saw but a fraction of the monster
that is xerxes' army.

There can be no victory here.

Why do you smile?

Arcadian, l've fought
countless times

yet l've never met an adversary
that could offer me

what we Spartans call
a beautiful death.

l can only hope,

with all the world's warriors
gathered against us,

there might be one down there
who's up to the task.

Move!

Keep going, you dogs.

Move!

Forward l say.

Stop here!

Who commands here?

l am the emissary
to the ruler of all the world.

The god of gods.

King of kings.

And by that authority, l demand that
someone show me your commander.

Listen. Do you think the paltry
dozen you slew scares us?

These hills swarm
with our scouts.

And do you think your
pathetic wall

will do anything except fall

like a heap of dry leaves
in the face...

Our ancestors built this wall,

using ancient stones
from the bosom of Greece herself.

And with a little Spartan help,

your Persian scouts
supplied the mortar.

You will pay for your
barbarism.

My arm!

lt's not yours anymore.

Go now. Run along and tell your
xerxes he faces free men here.

Not slaves.
Do it quickly.

Before we decide to make our wall
just a little bit bigger.

No, not slaves.

Your women will be slaves.

Your sons, your daughters,
your elders

will be slaves, but not you.

By noon this day,
you will be dead men.

A thousand nations of the
Persian Empire descend upon you.

Our arrows will blot out the sun.

Then we will fight in the shade.

The wall is solid.

lt'll do the job of funneling
the Persians into the Hot Gates.

Captain, have the men found any route
through the hills to our back?

None, sire.

There is such a route,
good king.

Just past that western ridge.

lt's an old goat path.

The Persians could use it
to outflank us.

Not one step closer.

Monster!

Wise king, l humbly request
an audience.

l'll skewer you where
you stand.

l gave no such order.

Forgive the captain.
He's a good soldier.

But a bit short on manners.

There is nothing
to forgive, brave king.

l know what l look like.

You wear the crimson of a Spartan.

l am Ephialtes,
born of Sparta.

My mother's love led
my parents to flee Sparta

lest l be discarded.

But your shield?

And armor?

My father's, sir.

l beg you, bold king,

to permit me to redeem
my father's name

by serving you
in combat.

My father trained me
to feel no fear.

To make spear and shield
and sword as much a part of me

as my own beating heart.

l will earn my father's armor,
noble king,

by serving you
in the battle.

Fine thrust.

l will kill many Persians.

- Raise your shield.
- Sire?

Raise your shield
as high as you can.

Your father should have told you
how our phalanx works.

We fight as a single,
impenetrable unit.

That is the source
of our strength.

Each Spartan protects
the man to his left,

from thigh to neck,
with his shield.

A single weakspot
and the phalanx shatters.

From thigh to neck, Ephialtes.

l am sorry, my friend.

But not all of us are made
to be soldiers.

But l...

lf you want to help
at a Spartan victory...

- Yes?
- Clear the battlefield of the dead.

Tend to wounded,
bring them water.

Why?

But as for the fight itself,
l cannot use you.

Mother, father,
you were wrong.

You are wrong, Leonidas.

You are wrong.

Dispatch the Phocians
to the goat path.

Pray to the gods nobody
tells the Persians about it.

Earthquake.

No, Captain.

Battle formations.

This is where we hold them.

This is where we fight.

This is where they die!

On these shields, boys!

Remember this day, men,

for it will be yours
for all time.

Spartans, lay down
your weapons!

Persians!

Come and get them!

Hold!

Give them nothing.

But take from them everything.

Stay ready.

That's the best you can do?

Push!

Now!

Push!

No prisoners!

No mercy!

They look thirsty.

Well, let's give them
something to drink.

To the cliffs.

Hold!

A hell of a good start!

Tuck tail!

Persian cowards.

What the hell are you
laughing at?

We had to say it.

- What?
- We fight in the shade.

Recover.

Today, no Spartan dies.

Easy, son.

We do what we were
trained to do.

What we were bred to do.
What we were born to do.

No prisoners, no mercy.

