"The Odyssey," Christopher Nolan's film adaptation of Homer's foundational story, puts the writer-director's decades' worth of technical mastery to great use. It's the film he's been building towards, and it could be his towering achievement.
"The Odyssey" stars an A-list roster of talent that includes Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron and Zendaya, among many others, but its biggest draw is the writer-director Christopher Nolan.
A new Nolan movie has become an eventised cinema experience, synonymous with a Marvel or Star Wars blockbuster. It's quite impressive seeing how his career took off when his early films were rooted in small-town mysteries, like the protagonist investigating his own traces in "Memento," or the lead writer's descent into the dangerous underbellies of London in "Following." But looking back, after he's won his two Oscars and has helmed large-scale films that resulted in combined billions of dollars at the worldwide box office, the appeal of a Christopher Nolan film is in the grounded humanity of his characters. This is how he wove his complex dream-within-a-dream movie into a reflection of his marriage, and transformed his Batman into a commentary on moral order.
"The Odyssey" is as grounded as Nolan's previous works, more comparable to his last film, "Oppenheimer." Both films are similar in terms of scope and style, and share the theme of men reflecting on the consequences of their actions as war heroes. J. Robert Oppenheimer is the personification of Death, the destroyer of worlds, as Odysseus (Matt Damon) is the man who broke Zeus' law (a sacred principle where men should treat their world with equal hospitality) by sacking Troy and changing society for good.
Odysseus is strong, but he is mostly burdened. His years-long voyage from his home Ithaca, and his even longer attempt to return, are interrupted by unique challenges to overcome, from escaping the cave of the giant cyclops Polyphemus to persuading the Gods to spare him and his men from the curses that come their way. These are wonderfully realised by Nolan and his technical team, putting the POV on Odysseus and his group instead of on the sweeping landscape. This has only made "The Odyssey" and its fantastical setting appear as grounded and realistic as possible, which was also put to best use in the final stretch of the film, where the story becomes more intimate.
"The Odyssey" marks the first time a narrative feature film is filmed entirely using IMAX film cameras. IMAX theatres are the optimal place to see this film. It's majestic, but given the scope of the film's setting, I wish Nolan could've played around beyond the limits of its visuals.
"The Odyssey" is Nolan's towering achievement. I've made a similar point in my "Oppenheimer" review, discussing how that was the film Nolan was building towards. It rings true for this film too, more fittingly since you can tell that Batman, "Interstellar," and even "Tenet" production work has finally paid off. It will be interesting to see where he goes from here. An epic of bigger scale? Or a smaller story? Either way, we're in good hands.
“The Odyssey” gets ★★★★★.
@filmgeekguy THE ODYSSEY (2026) REVIEW ⚔️🎥📜 Christopher Nolan's works are always exciting, because how do you even go from directing a small-town mystery thriller like Memento to adapting Homer? THE ODYSSEY is the spiritual successor to Nolan's last film OPPENHEIMER. Both films are similar in terms of scope, style and the theme of men reflecting on the consequences of their actions as war heroes. THE ODYSSEY also continues Nolan's exploration of homecoming that's been prominent in most of his films. This is undoubtedly up there with Nolan's best films, and even with a fantastical setting, it is very much a human story. #TheOdyssey #ChristopherNolan #MovieReview #FilmGeekGuy
♬ original sound - Film Geek Guy
“The Odyssey” is now showing in cinemas.
Featured images from Universal.
Comments
Post a Comment