Rating: ****
Review Date: 8/31/26
Director: Christopher Nolan
Cast: Matt Damon, Tom Holland, John Leguizamo, Anne Hathaway,
Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron, Lupita Nyong'o, Elliot Page, Mia Goth,
John Bernthal, Zendaya
After fighting at the Battle Of Troy for ten years, King Odysseus of Ithaca (Matt Damon) receives orders to return home. Unfortunately, that journey takes an additional ten years and leaves all of his crewmates dead. Worse still, his homecoming isn't particularly welcoming, as his wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) has been relentlessly harassed by boorish suitors who are also plotting to kill their son, Telemachus (Tom Holland). But Odysseus is known as the wisest and craftiest of the Greeks, and also has the favor of the gods (even though he defies them), which miraculously allows him to survive the numerous ordeals he encounters. He also spends several years in the company of a seductive sea nymph named Calypso (Charlize Theron), who makes him forget about his family and his desire to go home.
Having not read Homer's "Odyssey" since high school (which was 40 years ago), I can't really speak to how close the adaptation is, but it hits the highlights that I remember, namely the cyclops, the sirens, and Circe. While director Christopher Nolan might have wanted to make a Ray Harryhausen fantasy adventure, he goes for more straight-up horror than fantasy, and Odysseus's adventures are more like traumatic ordeals and endless punishment than tales of action and heroism. He also treats Odysseus's foes with sympathy, and while the cyclops Polyphemus is a horrifying and extremely unsettling creature, he is also a miserable and pitiable one. Similarly, the witch Circe is a terrifying, but sympathetic character who is handled with a soft and merciful hand. However, in the book Odysseus stays with her as a lover for a year, whereas in the movie, he and his men are gone in less than a day. The characters that are truly contemptuous are Penelope's suitors, led by a supremely slimy Robert Pattinson, and we can't wait to see them die by Odysseus's hand.
What's interesting is the almost complete lack of representation by the gods of Olympus. Harryhausen's films depicted the gods meddling in the affairs of men and women as if they were playthings, and appearing to them in supernatural ways. In the original "Iliad" and "Odyssey," the gods were responsible for nearly everyone's actions, and there didn't seem to be the slightest notion of free will. But in Nolan's film, the gods only exist as natural phenomena: wind, rain, storms, and fire. They're mentioned only occasionally in passing, and have very little to do with Odysseus's journey. The only exception is Athena (or a priestess of Athena, who Odysseus witnessed being murdered at Troy) who appears to Odysseus in visions, seemingly as a manifestation of his guilt and conscience.
As far as the film goes, it's a superbly crafted production, but at three hours, it's way too long. While I was fully engaged and never felt bored, it seems like it definitely could have been trimmed by at least thirty minutes. It's a beautiful film, but surprisingly subtle and subdued. Nothing really stands out as spectacular, and even the visual effects are very straight forward and matter-of-fact. Similarly, the music score is effectively non-existent, and much like Denis Villeneuve's "Dune" (2021), it mostly uses abstract soundscapes to create atmosphere, mood, and tension, rather than traditional orchestral melodies. As such, you don't get the sensation of drama and heroics, only dread and foreboding. It's certainly not a feel-good movie, except at the very end when Odysseus finally opens up a can of whoop-ass on his deplorable enemies.
It took me a few weeks to get around to seeing the film due to health issues, and I read a lot of different views and criticisms that made me wary about seeing it. Fortunately, all of the hot political takes on the film are complete bullshit, and Elon Musk's xenophobic rants about the film just add to his increasingly long record of embarrassment, shame, and humiliation as a raving madman who has lost touch with reality. I didn't pick up on anything even remotely Trumpian, and the film remained firmly in antiquity, with the exception of its contemporary dialog. In fact, the only thing that bothered me in the entire film was when Odysseus says, "Our age of bronze is ending," which makes absolutely no sense. The Bronze Age was named by historians and archeologists, not the people living at the time. That seems like a huge and obvious gaffe that should have been caught before it was ever filmed. Overall, I enjoyed the film, and having been shot in 70mm IMAX, it should definitely be seen on the largest screen possible.