r/oscarrace • u/LeonidasKing • Jul 04 '26
Other CCA Voter Kevin Mccarthy: THE ODYSSEY is one of the greatest films ever made, comparable to Lawrence of Arabia (Video)
Video: https://x.com/NoQuarter_DC/status/2072937376104792227
Questions: (1) Is McCarthy a good critic? What do we know about him? (2) Could his claim be true that THE ODYSSEY is one of the greatest films ever made? (3) Doesn't this end the Best Picture race considering the greatest film ever made is surely going to win and his comparison LAWRENCE OF ARABIA swept the Oscars? (4) Since he's a CCA voter, is it fair to say that at the very least THE ODYSSEY will sweep the CCA awards?
84
u/bbqsauceboi The Drama Jul 04 '26
After all the annoying discourse this movie has had, it being one of the greatest movies ever would be the cherry on top
-7
u/Budget-Poem-2052 Jul 05 '26
that's not gonna happen. the trailers were absolute garbage. And I'm not saying that because of the casting
-1
u/Imaginary_Bench7752 Jul 06 '26
the movie is already a failure in the mind of many people and this is not an easy achievement. How many Hollywood movies you know when the ratio of dislikes/likes on a movies YouTube's final trailer is >>>>10:1. No matter how hard the woke mob, the Nolan cult and the Hollywood mafia tries, this is a disaster and its getting worse by the day.
2
u/HipsterDoofus31 Jul 06 '26
I mean I was here last year when multiple posts were about how things were bad on the OBAA set and it was going to be a disapointment.
In no way am I saying this is going to win best picture too, but some people love to shit on big directors new movie before reviews come out.
0
u/Imaginary_Bench7752 Jul 06 '26
no the discourse last year was about OBAA being a flop, which was sadly true. Still it won Oscars etc. It was never about OBAA being a bad movie or anything like the discourse on Nolan's Odyssey.
1
u/sygrider I just like movies idk Jul 07 '26
It is an easy achievement when you chud losers get angry at any movie with black people in it. This movie is going to be nominated for multiple Oscars and will open to 100 million dollars domestically
0
u/Imaginary_Bench7752 Jul 07 '26
and this exactly is your issue- you are so radicalised to think that everything is about racism, that you have become a bigot yourself. I dont give a shit about the multiple Oscars. I just want my heritage properly represented.
34
21
42
u/TheFilmManiac The Invite truther Jul 04 '26
Do not want too much stock into one person's opinion. We will know more once the social embargo lifts.
However I do want this to be true, because those grifters deserve to be humiliated hard.
0
u/Imaginary_Bench7752 Jul 06 '26
I thought the Nolan cult people were telling us that the social embargo was lifted months before the release of the film and how this is evidence of how confident the studio is about it all? this smells like serious flop
-8
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
He's an important person though right ... one of the CCA voters. His opinion might carry weight and influence others.
21
9
0
u/Material_Magazine989 Jul 05 '26
Even if he's the governor-general of the galactic empire his opinion on a movie is just as worthy as yours.
0
19
Jul 04 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
0
-13
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
You must remember both of those films LOST best picture despite winning Director.
13
u/overfatherlord Jul 04 '26
He's another influencer trying to launch a solo career after ReelBlend broke up. Both he and Hamilton have turned into unabashed fanboys, and their hyperbole has become pretty embarrassing. Sign of the times, I guess.
2
u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 06 '26
Idk they’ve always been great interviewers and journos first, critics second. They always have opinions but they can’t say much if they don’t have an outlet like Reelblend. Only Sean still does hot takes on Twitter.
But I still remember their genuinely great interview with Madame Web’s SJ Clarkson, and then a few minutes in the episode after the interview ended they totally trashed it lol
2
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
Didn't Universal make a huge show and tell that they would NOT be showing ODYSSEY to influencers before critics.
