300: March to Portray Wolves Badly

300: MARCH TO PORTAY WOLVES BADLY

300: MARCH TO PORTAY WOLVES BADLY by Mike Wagner

Although there have been some good films and shows
over the years, we still have movies that portray
Wolves badly.

Movies like Cry Wolf, Chronicles of Narnia,
Lady In the Water, are the top of the list.
Now we have 300, based on the book by Frank Miller
is the next installment of self-proclaimed epics
and heroism.

300 is based on the Battle of Thermopylae and it being
told by the perspective of the King of Sparta.
Which the King Leonidas ascends the throne after
slaughtering a 'dangerous and wild' Wolf.

This was from the chapter in the book called
'Honor', which really should have been called
'Dishonor', or 'Disgrace'. the character Dilios
talks about how a favorite story is about how a boy
, Leonidas, goes to the wild to return as a spartan
or not at all. Intentionally going hungry, and cold
Leonidas would become defenseless and seen as prey
he hoped. Encountering a Wolf which the book says
that the 'beast' circled, sniffing, savoring the scent
of a meal to come. And the book asks the reader
if Leonidas runs away or cowers or cries. And it
answers itself by saying that no, that he was calm
and had no fear and would spear the creature through
the head and then would return a king. This was on
pages 8-10 of that book.

This isn't very heroic and not worthy in my mind
of someone becoming a King. In fact, Humans are
actually the most dangerous race on Earth. The idea
of the dangerous Wolf is a myth and that is proven
that Wolves rarely if at all attack people. One starving
themselves to taunt a creature that would have nothing
to do with it to slaughter it doesn't make you a hero.
In fact it is something ridiculous and without merit.

This story obviously plays into the Wolves being
monsters bit, in the Graphic Novel and now in the film.

Here is the sadistic comment left below by Frank
Miller from one of the websites covering the film.

Q: Of the footage you've seen what was the most satisfying
thing that you created and got to see come to life?

FM: It's really hard to tell. The darker part of me would be
when they start to push the dead soldiers on the immortals.
It's so perfectly realized, but the combat stuff is pretty stunning.
There are hundreds of images that I just looked at and, if I have to
pick an ultimate favorite it's the shot of the boy stabbing the spear
and seeing the shadow of the wolf with the spear going through his mouth.
That was one of my favorite panels that I drew and he captured it to perfection.

http://www.comics2film.com/ProjectFrame.php?f_id=483&f_page=4

Wonderful, a writer who once made good tales with Batman decides
to do the antethisis of what that series embodied and supports
depiction of the 'Big Bad Wolf' and the heroic 'Human' who
murders it. Racial profiling Wolves and having battles against
these creatures and enjoying that is noble to FM since Wolves
aren't Human. I had respect for him, once, since he wrote for Robocop,
Spawn and Batman. But now after this, no more.

And just like Narnia which did something similar last year
it will have a video game which I am pretty sure that you
can murder this Wolf in the same fashion.

Now it is on Myspace on their front page and has it's own profile.
Even one of the icons to download has the horrible fight against the Wolf.

So first, boycott this movie if you love Wolves. Believe it
or not, I have had members join Heart of the Wolf because of
movies and media that have positively portrayed Wolves like
Stormy Night, Wolf's Rain, Princess Mononoke, Okami, The Legend of
Zelda: The Twilight Princess, Werewolf the Apocalypse/Forsaken
and other media. People still believe in the Big Bad Wolf, Little
Red Riding Hood and have killed many Wolves over hundreds of years
over these false tales. 300 doesn't help.

Then write letters to the 300 the Movie myspace page, or even
add them and write on their comments list in protest of this film
and it's portrayal of Wolves.