A good start.

l was afraid you might
not come.

- l'm sorry, my son is...
- ls doing what children do best.

Please don't apologize.

Your son starts the agoge
next year.

That is always a difficult
time for a Spartan mother.

Yes, it will be hard
but also necessary.

You will speak before
the council in two days time.

My husband does not have
two days.

Think of the two days
as a gift.

lt's no secret.

Theron wants what you control.
lt's his voice you must silence.

Make him your ally
and you will have your victory.

Thank you.

You are wise as you are kind.

Ah, there's your mother.

You should keep a better eye
on him if he is to be king one day.

lt would be unfortunate
if anything were to happen to him.

Or to his beautiful mother.

Our Greek comrades are begging
for a crack at the Persians, sire.

Good. l have something
l think they can handle.

Tell Daxos l want him

and 20 of his best,
eager, sober,

ready for the next job.

King Leonidas!

- Stelios, catch your breath, boy.
- Yes, my lord.

The Persians are approaching.

A small contingent.
Too small for an attack.

Captain, l'll leave you in charge.

- But, sire...
- Relax, old friend.

lf they assasinate me,
all of Sparta goes to war.

Pray they're that stupid.

Besides...

...there's no reason
we can't be civil.

ls there?

None, sire.

Let me guess.

You must be xerxes.

Come, Leonidas.

Let us reason together.

lt would be a regrettable waste.

lt would be nothing
short of madness,

were you, brave king, and your
valiant troops to perish.

All because of a simple
misunderstanding.

There is much our cultures
could share.

Haven't you noticed we've been sharing
our culture with you all morning?

Yours is a fascinating tribe.

Even now you are defiant,
in the face of annihilation.

ln the presence of the god, it isn't
wise to stand against me, Leonidas.

lmagine what horrible fate
awaits my enemies

when l will gladly kill
any one of my own men for victory.

And l would die
for any one of mine.

You Greeks take pride
in your logic.

l suggest you employ it.

Consider the beautiful lands
you so vigorously defend.

Picture it reduced to ash
at my will.

Consider the fate of your women.

Clearly, you don't know our women.

l might as well have marched
them up here,

judging by what l've seen.

You have many slaves,
xerxes,

but few warriors.

lt won't be long
before they fear my spears...

...more than your whips.

lt's not the lash they fear.

lt is my divine power.
But l'm a generous god.

l can make you rich beyond
all measure.

l will make you warlord
of all Greece.

You'll carry my battle standard
to the heart of Europa.

Your Athenian rivals
will kneel at your feet.

lf you will but kneel at mine.

You are generous...

...as you are divine.

King of kings. Such an offer
only a madman would refuse.

But the...

...the idea of kneeling it's...
you see...

Slaughtering of all those men of yours
has left a nasty cramp in my legs.

So kneeling will be hard
for me.

There will be no glory
in your sacrifice.

l will erase even the memory
of Sparta from the histories.

Every piece of Greek parchment
shall be burned.

Every Greek historian
and every scribe

shall have their eyes spun out
and their tongues cut from their mouths

whilst honoring the very name of Sparta
or Leonidas will be punishable by death.

The world will never know
you existed at all.

The world will know that free men
stood against a tyrrant.

That few stood against many.

And before this battle was over,
that even a God King can bleed.

You fought well today.

For a woman.

As did you.

Maybe you've been injured,
you weren't able to keep up with me.

Perhaps l was so far ahead,
you couldn't see me.

Or were you offering
your backside to the Thespians.

Jealousy...

...is not becoming my friend.

Move it, men!

Pile those Persians high.

For unless l miss my guess...

...we're in for one wild night.

They have served the dark will
of Persian kings for 500 years.

Eyes as dark as night.

Teeth filed to fangs.

Soulless.

The personal guard
to king xerses himself.

The Persian warrior elite.

The deadliest fighting
force in all of Asia.

The lmmortals.

The God King has betrayed
a fatal flaw.

Hybris.

Easy to taunt.
Easy to trick.

