A Spartan orator named Dilios narrates of the young Leonidas undergoing his childhood training, explaining the rigors of Spartan life. Leonidas is cast out into the wild, and survives the harsh winter to return to his home, when he is crowned King. Dilios then tells of when a group of Persian messengers arrive at Sparta, demanding Sparta's submission to King Xerxes. Outraged and offended at their behavior, King Leonidas and his guards throw the messengers into a pit, resolving to face the Persians. Leonidas then visits the Oracle, proposing a strategy to repel the numerically superior enemy, and offers the priests a customary payment in gold. The priests, called Ephors, having already been bribed by Xerxes, interpret the Oracle's message to mean that Sparta should not go to war, so as to not interrupt the sacred Carneian festival.

Despite the warning, Leonidas gathers 300 of his best soldiers to fight the Persians, selecting only those who have already sired male children, so that their family name can continue even after their death. As they march north, they are joined by a group of Arcadians and other Greeks. Arriving at the narrow cliffs of Thermopylae (referred to as the "Hot Gates"), in sight of the Persian army, they build a wall to halt the Persians' advance. Ephialtes, a hunchbacked Spartan whose parents had fled to save him from customary infanticide, approaches Leonidas, requesting to redeem his father's name in battle, and warning him about a secret goat path that the Persians could use to surround them. Leonidas turns him away as his inability to properly hold the shield would create a weak spot in the phalanx. Before the battle starts, the Persians ask that the 300 drop their arms. Leonidas responds; "Persians! Come and get them!" The Spartans use the phalanx formation, the narrow terrain, and their fighting skill with shield, spear and sword to effectively fight off numerically superior waves of attackers including Xerxes's elite guards, the Immortals. The 300 defend their position while suffering relatively few losses. Xerxes, impressed after the two armies' first engagement, personally approaches Leonidas and attempts to bribe him with wealth and power in exchange for his surrender. The Spartan king declines, saying that he will instead make the "God King" bleed. Two days after the fighting begins, an embittered Ephialtes reveals the location of the goat path to Xerxes, having been promised a lucrative and powerful position in the Persian Empire.

Dilios finishes his tale on a new battlefield surrounded by raptly listening soldiers. He concludes that the Persian army, who lost countless numbers defeating a mere 300 Spartans a year earlier, must now be terrified to face 10,000 Spartans and 30,000 Greeks from the other city-states. The roused Greek host charges the Persian army, beginning the Battle of Plataea.

Cast:
Gerard Butler as King Leonidas: King of the Spartans 
Lena Headey as Queen Gorgo: Leonidas' wife 
David Wenham as Dilios: Narrator and Spartan soldier 
Dominic West as Theron: A corrupt Spartan politician 
Michael Fassbender as Stelios: Young and spirited Spartan soldier 
Vincent Regan as Captain Artemis: Leonidas' loyal captain and friend 
Rodrigo Santoro as King Xerxes: King of the Persians 
Andrew Tiernan as Ephialtes: Deformed Spartan outcast 
Andrew Pleavin as Daxos: Arcadian soldier 
Tom Wisdom as Astinos: Captain Artemis' eldest son 
Giovani Cimmino as Pleistarchos: Leonidas' son 
Peter Mensah as Persian messenger 
Kelly Craig as Oracle girl 
Tyler Neitzel as Young Leonidas 
Robert Maillet as Über Immortal (Giant) 

GOOD LINKS TO VISIT:

• Official site 
• Wikipedia Article