I recently watched Christopher Nolan’s take on The Odyssey, and I was not disappointed. While I don’t think it’s the best adaptation of Homer’s epic, it was still a thoroughly entertaining movie. It isn’t historically accurate, but I don’t think that’s a fair criticism to make of a fantasy movie.
While Nolan’s film still features many of the supernatural elements of the story, it still manages to be a more grounded version of the story. Focusing mainly on the human elements of the story, it maintains the core story with less of the gods.
The story’s structure felt a little confusing near the beginning. I’ve read the epic, so I understood what was happening, however I was curious if people not familiar with Odysseus would be able to follow the story. Much of the story is told in flashbacks as other characters tell the stories of their voyage home from Troy. It seemed like it would be hard to to follow at first, however once it gets going everyone is caught up on the overall structure and the details are filled in as the film progresses.
As an adaptation, it inevitably makes changes to the story. What works in an epic poem doesn’t always work on a cinema screen. For me, I was disappointed with the cyclops. In the poem Odysseus is forced to reason with him, and ultimately trick him in order to get him and his men out of its cave. In the film the cyclops is reduced to a generic monster that the crew simply runs away from.
Of course, I was very happy with the ending. The whole move I was waiting for the slaughter of the suitors, and the film doesn’t hold back. While not as violent as the poem, which gleefully describes each kill in gory detail, it was still a satisfying ending to the film.
There were other changes, such as Telemachus’ journey being shorter, and Odysseus not wanting to go to war which are sensible choices. In a film you can still have Telemachus learn all he needs to know without having to send him multiple places, and Odysseus’ hesitance for war is described in later myths about him.
Sinon is a great addition that gives emotional weight to the film. Elliot Page’s role seems very small at first, but the scene where he returns from the land of the dead to give Odysseus further motivation to return home is one of the best in the movie and leads to a very satisfying payoff.
Odysseus himself is a little different. He’s portrayed as more of a tragic hero than the morally ambiguous trickster he is in the epic, but I think that is a change needed to hold a modern audience’s interest. His guilt over the Trojan Horse and the defying of Zeus’ Law is what holds the entire film together, delivering a message that is both anti-war and about welcoming the stranger.
One thing I don’t like about the movie is the general aesthetic. Nolan brings the world to a more grounded, gritty, and almost realistic setting which is a perfectly fine choice. But it leads to a movie that is very brown and grey, with dull colours. Even the monsters in the movie are “generic brown thing with teeth.” I’d love to see a version of this movie that isn’t afraid to use vibrant colours, something I feel a visual medium should take advantage of.
Something I’ve heard a lot of complaints about is the historical inaccuracy of the film. I don’t see this as a problem. The original poem is one of the earliest examples of the unreliable narrator trope, with much of the story being Odysseus explaining what happened to his crew. Even within the story itself, it’s uncertain if Odysseus is telling the truth, and it leaves the audience wondering how much of it, especially the fantasy elements, are actually true.
It also include anachronisms of its own, with people wearing armour that couldn’t have existed in the time the story is set. Even the epic poem was adapted for the audience it was presented to. So, for me, telling a good story is more important than being perfectly historically accurate. As long as its internally consistent, I don’t have any problem with inaccuracies most people won’t notice until it’s pointed out to them.
The performances are great. Two standouts to me are Robert Pattinson as Antinous, one of Penelope’s suitors, and Elliot Page as the young soldier who was betrayed by Odysseus. Pattinson’s performance is especially fun, he makes you really hate the character, sometimes just the look in his eyes makes you want him to face a blade.
Overall I’d say this is a really well put together adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey. It’s entertaining, full of intrigue, and hits many of the major points people will recognise if they’ve read the epic.