Before wounds and weariness
have taken their toll,

the mad king throws
the best he has at us.

xerxes has taken the bait.

Spartans, push!

lmmortals.

They put their name
to the test.

Father!

My king!

Arcadians, now!

Go!

Let's show the Spartans
what we can do.

Go!

They shout and curse,
stabbing wildly,

more brawlers
than warriors.

They make a wondrous
mess of things.

Brave amateurs.
They do their part.

lmmortals.

They failed our kings' test.

And a man who fancies
himself a god...

...feels a very human chill
crawl up his spine.

For our king!

And our honored dead!

Whom will xerxes dare
to send next?

There's nothing
that can stop us now.

Even the king allows himself
to hope for more than glory.

Such mad hope.
But there it is.

Against Asian endless hordes,
against all odds,

we can do it,
we can hold the Hot Gates.

We can win.

Dawn.

Whips crack.

Barbarians howl.

Those behind cry: ''Forward''!

Those in front cry:
''Back''.

Our eyes bear witness
to the grotesque spectacle

called forth from the darkest
corners of xerxes' Empire.

When muscles failed,
they turned to their magic.

One hundred nations
descend upon us.

The armies of all Asia.

Funneled into this narrow corridor,

their numbers count
for nothing.

They fall by the hundreds.

We send the severed bodies
and the fragile hearts

back to xerxes' feet.

King xerxes is displeased
with his generals.

He disciplines them.

xerxes dispatches his monsters
from half a world away.

They're clumsy beasts.

And the pile of Persian dead
is slippery.

- You still here?
- Someone is got to watch your back.

Well, now, l'm a little busy.

Regroup!

Astinos, my son!

Astinos!

No!

The day wears on.

We lose few...

...but each felled is a friend
or dearest blood.

And upon seeing the headless
body of his own young son,

the captain breaks rank.

He goes wild, blood drunk.

Captain's cries of pain
at the loss of his son

are more frightening to the enemy
than the deepest battle drums.

lt takes three men
to restrain him

and bring him back
to our own.

The day is ours.

No songs are sung.

Your gods were cruel
to shape you so, friend Ephialtes.

The Spartans, too,
were cruel to reject you.

But l am kind.

Everything you could
ever desire.

Every happiness you can imagine.

Every pleasure your fellow Greeks
and your false gods have denied you.

l will grant you.

For l am kind.

Embrace me as your king
and as your god.

Yes!

Lead my soldiers
to the hidden path

that empties behind
the cursed Spartans,

and your joys will be endless.

Yes, l want it all.

Wealth, women.

And one more thing.

l want an uniform.

Done.

You will find
that l am kind.

Unlike the cruel Leonidas
that demanded that you stand,

l require only that you kneel.

Beautiful night.

Yes, but l did not ask you here
for small talk, Theron.

l'm assured of that.

You've never spared
words with me.

Can l offer you something?
A drink perhaps?

ls it poison?

Sorry to disappoint you,
it's only water.

l'm told it's been arranged
for you to go before the council.

Yes.

l need your help

in winning votes to send
the army north to our king.

Yes.

l can see the two of us
standing together.

Me, politician, thou, warrior.
Our voices as one.

But why would l want
to do that?

lt proves you care
for a king

who, right now, fights
for the very water we drink.

True.

But this is politics,
not war.

- Leonidas is an idealist.
- l know your kind too well.

You send men to slaughter
for your own gain.

Your husband, our king, has taken
300 of our finest to slaughter.

He's broken our laws and left
without the council's consent.

- l'm simply a realist.
- You're an opportunist.

You're as foolish as Leonidas

if you think men
don't have a price in this world.

All men are not created equal.
That's the Spartan code, my little queen.

l admire your passion.

But don't think that you,
a woman, even a queen,

can walk into the council's chamber
and sway the minds of men.

l own that chamber.

As if it were built
with these hands.

l could crush the life
out of you right now.

You will go before the council
but your words will fall in deaf ears.

Leonidas will receive
no reinforcements,

and if he returns, without my help,
he would go to jail or worse.

