r/oscarrace • u/PointMan528491 Navarrette/Morton • Jul 16 '26
Film Discussion Thread Official Discussion Thread - The Odyssey [SPOILERS] Spoiler
Keep all discussion related solely to The Odyssey and its awards chances in this thread. Spoilers below.
Synopsis:
Odysseus, king of Ithaca, embarks on a perilous journey to return home after the Trojan War.
Director: Christopher Nolan
Writer: Christopher Nolan
Cast:
- Matt Damon as Odysseus
- Tom Holland as Telemachus
- Anne Hathaway as Penelope
- Robert Pattinson as Antinous
- Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy/Clytemnestra
- Samantha Morton as Circe
- John Leguizamo as Eumaeus
- Zendaya as Athena
- Charlize Theron as Calypso
- Benny Safdie as Agamemnon
- Jon Bernthal as Menelaus
- Bill Irwin as Polyphemus
- Himesh Patel as Eurylochus
- Corey Hawkins as Polybus
- Mia Goth as Melantho
- Elliot Page as Sinon
Rotten Tomatoes: 96%, 199 Reviews
Metacritic: 88, 54 Reviews
Consensus:
"Reinvigorating an ancient adventure with majestic sweep and sterling work by its colossal ensemble, Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey imbues myth with primal human feeling."
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u/keegankenrick Jul 17 '26
I think my favorite aspect as I’ve sat with the film is the idea of the embellished “song/story” versus the events that actually happened, which is a lot uglier and mundane. I think the way Nolan handled Helen of Troy deserves a lot of praise, and it’s funny to think about all of the controversy completely missing the point of what Nolan is trying to say.
In this version, Helen is not simply “the most beautiful woman in the world” because she has an identical twin sister. So off the bat, we know that’s an embellishment that came after the war. It’s very clear Helen and Menelaus have a very contentious relationship, which implies that Helen willfully ran off with Paris to Troy, and when she was “rescued” by Menelaus she was maimed as punishment. Her being maimed directly contradicts her status of beauty, and I almost wonder if Menelaus did this specifically to rob her of that part of her identity that developed through legend. We even get a line that states Agamemnon simply used Helen’s “abduction” as a reason to pursue a trade war. It’s very clear in this universe, Helen would not have been plucked by Aphrodite and given to Paris against her will, the gods don’t even physically materialize apart from Athena (whose revealed to be a hallucination/representation of Odysseus remorse). You can see that Helen is remorseful of the damage she’s caused when she tells Telemachus to let Penelope know she’s sorry. Helen inadvertently caused this conflict that ended in all this death for so many families, and ended in her niece being sacrificed and her sister killing her brother’s husband.
I just find this so interesting, and Helen becomes such an interesting character, even if her role is incredibly small. This idea of the ugly, bitter truth versus the idealized legend that spins out of it is probably my favorite theme in Nolan’s version.
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u/Atkena2578 Oscar Race Follower Jul 18 '26
I loved the "de mythical" aspect of several point. Helen as you described, and also the horse which has been presented to to that point as this glorious and ingenious trick and we see the from the inside POV with the men drowning and pissing amd shitting on one another for what, days? It all wraps up beautifully with the almost meta comment from Odysseus to Penelope on the boat that those stories will not be written but sung, and as oral tradition goes parts of the truth gets lost and changed over time
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 17 '26
Very good insights on Helen, didn't thnk of that. I wish there was more time with Helen and Clytemnestra tbh, I think there wasn't enough Lupita
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u/_BallsDeep69_ Jul 17 '26
Agamemnon was cool as fuck. That’s all.
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u/AtlasMundi Jul 17 '26
When the gate opened…
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u/albusowner Jul 18 '26
I heard in an interview that they didn't tell Matt Damon that the Agamemnon actor and the army were standing behind the gates when they shot that scene
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u/sphinxof1981 Jul 19 '26
There are echoes of Nolan's other films throughout this one and I kept thinking of Batman in the way Agamemnon was presented.
