Meet the Spartans
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The heroic Leonidas, armed with nothing but leather underwear and a cape, leads a ragtag group of thirteen Spartans to defend their homeland against the invading Persians (whose ranks include Ghost Rider, Rocky Balboa, the Transformers, and a hunchbacked Paris Hilton). No one is safe when the Spartans take on the biggest icons in pop culture!
What critics thought
One of the most comprehensively panned wide releases in recent memory, Meet the Spartans was savaged by nearly every critic who saw it for substituting pop-culture name-dropping for actual joke-writing. The Friedberg-Seltzer formula — pile on references, hope something lands — was singled out as the core failure, with recurring gags like the Spartans' ambiguous sexuality and the Pit of Death celebrity disposal wearing out their welcome almost immediately. Even the audience that showed up wasn't impressed.
“Lazy, lame and painfully unfunny, Meet the Spartans is yet another scrambled-genre parody.”
Variety
“Writer-directors Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer basically reprise the tired formula from their earlier efforts, which is to throw in as many pop culture references as possible to cover up the lack of any real wit.”
Frank Scheck·The Hollywood Reporter
“One of the most painfully bad comedies I've ever had to endure, and I've seen the collected works of Martin Lawrence, Tim Allen, Ice Cube AND Cedric the Entertainer.”
Garth Franklin·Dark Horizons
“After enduring the torturously unfunny Date Movie and Epic Movie, one could be forgiven for concluding that the art of cinematic parody was in terminal decline. This latest installment in Friedberg and Seltzer's franchise hammers a final nail into the coffin with an utterly atrocious collection of imbecilic skits... it's junk-food cinema at its worst.”
Radio Times
“Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, the team behind Meet the Spartans, prove that ridiculing other movies is much easier than making your own.”
Jeannette Catsoulis·The New York Times
Parents guide
- Violence
- moderate
- Sex
- moderate
- Profanity
- moderate
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- moderate
Genres
Comedy, Fantasy
Cast & Crew
Jason FriedbergDirector
Aaron SeltzerDirector
Travis Van WinkleSonio
Sean MaguireLeonidas
Carmen ElectraQueen Margo
Ken DavitianXerxes
Kevin SorboHauptmann
Diedrich BaderTraitoro
Method ManPersian Emissary
Ike BarinholtzDane Cook Look-a-Like / Bond Villain / Prophet
Lauren WalshPretty Girl
Tiffany HaddishUrban Girl
Jareb DauplaiseDilio
Phil MorrisMessenger
Christopher LennertzComposerMeet the Spartans
The heroic Leonidas, armed with nothing but leather underwear and a cape, leads a ragtag group of thirteen Spartans to defend their homeland against the invading Persians (whose ranks include Ghost Rider, Rocky Balboa, the Transformers, and a hunchbacked Paris Hilton). No one is safe when the Spartans take on the biggest icons in pop culture!
What critics thought
One of the most comprehensively panned wide releases in recent memory, Meet the Spartans was savaged by nearly every critic who saw it for substituting pop-culture name-dropping for actual joke-writing. The Friedberg-Seltzer formula — pile on references, hope something lands — was singled out as the core failure, with recurring gags like the Spartans' ambiguous sexuality and the Pit of Death celebrity disposal wearing out their welcome almost immediately. Even the audience that showed up wasn't impressed.
“Lazy, lame and painfully unfunny, Meet the Spartans is yet another scrambled-genre parody.”
Variety
“Writer-directors Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer basically reprise the tired formula from their earlier efforts, which is to throw in as many pop culture references as possible to cover up the lack of any real wit.”
Frank Scheck·The Hollywood Reporter
“One of the most painfully bad comedies I've ever had to endure, and I've seen the collected works of Martin Lawrence, Tim Allen, Ice Cube AND Cedric the Entertainer.”
Garth Franklin·Dark Horizons
“After enduring the torturously unfunny Date Movie and Epic Movie, one could be forgiven for concluding that the art of cinematic parody was in terminal decline. This latest installment in Friedberg and Seltzer's franchise hammers a final nail into the coffin with an utterly atrocious collection of imbecilic skits... it's junk-food cinema at its worst.”
Radio Times
“Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, the team behind Meet the Spartans, prove that ridiculing other movies is much easier than making your own.”
Jeannette Catsoulis·The New York Times
Parents guide
- Violence
- moderate
- Sex
- moderate
- Profanity
- moderate
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- moderate
Genres
Comedy, Fantasy
Cast & Crew
Jason FriedbergDirectorAaron SeltzerDirectorTravis Van WinkleSonioSean MaguireLeonidasCarmen ElectraQueen MargoKen DavitianXerxesKevin SorboHauptmannDiedrich BaderTraitoroMethod ManPersian EmissaryIke BarinholtzDane Cook Look-a-Like / Bond Villain / ProphetLauren WalshPretty GirlTiffany HaddishUrban GirlJareb DauplaiseDilioPhil MorrisMessengerChristopher LennertzComposerStream
Rent & Buy