At the Century City Shopping Center cinema in Beverly Hills, Francis Lawrence had just finished watching "300 Spartans" and was the first to exit the screening room. As he reached for his phone to contact Spike Lee, a young Latino man in his twenties approached him.
"Excuse me, did you just watch '300 Spartans'?" the Latino man asked. "Could I ask you a couple of questions? We have gifts for participants."
Francis Lawrence glanced at him and shook his head, walking past without stopping.
Undeterred, the Latino interviewer turned to the next moviegoer exiting the theater.
Initially, Francis Lawrence intended to leave directly for home. But realizing that the man might be a CinemaScore field surveyor, he paused, curious to hear the public's reaction.
The Latino surveyor had stopped a female fan in her twenties.
"Can you share your thoughts on '300 Spartans'?" he asked her.
"It was incredible, just incredible..." The young woman's voice trembled with excitement. "The movie was so impactful, especially Matthew Horner. His performance, his action scenes, his physique, and even his voice were perfect!"
Listening to this, Francis Lawrence muttered "idiot" under his breath but kept his ears open.
"If you had to rate the film, what would you give it?"
"A+! A+! Definitely the highest score. Matthew's character alone is worth that rating!"
Watching the young woman walk away with her legs clamped together, Francis Lawrence remained where he was. Despite his disdain for Matthew Horner, he wanted to observe the audience's reaction to "300 Spartans" firsthand, making his future actions more targeted.
The Latino market researcher approached another target, this time a young male in his twenties.
"Matthew was intense, fierce, and powerful. This is definitely his peak in action movies!" The questions were the same, and the male fan's reaction mirrored the female's. "Full marks! Absolutely full marks! I doubt I'll forget this movie for years."
Francis Lawrence instinctively rubbed his nose, lamenting the audience's lack of sophistication.
He watched as the surveyor questioned others—men and women over thirty, young adults just entering adulthood, and so on. Most of them heaped praise on the film.
"The film's violent yet artistic style and Matthew's thunderous roar got my blood pumping. It's a tragic tale of heroes willing to die for their cause."
"Every movie starring Matthew is a certified hit, and this one especially."
"The detail is so fine you can see every pore. It's not just one ruggedly handsome guy with a perfect eight-pack; there's a whole group of them. Watching them is more than satisfying."
"It's the most visually stunning war film I've ever seen. Each frame is like a painting—red cloaks, blood, and the dark tone contrasted with vivid colors. The frequent use of slow-motion made it a visual feast. The director must be a visual genius!"
"Matthew fought so fiercely, and his body is amazing. I was really excited watching it."
Even the lowest rating Francis Lawrence heard was an "A-."
"I was just drooling over Matthew." Another female fan said, "Sorry, I couldn't focus on the movie properly because I was fangirling over him. But just watching Matthew was enough."
Hearing this, Francis Lawrence decided there was no point in staying any longer and turned to leave.
Outside the theater, as he walked towards the parking lot across the street, the cool sea breeze blew against him. Francis Lawrence felt a pang of sorrow. How could someone like him, filled with talent and a passion for humanity, struggle to find success while someone as vulgar and despicable as Matthew Horner was showered with praise from both the media and the public?
What has happened to society? Is there no place for humanistic values? Is there no basic fairness and justice?
Good people never seem to catch a break, while the bad ones live carefree.
Standing by his car, Francis Lawrence found himself reluctant to move, his emotions in turmoil.
In Oakland, San Francisco, Alex returned home, still reeling from the film's impact. The powerful roars echoed in his mind.
He immediately turned on his computer and logged into IMDb. Finding the page for "300 Spartans," he didn't hesitate to give it a perfect ten.
In Westwood, Los Angeles, Brian Lister had just arrived home. Once there, he quickly logged onto IMDb, gave the movie a ten, and then checked the rating section. It was flooded with tens.
His computer screen displayed a series of perfect scores from top to bottom.