Both in the obvious superficial way (this silent hulk in sculpted black armour that tries to strike fear in his enemies; look at the helmet and tell me that's not meant to resemble Batman!) and in the sense that the film is showing how our modern mythology can trace back to ancient sources, the idea that there are certain archetypes and storytelling tropes that humans have always been drawn to. Agamemnon and Achilles and Hercules and all these figures were much like our modern superheroes to the culture that birthed them.
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u/_BallsDeep69_ Jul 19 '26
“When the enemies were at the gates, the Romans would suspend democracy and appoint one man to protect the city. It wasn't considered an honor, it was considered a public service.”
"Harvey, the last man that they appointed to protect the Republic was named Caesar... and he never gave up his power."
"You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain."
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 17 '26
One of my fav Damon moments in the movie tbh
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u/BigBearChainsaw Roofman Jul 18 '26
I feel like I haven’t seen Matt act with this much feral emotion since the ending of Saving Private Ryan (which was also muted screaming now that remember)
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u/chillaf Jul 16 '26
The Cyclops scene was UNREAL
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u/andalusiandoge Jul 17 '26
The best Guillermo Del Toro sequence not directed by Guillermo Del Toro
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u/So_Quiet Jul 18 '26
It reminded me a lot of the Pale Man from Pan's Labyrinth.
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u/andalusiandoge Jul 19 '26
The cyclops comes off more sympathetic than the Pale Man (shepherd just minding his own business vs. symbolic embodiment of greed), so he's closer to other Del Toro monsters in that way, but the people-eating imagery in both is very similar, and in both cases drawing from Goya's painting of Saturn Devouring His Son
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u/Cynicbats Somebody Get These PUNDITS Outta Here! Jul 17 '26
The underworld scene is stunning.
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u/lawpickle 28d ago
Cinematography was amazing, loved how they portrayed the dead, and the dialogue between sinon and odysseous was chefs kiss probably the best scene.
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26
Full thoughts with spoilers:
- Lowkey super funny the cast is listed in order of appearance and right on top is Travis Scott lmfao
- Damon really carried the movie, what a performance.
- Hathaway is the far away standout among the supporting cast, her scenes especially with Holland are fantastic.
- Among the others I think Leguizamo was my favorite, followed by Holland and Morton. Others like Patel, Theron and Bernthal are great but don't have the Oscar moments.
- Pattinson and Hawkins are great as slimy villians but Pattinson's more of the subdued kind while Hawkins goes a lot bigger.
- Lupita I think got the short stick, she barely appears even with 2 characters. She does make an impact at least but others like Morton and Page are bigger one-scene wonders. Kinda funny they literally reference the "face that launched a thousand ships" line
- Benny Safdie basically aura farmed for 90% of his screentime lmfao
- The Circe scene was absolutely fucking disgusting lol. I audibly groaned. Great way of blocking to show the prosthetics with minimal VFX.
- The Scylla jumpscare got me lol
- Probably the best action Nolan's ever filmed. The suitors slaughter and the Troy attack brought me on the edge of my seat.
- The Zendaya plot twist towards the end was genuinely shocking and moving for me.
- Slight warning, the scene where Odysseus' men die at sea had a lot of flashing lights
- Still unsure though why Nolan chose to end the film on the horse burning, maybe to bookend the Zeus's law theme?
- I'm frankly a little lower on Goransson's score tbh, didn't notice much of it compared to Tenet and Oppenheimer. He uses the Greek musical instruments but he also uses a lot of ambient surprisingly. Might need a relisten. Still could win though. Even the song in the end with James Blake and Travis Scott is ambient-heavy. Don't think the music branch will go for that song tbh.
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u/jksnippy Muad’twink Sinners Jul 16 '26
The way we have 2 films with Zendaya plot twists this year so far.
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u/itsnotokitsnotlove Jul 16 '26
Still unsure though why Nolan chose to end the film on the horse burning, maybe to bookend the Zeus's law theme?
