Meet the Spartans

Posted on | April 20, 2008 | No Comments

A still from Meet the Spartans Ooh look; a review!

Not normally one for the spoof movie genre I did catch ‘Meet the Spartans’ the other day. And although not a ‘good’ film, it’s something I’d recommend to anyone who’s seen 300. Instantly forgettable, it’s still a film that will manage to hold your attention throughout and occasionally deliver real laughs. “let us talk by the giant pit of death” , “I look like Jabba the Hutt; that is hot to me!” and “whatever you do don’t kick him into the pit of deat… stop kicking people into the pit of death, really!” are lines that are delivered in ways that tap directly into the hilarity centre of your brain. Unfortunately it’s riddled with a lot of American pop culture sketches. American Idol, Deal or No deal etc. that don’t really hit home to a UK audience even though we do have English versions.

It starts well, but loses momentum around half way through and some of the scenes seem drawn out or simply don’t work (the Spiderman 3 bit for example) but there’s still enough to keep you watching if it’s your type of funny to start with. Though a large percentage are gay jokes, so be thus warned if you are PC or find homoerotic jokes tasteless.

Sean Maguire is an excellent choice for Leonidas, and he plays it with a straight faced dryness whilst capturing the enthusiasm and shoutyness perfectly to spoof Gerard Butler’s performance. I can honestly say a lot of the lines delivered wouldn’t be funny at all if not coming from his mouth. Whilst Kevin Sorbo is excellent as Captain – plus steals the show with his “I’m gonna go Hercules on your ass” line.

Don’t get me wrong; this is not a good film, but it is good entertainment and will deliver at least one or two real laughs that make it worth the watch themselves. Well worth a gander.

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