Also, write to them about what Wolves are really about, and their
history that has haunted them. You can also send them these links
that have much factual information on them.

http://www.heartofthewolf.org/WolfFAQ.htm
http://www.heartofthewolf.org/WolvesArticle.pdf
http://www.heartofthewolf.org/MongolianWolfMurdered.pdf
http://www.heartofthewolf.org/Books.htm
http://www.heartofthewolf.org/WolfFilms.htm http://www.heartofthewolf.org/TheOppressed.htm

Here is the profile page for 300
http://www.myspace.com/300themovie

Also know that there are other better comic to film adaptations
that positively portray Wolves. Here is a comparison below for instance.

The top portrays the lack of a hero that Leonidas is and below the hero
Wolverine from X-Men. The picture on the right shows Wolverine running
with the Wolves. This is from the book Wolverine: Origin which has
to do with Wolverine's origin. Wolverine discovering his animal nature
and his growing bond with Nature, goes into the woods and encounters Wolves.
After being tested by the Alpha Male, he is accepted into their pack
and hunts for food with them. Now that is a true hero. This is because
instead of Wolverine testing himself by starving himself and being
reckless on purpose to slaughter innocent creatures, he goes out and
seeks it's denziens to bond with. That is much more heroic and in the
film X2: X-Men United, which came out in 2003 which was several years
after Wolverine: Origin, shows Wolvering encountering a Wolf in Canada.
In Canada, Wolvering is looking for clues to his origin at a base that
he was tested on. Seeing a Wolf that looks at him breifly and leaves,
Wolverine watches the Wolf and he thinks the base was abandoned. Again
the Wolf wasn't portrayed as a monster, and Wolverine's connection
with Nature showed itself, similar to Wolverine: Origin. It is interesting
to note that on the director's cut of the movie the producers talk about
how the Wolf was trained and how on the set they did have to respect
the creature by being very quiet on the set and respecting them. And the
Wolf wasn't portrayed as evil. This is something that Narnia couldn't do
and wouldn't do.

As a result, 300 isn't so much an epic or a story of heroes as much
as it is a travestry. And there are other comic to movie films that
are much more worthy of watching.

So please, don't support this film and instead support Wolves in fiction
and fact that portray them positively.

Here are some sources to do that with.

(For Children)

Hoodwinked
Shrek 1 and 2
Go Diego Go! - Wolf Pup Rescue

(For Teen to Adult)

Anime: Wolf's Rain, Princess Mononoke, Rurouni Kenshin,
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, Beast Wars, Beast Machines,
Arashi no Yoruni (Stormy Night)

Books: Werewolf the Apocalypse, Ways of the Wolf, Werewolf the Forsaken,
(WTF:Blood of the Wolf), Wolverine: Origin, Julie and the Wolves
Trilogy, Spawn 147, Manga Spawn Vol. 2, Vicious: Wolves and Men in America,
OF WOLVES AND MEN, Wolves : Life in the Pack, Neither God Nor Devil:
Rethinking Our Perception of Wolves, The Art of Being a Wolf,
Living With Wolves, WOLVES (by Emily Gravett), The Emotional Life of Animals
(by Karine Lou Matignon)

Games: Okami, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess,
Arashi no Yoruni, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, Resident
Evil 4

Movies: Never Cry Wolf, X2: X-Men United, Wolves At Our Door,
Living With Wolves

Music: The Wind and the Wolf (For all ages)

TV: X-Files Season 5 (Episode Alpha), Blade the Series
(Episode Angels and Demons)

By boycotting anti-Wolf material can we make a difference for future generations to show them what Wolves truly are about.

Mike Wagner -- Director and Founder of Heart of the
Wolf Organization, Honor Fallen and Oppressed Wolves
-- and Co-Host of KWF Wolf Conservation, and Web of Life

http://www.heartofthewolf.org
http://www.care2.com/c2c/group/heartofthewolf
http://www.care2.com/c2c/group/Wolfconservationists
http://www.care2.com/c2c/group/weboflife
http://www.heartofthewolf.org/HFOW.htm
http://groups.myspace.com/HeartOfTheWolf