sgt_bug

If you think that you may like this film because you saw the 2006 film, "300" starring Gerard Butler, you may be in for a surprise and not in a good way. I haven't read the comic book and I'm evaluating the film on its merit.

The time-line of this film is set during the time Leonidas is preparing to defend Sparta with his army of 300 and a little before that time showing the rise of Xerxes. It also covers a small period ahead of the battle of Sparta. The film mainly shows a battle between strategists, Themistokles and Artemisia.

I mean, I would be okay if this was a good gore-fest. I had no problems with the blood at all, that was the only reason why this film gets a 2 from me and not anything lower but you expect at least some depth in the characters. Apart from Eva Green, everyone else seems to be sleepwalking. The writing is so bad that after a while, you just want the film to be over.

Bottom line: This film is avoidable, but if you do wish to watch it, watch it for Eva Green as Artemisia and the blood.

What comes to mind when one thinks of science fiction movies ------ UFOs, aliens, deadly venoms and their antidotes, gizmos, computer-generated graphics, insane budgets? And what comes to mind when you hear of a science fiction movie which doesn't have any of these things? And do any of you recall having seen a science fiction movie that is actually believable? I think not.

The Man from Earth is such a movie. I must confess, this movie quite simply blew me away! When I first saw this movie, I wasn't planning on watching the all of it, due to time constraints. But as soon as it started, this movie gripped me like a Black Hole. I just couldn't keep my eyes off the screen. When it ended, I was left completely satisfied.

This, my readers, is a movie that has brought back dignity to science fiction. It is a film that has forced me to ask myself this question ------ why aren't more such movies made? It is a great example of how great scriptwriting and great performances alone can make a fascinating movie. Jerome Bixby, the brain behind great television shows like Star Trek and Twilight Zone wrote the script for this movie on his death bed in the April of 1998, making it his last project.

It is astounding to know that director Richard Schenkman roamed around for eight years with Bixby's script, looking for a producer. Finally, he decided to produce the movie himself and made it at a very modest budget of $200,000 US. The movie didn't make it to the theaters and was released on DVDs straight away.

David Lee Smith is extremely convincing and sincere as John Oldman , the retiring University professor. The support cast, comprising John Billingsley, Ellen Crawford, William Katt, Richard Riehle, Tony Todd, Annika Peterson and Alexis Thorpe is equally fantastic.

This movie will appeal not only to your eyes, or your ears, but to what matters most ------ your mind. It is for people with intellect, wherever such people may still exist.