Movie Review: ‘The Odyssey’

Opening in theaters on July 17 is ‘The Odyssey,’ written for the screen and directed by Christopher Nolan, and starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Jon Bernthal, Samantha Morton, John Leguizamo, and Charlize Theron.

​Opening in theaters on July 17 is ‘The Odyssey,’ written for the screen and directed by Christopher Nolan, and starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Jon Bernthal, Samantha Morton, John Leguizamo, and Charlize Theron.   

Opening in theaters on July 17 is ‘The Odyssey,’ written for the screen and directed by Christopher Nolan, and starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Jon Bernthal, Samantha Morton, John Leguizamo, and Charlize Theron.

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Initial Thoughts

It seems these days that nobody makes bigger movies than Christopher Nolan. Following in the footsteps of David Lean, Steven Spielberg, and James Cameron, Nolan writes and directs films that simply swallow you whole and immerse you completely in whatever world he’s creating. So it makes perfect sense that he would take on an adaptation of the original adventure story, Homer’s epic Greek poem ‘The Odyssey.’

A seminal ancient Greek myth (and, let’s make it clear, not one based on historical fact), ‘The Odyssey’ is filled with monsters, escapes, romance, political intrigue, war, bloodshed, magic, and more. Nolan crams all of that into the film’s nearly three-hour runtime, with the film’s top-notch technical aspects – from the cinematography to the production design to the costumes – enveloping the viewer completely in a lost, ancient world while providing a narrative and themes that speak directly to our own modern one. It’s not a perfect film, but when ‘The Odyssey’ gets really cranking, it’s one of the most intense, absorbing cinematic experiences of this or any year.

Story and Direction

Nolan takes what we’d call a normal number of liberties with Homer’s text that any screenwriter would take with the original source material, omitting subplots, combining characters, and reordering events. But the basic plot remains intact: following the events of the Trojan War, the king of Ithaca, Odysseus (Matt Damon), and his men begin their journey home after Odysseus’ plan to hide a battalion inside a large wooden gift horse allows the Greeks to sack the city of Troy and win the war.

Yet their voyage takes years and is fraught with various dangers, including encounters with the Cyclops known as Polyphemus (Bill Irwin), a witch named Circe (Samantha Morton) who turns Odysseus’ men into pigs, sirens whose voices lure men to their deaths, a visit to the realm of the dead, and battles with other monsters. Meanwhile, back in Ithaca, Odysseus’ wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) and son Telemachus (Tom Holland) wait for either the king’s return or news of his fate. Dozens of greedy, boorish suitors – including the scheming, wily Antinous (Robert Pattinson) – vie to take the throne by competing to win Penelope’s hand, with only Penelope’s resolve and Telemachus, the rightful but untested heir, standing in their way.

Just as substantial portions of Homer’s poem are told in flashbacks or related as stories, so too does Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ begin with the throne of Ithaca up for grabs and Odysseus living on a remote island with no memory of the war or his family, thanks to the machinations of the nymph Calypso (Charlize Theron), who wants him to remain with her. As Odysseus’ memory gradually returns – with the help of the goddess Athena (Zendaya), who watches over him – and others fill in parts of the story, the saga of the end of the Trojan War and Odysseus’ fateful voyage home takes shape.

This is a narrative structure Nolan has used many times before – in everything from ‘Memento’ to his Oscar-winning ‘Oppenheimer’ – and initially, like in a number of his films, the time-shifting sequence of events makes it difficult for the viewer to get their bearings. This, the rapid introduction of a slew of characters and relationships, and the episodic nature of the movie’s first half in particular – as Odysseus and his men bounce from one island to the next, battling one menace after another in rapid succession with little time for each incident to breathe – are perhaps the film’s biggest drawbacks and make the story and its pacing rough going at first.

Luckily, all other craft aspects of the film are astonishing in their depth and detail, while Nolan’s glittering cast keeps the interest high even when the narrative stumbles (with one caveat which we’ll get to later). And the individual sequences themselves, even if some seem a bit hurried, are mostly incredibly effective. Nolan has never tackled horror per se, but the encounters with the grotesque Polyphemus and the mysterious Circe – who literally sculpts Odysseus’ men into swine – are full-on, genuinely terrifying excursions into the genre.

The trip past the island of the sirens is also striking, as Odysseus has himself tied to the mast so he can hear their song, while he orders his men to stuff wax in their ears; his tormented response to the song is their only indication of the effect it has. The cumulative effect of all the adventures of Odysseus and his crew is to create the impression of a world that’s still largely unknown outside the tiny borders of human civilization – a world where ancient, primordial entities and powers still exist and where both nature and the supernatural must not be disrespected at one’s peril.

