300's best line was stolen

Setesh · Post by **Setesh** » 2007-06-27 01:26pm

Browsing youtube I found a trailer for a 1960s movie about the Spartans, called The 300 Spartans

Its a little campy but no worse than the Robin Hood of the same era. But then I heard several of the lines from the new movie in it. Some slightly different but one stuck out....

"Our arrows will blot out the sun."
"Then we will fight in the shade."

The line is good smack talk today but mind blowing for a 60s flick. I've been hearing things about the a big chunk of the script being lifted and slightly altered from this 60s movie. I haven't found a copy yet but I will.

Until then The 300 Spartans trailer remade with new movies music.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-06-27 01:33pm

That line was stolen...but not from a '60s movie. The 300 Spartans took that line verbatim from Herodotus' writings. That "smack talk" is at least 24 centuries old, just like all the cool lines in the movie.

Kids and history...

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2007-06-27 01:37pm

It's kind of amusing that he thought one of the most famous lines in all of ancient history was actually invented for the new movie, and then when he saw the older movie, he thought it was invented by that one instead.

Isolder74 · Post by **Isolder74** » 2007-06-27 01:43pm

Very funny indeed.

The 'We shall fight in the shade line' was one of the great up your's in all of history. It might not have been said as we have it now, and may have been fabricated by the greek historian but it is also possible that Leonidas actually did say it.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-06-27 01:45pm

Dienekis, actually. Or Dienekes...however you spell it.

Molon labe ranks pretty high as an "up yours", too.

Isolder74 · Post by **Isolder74** » 2007-06-27 01:51pm

As well as the simple 'Nuts' at Bastone.

Setesh · Post by **Setesh** » 2007-06-27 02:34pm

In my defense I have a bad cold and am heavily medicated and very tired.

I think the only reason its even coherent is my firefox spell checker plug-in.

I can't seem to sleep.

The Duchess of Zeon · Post by **The Duchess of Zeon** » 2007-06-27 04:03pm

I hate the fact that they didn't use the other "Total hardass manliness" line of Leonidas' that he actually said to his wife on departing. She asked him for his instructions to her, and he responded, according to Herodotus, by saying:

"Marry a good man and bear strong sons."

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-06-27 04:08pm

The Duchess of Zeon wrote:I hate the fact that they didn't use the other "Total hardass manliness" line of Leonidas' that he actually said to his wife on departing. She asked him for his instructions to her, and he responded, according to Herodotus, by saying:

"Marry a good man and bear strong sons."

That probably would've been too confusing considering the scenes later on where she sells herself to get military support. Still, a good line to illustrate the way the Spartans thought.

Post by **Beowulf** » 2007-06-27 04:25pm

Yup, someone's clueless. Oh, and why is this in AMP. *punt*

Elfdart · Post by **Elfdart** » 2007-06-27 06:22pm

Next you're going to tell me "I came; I saw; I conquered." wasn't written for a TV show.

Shit.

DrMckay · Post by **DrMckay** » 2007-06-27 07:30pm

Anyone read the book Gates of Fire?

It told a slightly dramatized but far more engaging, human and accurate version of events. (I know 300 was a comic book, but Gates of Fire was sooo much better.)

It totally ruined 300 for me.

You know you are a history geek when you are watching the action scenes and not thinking, WOW! Kickass, but;

"Where's the breastplates and greaves? Spartans (and ancient Greeks in general,) were heavy infantry"

"Wow, way to talk about fighting in phalanx and then NOT do it for more than two minutes."

"wow. a militaristic slavery-based fighting for freedom. Bush's speechwriters didn't happen to write this movie, did they?"

"ooh greanades and napatha/napalm-y thingies used by the Persians. I think they had a word for it. Greek fire perhaps?"

sorry. I guess I just got carried away.

Tasoth · Post by **Tasoth** » 2007-06-27 07:34pm

DrMckay wrote: You know you are a history geek when you are watching the action scenes and not thinking, WOW! Kickass, but;

Ya' know, I was doing the same thing myself. My friend's told me to shut up before the movie started because they knew it was coming.

DrMckay · Post by **DrMckay** » 2007-06-27 07:38pm

Thank you *sheepish*

(Baaaaah)

I feel a bit better now.

Scottish Ninja · Post by **Scottish Ninja** » 2007-06-27 10:49pm

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing throughout the whole movie.