Brian Lister exhaled, recalling what a Hollywood insider had mentioned at the red carpet event: "This movie will spike the audience's adrenaline. Their excitement will only lead them to rate '300 Spartans' highly."
It certainly seemed that way.
Although Brian considered himself a more rational fan, recognizing that while Matthew's film was enjoyable, it didn't quite deserve a ten, even nine felt a bit generous.
Returning to the previous page, he noticed that the IMDb score for "300 Spartans" had already been generated, averaging a whopping 9.8.
"This is ridiculous," Brian Lister muttered. "If this score holds, it will overshadow all the films in the IMDb Top 250."
As the leader of a fan association, he knew that Matthew's die-hard fans were numerous.
At the red carpet earlier, he had met a girl who had been following Matthew's career closely for the past two years.
Brian Lister browsed other websites. Rotten Tomatoes hadn't yet lifted its embargo. To his knowledge, "300 Spartans" hadn't held any advance screenings for the press, so critics were probably watching it for the first time tonight as well.
After about ten minutes, he checked back on IMDb. The average score for "300 Spartans" had dropped slightly to 9.7.
This seemed more realistic.
Fans had mostly gone home, either too excited to sleep or busy posting their thoughts online and rating the film on various platforms. Meanwhile, the post-premiere press conference was still ongoing.
"Our physiques were the result of long-term training," James McAvoy responded to a journalist's question. "At the time, I thought building these muscles was harder than dying."
Then, another reporter asked, "What was it like fighting in the shade?"
This time, Michael Fassbender replied, "It was interesting, but we also had to worry about not getting too tanned."
The questions then turned to Eva Green, asking her thoughts on the male actors' physiques.
Eva Green candidly said, "After the first week of filming, I felt a bit overwhelmed, but seeing the guys perform so sensually was fun. They weren't shy at all. They were definitely flaunting their physiques."
When asked about the production, Zack Snyder said, "I don't know if we were just very lucky, but the shooting went incredibly smoothly. The visuals are stunning, the actors were excellent, and the story is deeply moving."
This was the time for self-promotion. If the production team lacked confidence in the film, there was no reason to expect anyone else to be.
"Mr. Horner, I just watched the film in the theater."
A reporter from The Hollywood Reporter stood up and addressed Matthew. "I noticed many female viewers really enjoyed the film. Can you comment on that?"
Matthew thought for a moment and replied, "I'm very happy to have played in this film. I'm looking forward to the audience's feedback, and if female viewers enjoy it too, I'm thrilled."
Typically, blood-soaked, brutal R-rated movies struggle to attract a large female audience, but "300 Spartans" might be an exception.
As the press conference continued, various online media outlets started posting reviews and articles praising "300 Spartans."
In this country, money can solve many problems. And this film had a backer who was both wealthy and willing to spend.
Many of these online articles had been prepared in advance, with two versions waiting. Once the film premiered, they'd decide which version to publish based on audience reactions.
If the audience reaction was positive, they'd heap praise; if it was lukewarm, they'd moderate their acclaim.
There was no doubt that both the premiere and the other advance screenings of "300 Spartans" had elicited extremely enthusiastic responses.
"Epic '300 Spartans' Premieres Today, Experience the Grand Spectacle..." proclaimed a headline on Yahoo Entertainment's front page. Similar headlines were visible across various websites.
"'300 Spartans': 300 Warriors Slaughter 20,000 Troops in the Most Brutal Battle in Human History, Fighting for Freedom and Dignity!"
"With masts of warships lining the sea, the Persian army—guided by grotesque traitors and comprising elephant troops, immortal monster soldiers, elite assassins with metal masks, and turbaned warriors—covers the hills. Before them, 300 shirtless Spartans roar with determination..."
"A classic battle from 2,500 years ago, a visually stunning war film. This is the most anticipated epic of 2007—'300 Spartans'!"
Following the premiere, the film entered its post-release promotional phase, continuing its intense media blitz.
All of this was aimed at achieving impressive box office numbers.
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