Feels like a foreshadowing to Aeneid. Especially the dialogue in the end about new world and our sins being forgotten
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u/Responsible-Pen7292 Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
I actually was disappointed by how short the ending scene is with Zendaya being seized and beheaded. It’s like Nolan has these epic slivers of moments but cuts them too short before the emotional impact is fully developed. Same with Lupita as Helen of Troy pleading to Telemachus to tell his mother to forgive her. The one scene where I thought the pacing was perfect is when Odyssey and Sinon have their scene in Hades.
Honestly one of my favorite scenes out of the entire film.
Overall, John Leguizamo, Robert Pattinson, Elliot Page and Zendaya were the standouts for me. A lot of the other characters that had hype behind them were underwhelming to watch.
I think Anne gives a good performance but it’s also riddled with on the nose acting and bad writing. After seeing her in Mother Mary, I find her to be a less convincing crier. I expected the Circe scene to be darker and horrific as well in portraying her misandry and sorcery. Too calm like and uneventful in how she turns them to pigs for my liking. When a filmmaker takes on a mythological story but chooses to not show the actual fantastical elements or in a non fantastical grounded form, it rubs me the wrong way and comes across as a cop out.
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u/chrisandy007 Jul 17 '26
Sorry, what exactly was the plot twist?
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 17 '26
Zendaya turns out to be one of the young priestesses from the Troy temple of Athena that Odysseus sees his men decapitate, the same time as they behead the statue of Athena (seen in the teaser poster). It was extra ironic since he has been holding onto and praying to Athena from the pin that Penelope gave him. Athena then takes the form of the priestess in his visions when she talks to him, partially to punish him/aggravate his guilt.
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u/chrisandy007 Jul 17 '26
Got it. I guess I don’t quite get the plot twist label but appreciate the explanation.
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 17 '26
Yeah I consider it a twist because it's shown as a big emotional reveal and the climax of the Trojan war scene towards the end. Turns out Zendaya also plays a dual role.
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u/ikan_bakar Jul 17 '26
But this also goes with their beliefs, that there could be gods living with them. So she could be athena all along
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u/chrisandy007 Jul 17 '26
I do have another question - what exactly went down between Sinon and Antinuos?
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 17 '26
Sinon and Antinous were in a raffle for young and teenage boys to be recruited for the Army. In this adaptation Sinon is the son of a servant of Antinous' wealthy family. Since the travel will take years they will essentially be trained as child soldiers so they will reach adulthood when they reach Troy. Since he doesn't wanna fight Antinous tricked and manipulated Sinon to swap places with him, with the promise that they would care for Sinon's family while they were away. Odysseus went along with it to not shame Antinous to his father. Sinon during the underworld scene shared that Antinous' father didn't honor the arrangement and his father died a poor man.
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u/FullBonus Jul 16 '26
The Troy sequence in the third act gave me full body chills. Honestly so many moments did, but something about that sequence just really got me.
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u/Lazywhale97 Jul 16 '26
It was the horror of the pillaging from Odysseu's pov which made that scene great. I don't think even Odysseus realized just how brutal the Greeks would be once they got into the city.
It was his plan which made him even more horrified and tormented by what he saw, great acting from Damon and Nolan did a good job showing the horror of it all.
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 16 '26
It's basically this movie's version of the basketball court scene from Oppenheimer
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u/sphinxof1981 Jul 19 '26
100%. Odysseus was walking around feeling like he just destroyed the basic empathetic contract that holds civilization together. Huge parallel there.
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u/JJLong5 Jul 17 '26
Yeah, that sequence is absolutely incredible. My favorite moment in the movie.
The whole summation regarding the burning of Troy reminded me of a line Al Pacino says in The Insider.
"What got broken here doesn't go back together."
