The long-awaited cinematic event that is Christopher Nolan’s 13th feature film adaptation of The Odyssey is finally here in all its IMAX celluloid glory.
Well, for at least a couple of cities. The rest of us have to make do with standard digital projections, digital “LieMAX”, Laser IMAX, or, if you are lucky enough that your local theater installed a 70mm film projector, the 70mm film experience.
Anyway, if you want to see The Odyssey, I implore you to go see it in a theater. This is definitely a cinematic experience that should not be viewed only on a television screen or, Gods forbid, your cell phone, computer, or tablet. This is an imposing tale told on a grandiose scale meant for the big screen.
The literal definition of Homeric.
Homer’s epic tale of the 10-year tragedy-filled journey of Odysseus to his waiting wife and son is lovingly brought to screen with Nolan’s keen, sometimes obsessive eye for detail, cinematic scale, and, well, epic epicness.
Odysseus faced many obstacles on his long quest to return home to his wife and son. Nolan faces the daunting task of turning the 12,109-line poem, broken up into 24 books, into a coherent visual masterpiece that is accessible to the masses.
Did he accomplish this mighty task?
I would say he did for the most part.
Judging by the smorgasbord of audience members at the screening I attended, the audience seemed riveted by the incredibly long but provocative film. Nary a soul left their seats to use the restroom, and that is saying something.
Checking in at 172 minutes, just shy of the 3-hour mark, The Odyssey demands a commitment from its viewers. Not only did the viewers remain seated, they were downright invested in the fate of Odysseus, his men, and also in the fate of Penelope, Odysseus’ ever-faithful wife, who never lost hope of her errant husband’s return. The audience was loath to witness the disrespect and outright abhorrent behavior of the would-be suitors of Penelope’s hand. In her own house, I may add. Not to mention the suitors’ disrespect and disregard of Telemachus, Odysseus’ grown son. The ending heard cheers of approval and witnessed applause of righteous gratification when the cumuppence is finally dispensed.
The Odyssey, as mentioned before, tells the story of the arduous attempt of Odysseus and his fellow soldiers to return to Ithaca, their home.
After the brutal 10-year war on the shores of Troy, all the soldiers/sailors want to do is return to their homes and families. A seemingly simple task, but for clever Odysseus it will be a difficult one, fraught with peril and death. His ultimate salvation will require the sacrifice of those who trusted him with their very lives. For this is the time of the Gods of Olympus, led by Zeus, the most vengeful and petty of them all. Zeus not only demands the fealty of man but also the cooperation and subservience of the lesser gods around him. This is also a seemingly magical time where the unexplained is passed off as the will of the gods.
At Troy, an exhausted but still crafty Odysseus used his cunning and his sharp mind to fool the Trojans, break the armies’ stalemate, and ultimately win the war for Greece.
But at what cost?
The tale of The Odyssey is the outstanding balance of Odysseus’ ingenuity repaid tenfold unto him. Odysseus’ contempt of the Gods and his outright denial of their rule over him may be his ultimate undoing.
Matt Damon as Odysseus has captured the pain inherent in the duality of a moral man’s willingness to abandon those morals to achieve his goals when he knows his actions are wrong. Anne Hathaway is incredible as Penelope. Robert Patterson continuously surprises me with the breadth of his abilities in his performance as the POS head suitor, Antinuous. Tom Holland shines bright as Odysseus’ son Telemachus, and Lupita Nyong’o’s dual role as both Helen and Clytemnestra is goddamned inspired. Nyong’o continues to be one of my favorite actors of all time.
All the actors are perfectly cast, and some are pleasantly surprising. I would have never in a million years cast the actor playing Menaleus; however, he is friggin brilliant. If you don’t know, then go in blind. It is a treat.
Christopher Nolan has created a beautiful and concise retelling of the legend of Odysseus in an easy-to-handle, digestible way so that today’s audience can appreciate this epic story full of questionable ethics, enlightened decisions, brutality, and horrors.
Speaking of horrors, I was not prepared for but relished and appreciated the surprise body horror sequence. It is an ingenious interpretation of that particular sequence of the story. You will know what I am talking about when you see it. Trust me.
In fact, one of the things this film accomplishes magnificently is the often unsettling and upsetting tone of the trials throughout Odysseus’ sojourn.
Nolan has indeed achieved what I believe he set out to do.
I say this as someone who has read The Odyssey multiple times and still has no qualms about saying I am no scholar on the subject. I am one who appreciates the telling of the tale.
As a kid, my love of the stories of Greek myths exploded for a hot moment thanks to the 1983 film Clash of the Titans and the reruns of the Ray Harryhausen films of the 60’s and 70’s on local UHF shows like Creature Double Feature. In those films, the Greek myths really came to life for me.
I first read The Odyssey in high school, along with its predecessor, The Iliad. I will admit that, though I was mildly interested in them. Like most kids my age, they didn’t grab me. I couldn’t grasp them or enjoy them the way I wanted to. I think it was the translation we were reading. They were not advantageous for teaching a modern kid. Thank the Gods we have newer, more accessible translations available to us these days.
During lockdown, I was introduced to a book entitled A Thousand Ships, an exceptional retelling of the fall of Troy. This time, the story of Homer’s The Iliad is completely from the perspective of the women who endured the decade-long siege. Written by classicist, broadcaster, and comedian Natalie Haynes, it is a brilliant read. And I highly recommend it.
It reignited my love of Greek mythology. I read all Haynes’s offerings and more. I also revisited both The Iliad and The Odyssey in a couple of the past translations, as well as the newer one by Emily Wilson, which I absolutely loved. I also recently rewatched the director’s cut of Wolfgang Petersen’s roiling sword and sandals 2004 epic, Troy. A dubious retelling of The Iliad. Man, I love/hate that movie.
When I heard that Nolan was following his Academy Award-winning biopic of Oppenheimer with Homer’s The Odyssey, I was cautiously optimistic. I am about 50/50 on Nolan’s films, and he has left me wanting for the most part rather than satisfied. The Odyssey, however, is a grand piece of cinema. A heroic task at that.
I will end this review with the absolute fact that I know it will require multiple viewings of Nolan’s The Odyssey to fairly critique it. There was a lot to unpack. From what he chose to tell, how he chose to tell it, and more importantly, what he chose to omit from the story. I am not going to lie, there were a few things I thought that were curious he omitted. As well as the parts that he chose to truncate and or combine to streamline the plot and shorten the run time.
The Odyssey as well as The Iliad” truly require a full mega-budget two-season TV series with an episode focusing on each individual book of the respective poems. I already have tickets to see the 70mm film version again and the full IMAX film experience in a week or so, and I look forward to seeing things I may have missed.
I can’t wait to see it again.
* * * * *
Produced by Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan
Based on Homer’s Odyssey
Written and Directed by Christopher Nolan
Starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson
Lupita Nyong’o, Samantha Morton, Zendaya, Charlize Theron