- Do you love your Sparta?
- Yes.

- And your king?
- l do.

Your husband fights
for his land,

and his love.

What do you have to offer?

ln return for my word that
l'll help you send our army north.

What does a realist
want from his queen?

l think you know.

This will not be over quickly.

You will not enjoy this.

l am not your king.

Dilios!

l trust that scracth
hasn't made you useless.

Hardly, my lord.
lt's just an eye.

The gods saw fit
to grace me with a spare.

And the captain?

Curses the gods
and mourns alone.

Leonidas!

We are undone.
Undone l tell you.

- Destroyed.
- Daxos, calm yourself!

A hunchback traitor has led
xerxes' lmmortals

to the hidden goat path
behind us.

The Phocians you posted there
were scattered without a fight.

This battle is over, Leonidas!

This battle is over
when l say it is over!

By morning, the lmmortals
will surround us.

The Hot Gates will fall.

Spartans!

Prepare for glory!

Glory?

Have you gone mad?

There is no glory to be had now.

Only retreat or surrender
or death.

That is an easy choice for us,
Arcadian.

Spartans never retreat.
Spartans never surrender.

Go. Spread the word.

Let every Greek assembled
know the truth of this.

Let each amongst them
search his own soul.

And while you're at it,

search your own.

My men will leave with me.

Godspeed, Leonidas.

Children! Children!

Gather round.

No retreat.
No surrender.

That is Spartan law.

And by Spartan law,
we will stand and fight.

And die.

A new age has begun.

An age of freedom.

And all will know that
three hundred Spartans

gave their last breath
to defend it!

My friend.

l have lived my entire life
without regret until now.

lt's not that my son gave up
his life for his country.

lt's just that l never told him
l loved him the most.

That he stood by me
with honor.

That he was all that
was best in me.

My heart is broken
for your loss.

Heart?

l have filled my heart
with hate.

Good.

Dilios!

Let's take a walk.

Yes, my lord.

But, sire, l'm fit.
l'm ready for battle.

That you are
one of the finest.

But you have another talent
unlike any other Spartan.

You will deliver
my final orders to the council

with force and verve.

Tell them my story.

Make every Greek know
what happened here.

You'll have a grand
tale to tell.

A tale of victory.

Victory.

Yes, my lord.

Sire, any message...?

...for the queen?

None that need be spoken.

Hundreds leave.

A handful stay.

Only one looks back.

Spartans!

Ready your breakfast
and eat hearty.

For tonight we dine in Hell!

May l give the floor now to the wife
of Leonidas and queen of Sparta.

Councilmen.

l stand before you
not only as your queen.

l come to you as a mother.

l come to you as a wife.

l come to you
as a Spartan woman.

l come to you
with great humility.

l am not here to represent
Leonidas.

His actions speak louder
than my words ever could.

l am here for all those voices
which cannot be heard.

Mothers, daughters, fathers, sons.

Three hundred families
that bleed for our rights

and for the very principles
this room is built upon.

We're at war, gentlemen.

We must send the entire spartan
army to aid our king

in the preservation of not just
ourselves but of our children.

Send the army for
the preservation of liberty.

Send it for justice.

Send it for law and order.

Send it for reason.

But, most importantly,
send our army for hope.

Hope that the king and his men have
not been wasted in the pages of history.

That their courage
bonds us together.

That we are made stronger
by their actions.

And that your choices today
reflect their bravery.

Three hundred.

Moving.

Eloquent, passionate.

But it doesn't change the fact
that your husband has brought war upon us.

You are wrong.

xerxes brought it forth

and before that,
his father, Darius, at Marathon.

The Persians will not stop until
the only shelter we will find

is rubble and chaos.

This chamber needs
no history lesson, my queen.

Then what is the lesson
you would like to leave?

Shall l begin to enumerate
all of them?

Honor, duty, glory.

You speak of honor?

Duty? Glory?

But what of adultery?

- How dare you?
- How dare l?

Watch her, carefully.

She is a trickster
in true form.

