Known for his mind-bending stories and practical filmmaking prowess, writer and director Christopher Nolan has embarked on his most ambitious feature to date. Shot entirely with unwieldy IMAX 70mm cameras to craft immense scale and textured quality, action fantasy The Odyssey is an adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek poem. The plot follows Odysseus (Matt Damon), the ruler of Ithaca who left his kingdom to fight in the Trojan War. With his wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) and their son Telemachus (Tom Holland) left behind to fend off potential suitors such as Antinous (Robert Pattinson) in his absence, he encounters gods and monsters including the wise Athena (Zendaya) and mysterious Circe (Samantha Morton) on his long and perilous journey home.
No stranger to a non-linear structure, Nolan’s episodic narrative is broken into different timelines; scenes are often presented as stories regaled from one character to another, which adds to the sprawling mythology of the text and allows for a compelling exploration of guilt, memories, and legacy. The director’s male protagonists are often haunted by the consequences of their choices, going back as far as Memento to as recent as Oppenheimer. These existential themes are revisited through Odysseus, and the clever way in which the legendary sacking of Troy is illustrated provides a satisfying arc to the story.
From a technical standpoint, this is a towering achievement that builds upon the inventive style he has cultivated throughout his illustrious career. The sheer scope of the set-pieces is incredible, from an intense battle against cyclops shepherd Polyphemus, a horror-infused run-in with Circe, and various amazing sequences on choppy waters. Reuniting with past collaborators such as cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema and composer Ludwig Göransson, it’s a remarkable feat of old-school filmmaking that’s refreshingly unreliant on CGI. Even with its lengthy runtime of just under three hours, the action is expertly paced and feels swift for its weight.
As you would expect for a piece of this magnitude, the ensemble is packed full of big names – a veritable who’s who of Hollywood talent. In his third outing with the director, Matt Damon gives a fantastic leading performance. Undergoing a physical transformation that reflects his character’s challenging voyage, it’s a truly dedicated turn and he carries the burden of evolving emotion on his face throughout. Others don’t fare so well within the mixed-bag cast and you could argue there are just too many stars with mere cameo appearances that are unable to make their mark. The acting from Pattinson, Mia Goth, and Jon Bernthal feels tonally askew, but Samantha Morton, Lupita Nyong’o, and Zendaya impress with their limited roles.
Christopher Nolan is at his best when adapting works of others because when his scripts have limitations in place, he is freed up to push boundaries elsewhere. The Odyssey is perhaps the best example of this so far and is up there with his greatest accomplishments alongside Dunkirk and The Dark Knight. An opening title card tells us this tale takes place “in a time of apparent magic” and within an arts landscape shrouded in digital effects and AI, this epically cinematic trick is something to behold.
Cinema Perspective 