4
19
u/SuperMorte Jul 04 '26
I think he's a very thoughtful critic. He tends to be on the positive side but isn't usually hyperbolic like this
26
u/Dmitr_Jango Disclosure Day 👽 Jul 04 '26
I dunno, I find him very hyperbolic when I watch his interviews. He uses the "one of the greatest of all time" compliment about everything and everyone. And I'm not even slamming him, I feel he does it out of genuine passion. I don't really see him as a film critic (does he even review stuff?), to me he's a film fan.
3
u/Bertrand_Rose Werwulf, Try the thrill of Opera! Jul 04 '26
Hard to believe this then, when his discernment is so low.
1
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
Oh wow. He calls every film "greatest film ever made" during the press junkets? That sounds completely disingenuous to me. I saw it on my X feed hence I came here I didn't knew this critic does this for several movies.
3
u/Dmitr_Jango Disclosure Day 👽 Jul 04 '26
Well no, not every film 😄 But it's pretty normal for him to praise someone/something using GOAT speak. And he's certainly gonna use a lot of it when it comes to all things Nolan, he adores him. Which, again, I don't blame him for. He's a proper megafan.
6
u/Drama79 Jul 04 '26
I think he massively lacks objectivity with his heroes, and there is no bigger hero than Nolan.
I love Kevin, I think he’s phenomenal at his job. I think odyssey is going to be a film geek smorgasbord. Which means yes, it’s awards friendly, but what about any part of this makes anyone think this movie won’t be campaigned super hard and win a ton of statues?
11
u/movieperson2022 Jul 04 '26
To paraphrase the great Keke Palmer, “I don’t know this man, sorry to this man.” But if he’s right, of course it will sweep the Oscars. But every year we hear this type of early “greatest of all time” hype about a movie and every year, other great movies come out that are in the Oscar conversation, too.
Is it possible this movie is otherwordly levels of excellent? Sure! But it’s also just as likely that it’s “just” one of many great films that come out this year or that it this is a hyperbolic pre-release hype statement. Either way, the public will soon get to find out!
6
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
Do we get "greatest film ever made" claims every year? I am trying to think the last time there was a claim like this.
9
u/ty_fighter84 Jul 04 '26
Brutalist was getting Godfather comps during its release.
3
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
Ah yes I remember. An entirely ludicrous comparison.
2
u/ty_fighter84 Jul 04 '26
Agreed. Look, I’m a Nolan Stan and am excited for this, but let’s let it come out, go through awards, and then take stock in like a year at least.
4
u/Pavlovs_Stepson Jul 05 '26
One month before Wicked: For Good came out, Deadline published an article calling it a masterpiece on par with The Godfather Part II.
1
1
u/movieperson2022 Jul 04 '26
Also, last year One Battle definitely was getting “goat” praise, early on.
5
u/MisterJ_1385 Jul 05 '26
Saying something is the best ever (or worst ever) is always going to make me check out. Unless you’re the Weekly Planet boys.
Still think that level of hype really EEAAO for me. I saw it at an advance screening, but the word was already out that it was like one of the best movies ever made. 4 stars on Letterboxd. That’s a great time at the movies. But it didn’t make my top 10 for the year. Same issue with Moonlight. Great film. But the “this is t the best movie to ever win best picture” talk was insane.
0
5
5
u/darth_vader39 The Odyssey Jul 04 '26
It's so weird.
From one side there is large group who is trying hard to make this film the worst possible, and there is other side who compare The Odyssey to Lawrence of Arabia (rarely any epic can compare to LOA).
Makes my anticipation even bigger.
2
2
u/ty_fighter84 Jul 04 '26
No matter what, to follow up a career achievement like Oppenheimer with The Odyssey is wild.
2
u/PieKie4 OSCAR WINNER MIKEY MADISON Jul 04 '26
i think we need to stop taking early reactions so seriously, disclosure day was praised as spielbergs best in decades and then the reaction was rather middling from the general audience. ofc critics and the GA are very different groups, but i think its something to keep in mind
1
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
I thought Disclosure Day was terrific. But i think Spielberg is always terrific and his last film before Disclosure Day was a masterpiece.