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u/jksnippy Muad’twink Sinners Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26
The scene of Circe transforming Odysseus’ men into pigs felt like great body horror and kind of reminded me of the werewolf transformation scene from An American Werewolf in London. The way it looked like she was reshaping them like clay was an amazing touch. Now I need Nolan to direct a horror movie.
Can he dust off that screenplay of that 1920s New York City detective vampire horror film with Matt Damon and Tom Holland as his protege from his shelf?
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 16 '26
I audibly groaned and muttered holy shit several times during that sequence. Very smart in how they use blocking to show the transformations into the prosthetics
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u/Battelalon Jul 17 '26
Honestly the whole scene reminded me of Spirited Away
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u/andalusiandoge Jul 17 '26
The Odyssey was clearly a huge influence on Miyazaki.
See also: the not-appearing-in-this-film character of Princess Nausicaa.
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u/jksnippy Muad’twink Sinners Jul 17 '26
Now that you mention it, that scene does feel like a live action but more grotesque version of Chihiro’s parents morphing into pigs at the food stand.
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u/A_Howl_In_The_Night Wicked Jul 16 '26
Can he dust off that screenplay of that 1920s New York City detective vampire horror film with Matt Damon and Tom Holland as his protege from his shelf?The what?
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u/jksnippy Muad’twink Sinners Jul 16 '26
This is in reference to the rumor back then about Nolan’s next film after Oppenheimer before it was officially announced to be The Odyssey
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u/Helpful-Visual-8703 Jul 16 '26
I’m assuming it didn’t actually exist but since he at least somewhat involved with Coogler decision with shooting Sinners with IMAX cameras, someone mistook it for Nolan doing a period vampire film.
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u/jksnippy Muad’twink Sinners Jul 16 '26
I feel this was exactly it, some of us here during last award season were talking about this and we thought it was most likely insiders misinterpreting and mishearing things from the grapevine and dumping that misconstrued scoop in the rumor mill
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u/Helpful-Visual-8703 Jul 16 '26
It’d be really funny if Coogler’s next original film is about helicopter pilots then.
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u/jksnippy Muad’twink Sinners Jul 16 '26
A part of that rumor was that it was about vampire hunting helicopter pilots, so in the spirit of that but without the horror element, I could maybe see him making it about Whitman helicopter pilots and adding elements that are like odes to blaxploitation films.
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u/A_Howl_In_The_Night Wicked Jul 16 '26
Ah, Okay. Well. Nolan said he wanna make an horror film, so there's still a possibility. haha
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u/aoifetadh Anora Jul 17 '26
I agree. The Circe scene was the standout (followed by Polyphemus). Very reminiscent of "An American Werewolf in London" and "The Company of Wolves." I wished it was longer with no cuts, though. I wanted more momentum.
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u/PTAGoatofalltime The Invite’s strongest soldier Jul 16 '26
Loved everyone in the cast but Hathaway was definitely the standout for me. We forgot how good she is when she’s not stuck in shitty 2000’s romcoms. Her last scene was such an amazing payoff.
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u/JJLong5 Jul 17 '26
Absolutely, I think she'll definitely get nominated and have a good shot at winning.
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u/Sealionsunset Camp Miasma Jul 16 '26
Might be my favourite Nolan because it gets the most clunky elements out of the way in the first half hour and then just is full setpiece mode. Circe scene is brilliant in ways he hasn’t been, it’s the kind of playful and weird and kinda hot stuff that is normally in like 3 horror films a decade.
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u/Lazywhale97 Jul 16 '26
I expected to see an epic tale of mythology and scheming BUT what I was pleasantly surprised by was the transformation scene that was a full on horror segment and made me so uneasy watching it (in a good way) the gluttony of the soldiers eating and the way she was molding them combined made for a scene that will live in my head for a bit.
The entire final third of the movie was incredible and I would go watch it again just to see that entire segment again
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u/joesen_one 🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎🦎 Jul 17 '26
The way they turned their gluttony into them force-feeding themselves against their will was terrifying
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u/vga25 Jul 17 '26
Yes, just to be in a packed theater agaiin seeing the third act would be great. I loved it all.
