Hello!

It feels only right that my first post talks about Christopher Nolan's Odyssey adaptation that has just come out recently!

Nolan's Odyssey came out on July 17th and of course I went to see it soon after. I actually wrote my dissertation on film adaptations of the Odyssey and Iliad - unfortunately I did graduate in 2026 too, so the Odyssey only just missed out on some scrutiny in my dissertation. 

As far as action/hero films go on a generic basis, the Odyssey is a tough competitor to the rest out there. Nolan's created a cinematically excellent film that engages the audience from the very beginning. However, I do think its impossible not to notice the small idiosyncrasies and annoying plot holes when you are well versed on the topic. 

The casting of these films are so typically strategic, Nolan's casting of Matt Damon as Odysseus, mirrors that of Brad Pitt as Achilles (Troy, 2004). Achilles is glory, rage and sex appeal; whereas Odysseus is crafty and cunning. Both Brad and Matt are cast perfectly for these roles. 

The plot holes are where it got fun for me to have a deeper think about Nolan's approach to the Odyssey. While it is obviously impossible to reflect every event that happens in a 3000 year old epic, I do think it would've been good if some of it was explained or even a slight mention. 

Firstly, Circe is painted out as this selfish, quick tempered, man-hater living on an island alone. They go to the island, she turns them into pigs and then Odysseus gives her a quick pep talk and then they all run back to the boat happily together. Nolan misses out the section where Odysseus seduces Circe into turning his men back to their original forms and also neglecting to show how he stays on the island for a year, playing house with Circe until his men say 'hey can we leave now please'. Madeline Miller's Circe offers a closer look into her character depth and the psychological complexity she holds which is a much better depiction in my opinion. Although, I do have to say the graphics of this scene were very impressive for the minimal CGI used, gross and terrifying but I will give Nolan some credit on that. 

The only other two problems I really had was the absence of the bag of winds and the Phoenicians.

The bag of winds is opened by one of Odysseus' men when they were almost home only a year or two into their journey, stupidly they opened it and it blew them all the way back across the sea! Nice one guys! I can understand leaving this out as it takes some of the journey's focus on Odysseus away but I mean I feel that's a pretty crucial part of why it took him ten years... This isn't a huge plot hole for me just think it's funny that it isn't there. 

And then, this is the most confusing part that was left out for me, the Phoenicians and princess Nausicaa. Odysseus, after losing all of his men, washed up naked on the Phoenicians island, where he is found by princess Nausicaa and taken to the palace where he receives some lovely hospitality/Xenia, or Zeus law as they refer to it in the film. In Homer's epic the Phoenicians give Odysseus a boat and a team of men tasked with taking him home, which they did and Odysseus got off the boat and made his way  home fine and dandy! The men who took him there however, got killed by Poseidon, bless them and their lovely hospitality ended up in their deaths... I think it is an interesting change of events for Nolan to just have Odysseus leave Calypso's island on his little raft and teleport home, just like that!

However, with all that said, I think it's tough to criticise a film adaptation of the odyssey too much as there is just far too much content to cover in a film anyways. The film is already 3 hours long as it is. 

I will also say that Robert Pattersons' casting of Antinous was excellent and perfect, he captured the cowardice and almost comical aspect of the Homeric character perfectly, so kudos to him! 

Overall, I enjoyed the film a lot but I think it's a better film to those who don't have extensive knowledge of Homeric epics and Greek mythology - Which was perfectly explained by Emily Wilson's review of the film... 

And yes, I will give Nolan kudos on how the stringing of the bow was a very cool and visually exciting scene and is relatively  true to the Homeric context. 

C

hristopher nolan’s $250 million action movie version of Homer’s ancient Greek poem is an entertaining way to hide from the high temperatures for a few hours. Nolan’s trademark jumps and twists in the narrative structure are relatively easy to follow, and appropriate for The Odyssey, a narrative of tales nested in tales. My teenagers had a good time. Unlike some of Nolan’s other films, The Odyssey is not boring, thanks to the source material, which is impossible to mess up entirely. It’s a family-friendly audiovisual spectacle, like an elaborate Fourth of July fireworks display – and with about the same level of narrative and emotional depth.

(This review is a bit harsher than what my thoughts are but nonetheless an interesting read! And after all if there's someone to ask for a brutal review, it would be Emily Wilson)