Truly epic in every sense, from the scope of the story to the practical effects, cinematography, and large-format presentation. What Christopher Nolan has accomplished with IMAX cameras, mirrors, and in-camera photography is a true technical achievement (even if the focus-pulling occasionally misses in some close-ups). This is an enormous undertaking, and Nolan and his cast and crew deserve tremendous credit.
The story jumps around in time, no surprise from Nolan. It makes the opening act somewhat difficult to follow, but eventually I settled in. To me, the strength of the film are a handful of spectacular sequences, the Cyclops, the animal witch, and the forest giants among them, which are suspenseful and visually stunning. But to me, the film has its moments that drag. Perhaps that’s faithful to Homer’s original poem, perhaps it’s the diminishing patience of modern audiences. Either way, I suspect the pacing will be the film’s most common criticism.
Another Nolan partnership with composer Ludwig Göransson. His droning, atonal score has become a trademark for Nolan, and here it’s further enriched with deep, pounding drums that convey a military vibe and an adrenalin-filled heartbeat. The music is effective, but leaning on these scores to heighten the drama has become something of a crutch for Nolan. Strip away the music and let the scenes stand on their own, and I suspect many viewers would complain about how boring the film was.
Matt Damon is well cast as Odysseus. The role demands someone who can play weary, determined, and smart, and Damon delivers. He proved he could pack on muscle in the Bourne movies, and rippage at age 54 is impressive. Could someone else have played Odysseus? There aren’t many grizzled leading men of the right age, but Christian Bale, Chris Pratt, Hugh Jackman, or even Karl Urban might have been able to pull it off.
The youthful Tom Holland brings the right energy to Telemachus, though he looks a bit goofy in his final shot as king. Anne Hathaway, John Leguizamo, Robert Pattinson, Samantha Morton, Charlize Theron, Zendaya, Jon Bernthal, and Lupita Nyong’o fill out a shockingly good supporting cast that turns in nice supporting performances. Himesh Patel is particularly effective as Odysseus’ soulful companion. Elliot Page has only a small role but brings genuine gravitas. Early rumors that he would portray Hercules thankfully proved false, which is good because that might have been too much of a stretch.
The film’s diverse casting has generated predictable controversy. If historical authenticity were the primary goal, Homer’s characters, heroes, and gods would almost certainly have been imagined as Mycenaean Greeks, people with traditional Mediterranean features and coloring. The Greeks of Homer’s time surely encountered many different cultures and races through war and trade, but I suspect Homer did not have these other races in mind for the most important characters of his stories. Telling this story with appropriately Greek-looking actors would show loyalty to the source material.
But there’s another angle to this. The Odyssey is mythology, not history. Fictions and myths evolve over time, as storytellers have a tradition of shaping them to appeal to an evolving audience. Over thousands of years, it’s expected for them to become something different. I think Nolan has leaned into this, modernizing the story for today’s audience.
For me, these casting choices are a distraction. We would likely question a black Beowulf or Japanese knights in King Arthur’s court, right? I question things just the same here. Perhaps some audiences are buying it here because of mad respect for Christopher Nolan and the epic scale of this production, but I’m not fully on board. And there’s one more logical contradiction. Why would Nolan painstakingly recreate historically accurate costumes, ships, architecture, and weapons but be far less concerned with the authenticity of character appearance?
The controversy doesn’t end there, with many debating Nolan’s choice of language and accents. I think some of the backlash is justified, as everyone in this film sounds American, making this ancient epic feel a bit… common. Traditionally, films would have used traditional British English for this kind of story. We can go further and daydream about how they could have really leaned into the Greek thing and filled the cast with Greek actors and perhaps even Greek accents. True historical accuracy would result in a film fully in ancient Greek with subtitles, an undertaking virtually impossible for mainstream actors and studios trying to market the film. So what’s the best balance here? To me, the language issue is trickier to reconcile than the casting choices.
In the end, this film is an event, a technical marvel, and a spectacle worthy of the biggest screen possible. It’s an extraordinary achievement, but not one I’m eager to see again.
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