Do not play with the members
of this sacred chambers, my queen.

Just hours ago, you offered
yourself to me.

Were l a weaker man,
l'd have her scent on me still.

- This is outrage.
- Ah, the hypocrite speaks.

Did you not receive
a similar payment?

Which you took in exchange for her
having an audience with these noble men.

- That is a lie.
- ls it?

Was he not, by your invitation, asked
to come the king's bedchamber?

The very bed where you attempted
to negotiate with me

so vigorously.

You look shocked.

A bribe of the flesh,
gentlemen,

whilst her husband
promotes anarchy and war.

Words escape even
the most cunning tongues.

My little whore queen.

What queen-like behaviour!

Remove her from this chamber
before she infects us further

with her inglorious
and filthy self.

This will not be over quickly.

You will not enjoy this.

l am not your queen.

Traitor.

Traitor, traitor, traitor.

Leonidas.
My compliments.

And congratulations.

You surely have turned calamity
to victory.

Despite your insufferable
arrogance,

the God King has come to admire
Spartan valor

and fighting skills.

You will make a mighty ally.

Yield, Leonidas.

Use your reason.
Think of your men.

l beg you.

Listen to your fellow Greek.

He can attest to the divine
one's generosity.

Despite your several insults,

despite your horrid
blasphemies,

the lord of hosts is prepared
to forgive all.

And more: to reward
your service.

You fight for your lands.
Keep them.

You fight for Sparta.

She will be wealthier and more
powerful than ever before.

You fight for your kingship.

You will be proclaimed warlord
of all Greece.

Answerable only to the one
true master of the world.

Leonidas. Your victory
will be complete.

lf you but lay down your arms
and kneel to holy xerxes.

lt's been more than 30 years
since the wind and the winter cold.

And now, as then, it's not
fear that grips him.

Only restlesness.

A heightened sense of things.

The seaborne breeze cooly kissing
the sweat on his chest and neck.

Gulls cawing,

complaining even as they feast
on thousands of floating dead.

The steady breathing
of the 300 at his back.

Ready to die for him,
without a moment's pause.

Every one of them
ready to die.

His helmet is stifling.

His shield is heavy.

Your spear.

You there.

Ephialtes.

May you live forever.

Leonidas, your spear.

Stelios!

Slaughter them!

His helmet was stifling.
lt narrowed his vision.

And he must see far.

His shield was heavy.
lt threw him off balance.

And his target is far away.

The old ones say we Spartans
have descended from Hercules himself.

Bold Leonidas gives testament
to our bloodline.

His roar is long and loud.

My king.

lt's an honor to die at your side.

lt's an honor to have lived
at yours.

My queen.

My wife.

My love.

Remember us.

As simple an order
as a king can give.

Remember why we died.

For he did not wish tribute
or song.

No monuments, no poems
of war and valor.

His wish was simple.

Remember us.

He said to me.

That was his hope.

Should any free soul
come across that place

in all the countless
centuries yet to be,

may all our voices whisper to you
from the ageless stones.

Go tell the Spartans,
passerby,

that here, by Spartan law,
we lie.

So my king died...

And my brothers died.

Barely a year ago.

Long l pondered my king's
cryptic talk of victory

and the time has proven
him wise.

For from Greek to free Greek

the word was spread that bold
Leonidas and his 300,

so far from home,

laid down their lives,
not just for Sparta,

but for all Greece and the promise
this country holds.

And now, here on this ragged
patch of earth called Platea,

xerxes' hordes face obliteration.

Just there, the barbarians huddle.

Sheer terror gripping tight

their hearts with icy fingers.

knowing full well what merciless
horrors they suffered

at the swords and spears
of three hundred.

Yet they stare now,
across the plain,

at 10.000 Spartans,
commanding 30.000 free Greeks.

The enemy outnumbers us
a paltry three to one.

Good odds for any Greek.

This day we rescue a world
from mysticism and tyranny

and usher in a future brighter
that anything we can imagine.

Give thanks, men...

to Leonidas and the
brave three hundred.

To victory!