300: Rise of an Empire (Movie, 2014)

Themistocles: "Better we show them, we chose to die on our feet, rather than live on our knees!" This is an entertaining historical fantasy, based on the second Persian invasion of mainland Greece, under Xerxes I. It is a followup to "300", which was an account of the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, where a small Spartan army under King Leonidas fought against a much larger Persian army under Xerxes. "300" was a fairly accurate historical account and a better film overall. The events of "Rise of an Empire" take place before, during and subsequent to the Battle of Thermopylae, concluding with the Greek victory at the Battle of Salamis. While her portrayal is mostly fictional, the character of Artemisia as played by Eva Green certainly adds to the entertainment value...and she delivers the standout performance. 

Nowhere near the visually stunning level and gravitas of the original '300' movie, this "sidequel" has little character development and comes off as one dimensional as its original medium of a comic book.  '300' was epic, sweepingly dramatic and full of eminently quotable lines, with each frame a piece of artistic genius. About the only thing 'Rise of an Empire' has in common with its progenitor are the endless slow motion shots of blood splatter.