As ‘The Odyssey’ spirals toward its relentless, gripping third act, human treachery and evil take center stage as Odysseus finally recalls the full horror of the Trojan War and what it means for the fragile human civilization of the Bronze Age. In this way, ‘The Odyssey’ finds itself not just in conversation with our own present-day realities, but with ‘Oppenheimer,’ as one man’s actions unleash dark, apocalyptic forces on humanity. These final scenes, which possess an almost unbearable intensity as Odysseus fights his last and deadliest battle, are where ‘The Odyssey’ achieves true profundity and greatness.

Even with the flaws mentioned earlier, the rest of the film offers much to savor. Visually and aesthetically, there isn’t a single moment where you don’t believe you’re in the world of the ancient Greeks. Yes, we know that there are historians out there who have been questioning the accuracy of things like the armor or the boats, but as one historian noted: this is a myth, folks — we really don’t know what these things looked like.

The world and scale of the film is rich, all-encompassing, and believable from start to finish, while Nolan, DP Hoyte van Hoytema, and the visual effects teams compose one seamless shot after another, breathlessly moving from bright sunshine to ominous mists to near-dark torchlight with a remarkable level of detail due to shooting the whole thing in IMAX. The icing on this tremendous cake is Ludwig Göransson’s pounding score, evoking both ancient balladry and crushing tribal rhythms (note: some dialogue was difficult to hear at our screening in Universal Studios’ AMC CityWalk IMAX theater).

Cast and Performances

Let’s address two things right off the bat: first, yes, hearing everyone speak in American accents and using words like ‘dad’ or ‘f**k’ (although there was probably an ancient Greek equivalent) is a bit jarring and not entirely successful at times. Fair enough. Second, the much-discussed right-wing outcry over the casting of actors like Lupita Nyong’o and Elliot Page is nonsense, fueled not by any good intentions about accuracy – remember, these people didn’t exist – but by pure racism and transphobia, respectively.

Nyong’o and Page are both fine in their relatively small roles, with Page’s Sinon a bit more crucial to a key plot point. As for our leads, we were worried about Damon coming across as too modern but he’s excellent, bringing a world-weariness and inner torment to Odysseus, as well as a thick beard and careworn face that make him credible as an exhausted king and warrior who just wants to get home but is haunted by what he might find there – or in himself.

Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson are terrific as well, with Holland’s Telemachus growing in confidence and courage while Pattinson peels away the smooth surface of Antinous to reveal the cowardly schemer beneath. But our MVP in this altogether outstanding cast? Anne Hathaway. She is nothing short of extraordinary as Penelope, who holds it down for 13 years as only a woman can, her love for her husband, son, and home in conflict with her own political instincts and her fierce resolve to keep an encroaching darkness at bay any way she can. Nods as well to John Leguizamo and Samantha Morton, both excellent in key supporting roles.

Final Thoughts

Christopher Nolan gives one of the world’s oldest and most essential tales all the respect and majesty it’s due in ‘The Odyssey.’ While this filmmaker’s quirks and blind spots tend to always manifest in one way or another in each of his films, that doesn’t take away from his accomplishments here. The word ‘visionary’ truly applies to this director, whose clarity of purpose and assemblage of top-shelf cast, crew, and craftspeople is just about second to none.

Nolan has taken a text that’s thousands of years old and made it into grand, spectacular entertainment for audiences in the year 2026 and beyond. That’s a testament to not just his skills but the timeless nature of the story itself. Almost overwhelming in its scope and texture, ‘The Odyssey’ is a cinematic voyage unlike any other.

‘The Odyssey’ receives a score of 85 out of 100.

What is the plot of ‘The Odyssey’?

Following the Trojan War, Odysseus, the legendary Greek king of Ithaca, begins a long and perilous journey home, encountering mythical beings and monsters while attempting to reunite with his wife, Penelope.

Who is in the cast of ‘The Odyssey’?

Matt Damon as OdysseusTom Holland as TelemachusAnne Hathaway as PenelopeRobert Pattinson as AntinousLupita Nyong’o as Helen of Troy/ClytemnestraSamantha Morton as CirceZendaya as AthenaCharlize Theron as CalypsoJon Bernthal as MenelausJohn Leguizamo as EumaeusHimesh Patel as EurylochusCorey Hawkins as PolybusMia Goth as MelanthoElliot Page as SinonBenny Safdie as AgamemnonBill Irwin as Polyphemus

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