Zack Snyder's dynamic and visually impressive 300 was adapted from the work of comic book honcho Frank Miller. Of course most of you know that, and the man has been behind some of the most critically acclaimed comic books (with some of his more well known works hitting the big screen). Well it looks like the man is up to his old tricks again, this time with a prequel to his own 300.
Titled Xerxes, this tale follows the titular self-proclaimed 'god-king' who ruled the Persian empire. You might remember this guy as the main antagonist in the film and a not so snazzy dresser. But before he tried to conquer the world, Xerxes did quite a bit back home. From Frank Miller:
"[Xerxes] starts with the Battle of Marathon. The lead character is Themistocles, who became warlord of Greece and built their navy. The story is very different than '300' in that it involves Xerxes' search for godhood. The existence of gods are presupposed in this story and the idea is that he's well on his way to godhood by the end of the story."
He continues to say:
"The story will be the same heft as '300' but it cover a much, much greater span of time -- it's 10 years, not three days… This is a more complex story. The story is so much larger. The Spartans in '300' were being enclosed by the page as the world got smaller. This story has truly vast subjects. The Athenian naval fleet, for instance, is a massive artistic undertaking and it dwarfed by the Persian fleet, which is also shown in this story. The story has elements of espionage, too, and it's a sweeping tale with gods and warriors."
Personally, I really loved 300 (both the comic and the adaptation) and the plan is to have Snyder bring this new comic to life as well. But part of the first film's appeal is that you know the heroes are living on borrowed time. Every minute brings them closer to their ultimate destiny (one we know is inevitable). There's a strong sense of tension there, and being that it focused on a small band of tight-knit warriors you felt a kinship with them. With Miller crafting a new story that deals with epic-scale battles and characters, it makes one wonder if the movie won't come across as another big-budget epic battle action flick (thus losing many of the things that made 300 appealing/unique).
Regardless after three years of working on this new project Dark Horse comics is ready to give the fans a bone in the form of Xerxes' cover. Upon contacting Dark Horse, they said they couldn't reveal a release date for the book just yet, but to expect it sometime in 2011. So if you're eagerly awaiting that movie, you probably shouldn't hold your breath. It's going to be a while.
If you're a fan of the cover you can order the lithograph this October for as cheap as $25.
-Jordan
