I came across similar claims on the Rotten Tomatoes critic website. When I read that Iraninan bloggers were upset with the portrayal of Persians in "300," the question that arose in me was the question of the degree to which Hollywood should be held accountable for its images. I can't find the source at the moment, but something like 40% of media produced in America is exported to the rest of the world. This being the case, Hollywood producers ostensibly realize that what they produce must not cater only to an American audience, but must have an international appeal as well. But in catering to an international audience, is it enough to just carry the stamp of "made in America?" Are there any standards that should be set and kept for the good of international relations. From the perspective of the outside world, what Hollywood produces is often seen as America's generalized perspective. This alone is evidence for the stance that American media outlets should in some way be held accountable for what they export. But what measures should be installed in that case? Is some kind of censorship possible? Perhaps there is a need for potentially incendiary subject matter to come with a warning tag for the viewer?

To get back to "300" more specifically, I believe there is a definite ideological purpose to the movie just from reading ads and watching the trailers.
To think that the movie has no aim would seem simple minded, for we know stories do not arise without inspiration. Whatever issues a community or country is dealing with will consistently be found on the silver screen. I'd be interested to know what other people think of what latent goals the producers of "300" had in mind? Is it really just a movie about gladiators of men stomping the hell out of each other? Interesting time to pick the Persian army as an enemy of the side of good, if that's the case. Surely there are other war stories to satisfy a nostalgia for the glory of Ancient Greece.

Incidentally, Wednesday, March 21st at 7:07pm EST (literally, the moment Spring "springs") is when the Persian New Year ("Norooz") begins. Norooz is the biggest holiday of the Persian year. It is completely secular and involves a lot of celebrations centering around the theme of rebirth and renewal that is so prevalent during Spring time and is so relevant at the start of a new calendar year. Norooz always begins the first day of Spring and celebrations last for the following 13 days. It's a beautiful holiday, a great example of the richness of the culture that 300 apparently overlooks and/or completely overshadows. My mom is from Iran, and thus celebrating Norooz has always been a big part of my Spring time. If anyone wants to know more, feel free to ask me or search for things on Norooz (there are lots of alternate spellings, like "Now-Ruz," since it's a word that doesn't really translate to English...) online.

For all those blog readers out there who are celebrating Norooz, Eideh Shomah Mobarak! Happy New Year to all!