If you didn’t pay attention in English class and the only Homer you know is the patriarch of The Simpsons, director Christopher Nolan has done you an enormous favor. He has delivered a stunning adaptation of the ancient 24 book epic poem The Odyssey written by Homer around the 7th century BC. It is thought to be oldest surviving piece of written text, probably compiled from oral tradition into a cohesive narrative by the ancient Greek poet Homer. If you’ve studied mythology at all, you’ll most likely be familiar with some of the tales contained in this film. Nolan said in interviews that he read 3 different versions of the Odyssey to write the script, so kudos to him. That’s a hero’s journey as much as the poem itself is!
Filmed in Morocco, Iceland, Greece, Italy, and Scotland, visually it’s a cinematic feast. Lit only by sunlight, lanterns, torches, and campfires, the darkness of a preindustrial past recreates an authentic setting. It’s all mist-covered mountains and mist-filled forests invoking a magical atmosphere to go along with the fantastical narrative content. Rugged landscapes and violent seas reflect the brutality of conflict – human against human, human against monster, and human against nature.
The short version of the story includes Odysseus’s 10-year involvement during the Trojan War as well as his 10-year peril-filled journey back to his home in Ithaca. There, his faithful wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) awaits his return while fending off an ever-increasing number of suitors who believe Odysseus won’t be coming back. Their infant son Telemachus has grown into a man (Tom Holland) and, although he would be the rightful king by birthright, Penelope knows that if she remarries, Telemachus would be “disappeared” by a new king. So, she waits.
Matt Damon does an admirable job of portraying Odysseus from a young king going off to war knowing he might not return to the aging, war-weary, grizzled man determined to get himself and his men home. Along the way they encounter many dangers including the cyclops Polyphemus, the sorceress Circe (Samantha Morton) who turns his men into pigs, the Sirens who lure sailors to their deaths with their enchanted song, and the nymph Calypso (Charlize Theron) who holds Odysseus captive as her lover using lotus leaves to erase his memory.
Throughout his 20-year ordeal, Odysseus is advised and often cautioned by the goddess Athena (Zendaya) visible and heard by only him. He doesn’t always listen. She tells him he must seek out the spirit of the dead prophet Tiresias (James Remar) in the portal of Hades to learn of his fate and his way home. This task becomes the most other-worldly and gruesome scene in the film. It also exposes Odysseus’s fatal flaw, always included in the motif of the hero’s journey, hubris. Mortals stumble when they ignore or defy the will of the gods through excessive pride, best exemplified in Odysseus’s statement: “After years of war, no one could stand between my men and home. Not even the gods.”
When Odysseus does return home, he’s disguised so he can evaluate the situation in Ithaca, as he must deal with the suitors. Not knowing her husband is in disguise, Penelope has devised a brilliant plan: The one who can string Odysseus’s bow and shoot an arrow through 12 aligned hatchets will be her choice. I think you’ll enjoy how this ruse plays out.
Other standouts in the cast include Robert Pattinson as the sleaziest of the suitors Antinous, and John Leguizamo as the loyal, aged, blind servant Eumaeus. Jon Bernthal also does a fine job as Menelaus, King of Mycenae, who fought and survived the Trojan War with Odysseus.
This film is quite long, 3 hours, but I didn’t hear a peep out of the audience. They were completely engrossed by it. In truth, you have to pay attention- it’s structured in a non-linear form going back and forth throughout the 20 year time span – to catch every detail in this exquisitely crafted film. Even the music reflects the time period as composer Ludwig Goransson fills his score with instruments from the era such as lutes and brass gongs.
I have only one complaint. Nolan chose American accents for his actors, and although they speak mainly formally, the script injects some casual language for some unknown reason. For example, Telemachus says “dad” and “mom” instead of father and mother. For me, that struck the wrong tone for the time period, a curious choice in my opinion.
The Odyssey was shot in IMAX, and I recommend you see it in the largest format available to you. Christopher Nolan has created a masterpiece. See it. – JoAnne Hyde