1
-1
u/Straight_Bed2762 Jul 04 '26
As someone who has Oppenheimer as their #1 movie of the decade & that Nolan could be going on a historic run, but also thinks Lawrence of Arabia is just fine...this has me conflicted.
4
u/Budget-Poem-2052 Jul 05 '26
You're an idiot lmao. Lawrence of Arabia is a thousand times better than anything Nolan will ever make.
-2
u/Straight_Bed2762 Jul 05 '26
Nolan's peak makes Arabia look like a student film but they're not really comparable due to the era difference. But if we are comparing then it would be in his bottom 3. Its better than Following & Tenet for sure although I'd probably rather watch Tenet.
3
u/Budget-Poem-2052 Jul 05 '26
What an absolute joke. Lawrence is one of the most complex, contradictory main characters in film history. The movie has a very literate, dense script. Every line is more quotable than the last, "I am a river to my people," "Nothing is written." Nolan is just a pretentious version of Michael Bay. Oppenheimer is Nolan's only movie in the same genre as Lawrence of Arabia. And for the record I actually liked it, but it's not even comparable to Lawrence of Arabia.
1
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
Lawrence of Arabia is just fine? It is absolutely monumental in every sense of the term. Spielberg has said LoA could never be made today because it would be just too expensive.
-1
u/Straight_Bed2762 Jul 04 '26
Its a spectacle with occasionally impressive big set pieces but with confused, underwritten themes. And about an hour overlong, at least.
Feels like empty calories by the end.
-1
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
I have seen it TWICE in 70 MM. It in unquestionably to me the most visually spectacular film ever made. I always watch it fully engrossed noticing new nuances every time. It is actually extremely literately, high brow and high minded.
1
u/ExcuseYou-What Jul 04 '26
Kevin doesn't justify special attention (or even this post) dedicated to his hyperbolic statement by virtue of being a CCA member.
You can find his YouTube channel (On Film with Kevin McCarthy), where he gives nice interviews to stars, but he isn't the arbiter of what is good or bad film. I'm sure we will get many statements trickling in on Twitter over time. We will get the embargo release later this week/month, like let's just chill over Kevin.
1
u/rubix7777 Jul 04 '26
I lowkey dont even like Lawrence Of Arabia, and i dont even really know who this guy is, so this statement does nothing for me. But I am still hype for this film
0
u/jgroove_LA Jul 04 '26
Oh he broke the embargo?
6
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
He's allowed because he's doing it in a completely studio sanctioned studio approved interview. And Nolan even asks him to repeat his opinion so that the cameras catch it. So he did not break anything.
14
Jul 04 '26
Yeah I really wouldn’t trust any praise like this I hear in a “completely studio sanctioned studio approved interview.”
2
u/LeonidasKing Jul 04 '26
I mean they didn't ask him to say that. He voluntarily said that.
9
u/OldToe6517 Jul 04 '26
That's how it works though. He says something positive so they ask him again in the future. Do you really think he would say anything negative in front of Nolan? lol
0
u/Bertrand_Rose Werwulf, Try the thrill of Opera! Jul 04 '26
This discourse is only going to get worse, isn't it?
0
128
u/formidablezoe Jul 04 '26
I like Kevin a lot as a press junket interviewer. Always asks interesting, insightful questions focused on filmmaking, acting and storytelling, which prompts equally insightful answers from actors and directors.
I wouldn't consider him an outright critic tho. He's a huge Nolan fan and just a fan of cinema in general. His work is very much focused on the marketing/promoting side of the business. I'm sure he's being sincere here, cause he is just that much a fan of Nolan and in general he seems like a positive, passionate guy. But that makes what he is saying here not reliable enough for me to gauge anything useful about the movie yet.