Monsters, Gods, and "Dad"

The Odyssey is absolutely worth your time, but it's lighter than it thinks it is

I went to see The Odyssey yesterday, on opening day. At the time of this writing, it has overwhelmingly positive reviews, including 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. I will be that guy: I think the praise is overblown. To me, it's maybe a solid 75%.

The movie is a pure cinematic experience, - the kind we don't get much of anymore. I'd definitely recommend you go see it. But I’d urge you not to go in with sky-high expectations. I did. I enjoyed it, liked it very much, but I was also half-disappointed.

I say this as someone who is reasonably knowledgeable about Greek mythology and who already knew all the high points of Homer's Odyssey. So I'd be curious to hear the reaction of someone who knew nothing, or very little, beforehand.

Anyway, here is my take, in bullet points:

• I found it more pretentious than profound.

• There were long monologues (and duologues) that wanted to sound deep, but I felt they didn’t really earn their emotional or visceral impact.

• I know this is Homer’s material, and it is supposed to be epic and mythical (i.e. not realistic), but my suspension of disbelief was interrupted too many times. For example, I couldn’t help but constantly notice the difference between the number of men aboard the ships and the number who appeared once they went inland.

• Nolan says it’s an artistic choice he fully owns, but I didn’t like that the movie’s dialogue was in modern, Americanized English. I think it robs the film of some of the mythic gravitas it needs. For example, Telemachus referring to Odysseus as “Dad” or “my dad,” - instead of the obviously better choice of “Father” or “my father,” - grated on me.

• And last, I found the acting pretty good, but the casting felt like a combination of “who’s hot in 2026” + “let’s pack it with star power” + “let’s sprinkle that with some diversity.” I have absolutely nothing against any of those ingredients, but here the combination feels oddly mismatched to the material.

  And that’s without even mentioning that almost no one looked Greek in a story that took place in ancient Greece.

My bottom line: Absolutely go see it. It is grand, impressive, and cinematic.

You will enjoy three good hours of escapism. It’s a faithful retelling of Homer’s Odyssey, a Hollywood version that does the job very competently.

But to me, it was emotionally thinner and less timeless than the movie seems to think it is.

This often happens when you build images, characters, and an entire world in your head, based on your reading. That carries a weight that you cherish. And then, someone else does that build for you and put their version on the screen. Sometimes it’s magical. Other times, it’s a robbery, you want your own version back.

This time, it is somewhere in between. A very good movie. But not an epic one.

Unlike the poem.

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