"What's with this 'nothing on the chest at all' crap? They wore like 70 pounds of armor!"

Knife · Post by **Knife** » 2007-06-28 12:48am

Scottish Ninja wrote:Yeah, I was thinking the same thing throughout the whole movie.

"What's with this 'nothing on the chest at all' crap? They wore like 70 pounds of armor!"

lol, there was a eight page thread on this a few months back dealing with the issue. Late March IIRC.

Post by **The Yosemite Bear** » 2007-06-28 12:50am

Tasoth wrote:
DrMckay wrote: You know you are a history geek when you are watching the action scenes and not thinking, WOW! Kickass, but;
Ya' know, I was doing the same thing myself. My friend's told me to shut up before the movie started because they knew it was coming.

me and one oterh guy were going on and on of history vs. legend and going all the way up to Alciblades, and Odyssus (exiled from sparta due to being illegitamet, conquers ithaca, and then the Spartans had to come to him for HELP, god that had to seriously piss them off to make a deal with a king they considered less then a helot.

The_Saint · Post by **The_Saint** » 2007-06-28 01:09am

'We shall fight in the shade'... also happens to be the motto of the Hellenic Army XX Armored Division. I guess it also works because it tends to be shady inside an armoured vehicle.

Yea it was invented for the movie my arse... possibly one of the few things that may have been true from Herodotus' account of the battle.

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2007-06-28 01:24am

DrMckay wrote:"wow. a militaristic slavery-based fighting for freedom. Bush's speechwriters didn't happen to write this movie, did they?"

What's wrong with that? The Spartiates considered themselves to be equal and free. This would not necessarily exist under Persian rule. Political freedom certainly wouldn't, and that is a type of freedom that exists even in a nation consisting of one free man and multitudes of slaves.

AK_Jedi · Post by **AK_Jedi** » 2007-06-28 03:39am

Adrian Laguna wrote:
DrMckay wrote:"wow. a militaristic slavery-based fighting for freedom. Bush's speechwriters didn't happen to write this movie, did they?"
What's wrong with that? The Spartiates considered themselves to be equal and free. This would not necessarily exist under Persian rule. Political freedom certainly wouldn't, and that is a type of freedom that exists even in a nation consisting of one free man and multitudes of slaves.

No, of course. And the fact the spartans had slaves themselves (which allowed them to have all their citizenry be uber soldiers like that) isn't hypocritical at all.

wautd · Post by **wautd** » 2007-06-28 04:39am

I disagree, the best line clearly was

Spartans! What is your profession?
Spartans: Harooh! Harooh! Harooh!

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2007-06-28 04:43am

AK_Jedi wrote:
Adrian Laguna wrote:
DrMckay wrote:"wow. a militaristic slavery-based fighting for freedom. Bush's speechwriters didn't happen to write this movie, did they?"
What's wrong with that? The Spartiates considered themselves to be equal and free. This would not necessarily exist under Persian rule. Political freedom certainly wouldn't, and that is a type of freedom that exists even in a nation consisting of one free man and multitudes of slaves.
No, of course. And the fact the spartans had slaves themselves (which allowed them to have all their citizenry be uber soldiers like that) isn't hypocritical at all.

The Spartans never said they were fighting for everyone's freedom. Granted in 300 it is implied, but it's a dramatization anyway, it exaggerates the shit out of everything. As I said, political freedom is irrelevant to the existance or non-exitance of slaves.

PeZook · Post by **PeZook** » 2007-06-28 09:51am

wautd wrote:I disagree, the best line clearly was

Spartans! What is your profession?
Spartans: Harooh! Harooh! Harooh!

"We are Santa Clause!"

This is how I took it. And my girlfriend had to tell me to shut up repeatedly after we've been to the movie. I couldn't stop whining about all the ahistorical idiocies in the movie

General Deathdealer · Post by **General Deathdealer** » 2007-06-28 10:00am

I think they should have put the classic Spartan Wife quote "Come back victorious, on your shield, or not at all" in the movie.

Mobiboros · Post by **Mobiboros** » 2007-06-28 10:52am

General Deathdealer wrote:I think they should have put the classic Spartan Wife quote "Come back victorious, on your shield, or not at all" in the movie.

If I recall right his wife says "Come back with your shield, or on it."