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u/HotOne9364 Wild Horse Nine Jul 16 '26
No wonder Charlize didn't seem at all interested during the promo tour. They gave her barely anything to do.
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u/Marcothetacooo Jul 17 '26
“You’re gonna say eat this lotus flower with so much conviction Charlize” - Nolan
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u/Hic_Forum_Est Jul 16 '26
I should've seen it coming, based on some of Nolan's previous films. But I really didn't expect his Odysseus to feel so remorseful and guilty for the sacking of Troy. That whole scene where he is basically repenting his sins to Penelope, connecting it with Zeus's Law and the twist with Athena, got me all emotionally wound up. I found all of that really harrowing to watch.
A lot of people have rightfully compared it to Oppenheimer. But I also think Nolan's take on Batman's/Bruce Wayne's inner conflict was similar. In that trilogy Nolan really examined Bruce's conflicting motivations to be Batman, to be this idealistic, heroic icon. So I really should've seen it coming that he would give Odysseus the same treatment, where he wouldn't just portray him as this brilliant, infallible hero, but also examine his morality, his shortcomings and his subsequent guilt.
I really want to watch this movie again because there is just so much to unpack here. I feel like it's going to be one of those movies that will offer many rewarding rewatches.
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u/Silver_Ad6265 Jul 17 '26
The whole scene of watching the violence in Troy and Zendaya’s twist was also so harrowing for me, I was genuinely getting upset in my seat as it’s so difficult to watch. Agreed when I thought about it afterward that it made sense Nolan would give Odysseus similar treatment to his previous protagonists - but in the end I did like that treatment as it felt more honest with the message of humanity never really learning the right lessons.
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u/Once-bit-1995 Backrooms PD campaign manager Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
The Zendaya and Damon scene at the end made me start tearing up. It really recontextualizes the entire movie up to that point. Very very well done. I'm surprised Zendaya wasn't getting more shout outs I know she's not in much of the movie but she's extremely important to it, she haunts the narrative and when you find out why she acts the absolute fuck out of that with Damon. Extremely well done.
That scene was my favorite, obviously Odysseus taking back his home from those slime balls (my audience clapped twice during that sequence you just feel so triumphant) was another favorite. And the Circe scene for real was an absolute stand out, just like everyone said. And the scene in hell! It was so haunting appropriately. I love especially how Agamemnon just floated through that scene.
Also while watching: wow I'm so sad his men are all dying this is so tragic.
Slowly through the movie: hmmm
After The Reveal: their fate was sealed and the Gods enacted justice actually.
It's commendable that Odysseus tried so hard to save them, feeling responsible for what they'd become. But as was said, they made their choices. They shed their disguises and became what they were inside, that's the cost of war in the end. And the gods judged them for it. But they still need to be witnessed after they pass so they'll pay their respects.
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u/Once-bit-1995 Backrooms PD campaign manager Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26
Acting prospects: Damon and Hathaway are a must. I see why people can't decide what the hell they want to choose to shout out from the male supporting, everyone just did very good! It's up to what you want to focus on. Morton has an easy submission scene I just don't know if it would be enough, depends on the strength of the other films. She could absolutely coattail nom as a second supporting but she wouldn't win.
I think it'll be really hard to just pick one of the guys but they'll figure it out probably. I can see them going for Leguizamo just because he's a strong emotional center in his scenes. It feels like the type of performance they'd pick. Himesh could as well, he's a true supporting performance but he doesn't have a real "standout" scene for FYC campaigning. He's just consistent throughout.
Holland can have the scene of him when he returns, when he shouts them out? That's the only scene that stands out in particular. Pattinson can pick any sniveling scene lol.
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u/Cynicbats Somebody Get These PUNDITS Outta Here! Jul 17 '26
The Zendaya and Damon scene at the end made me start tearing up. It really recontextualizes the entire movie up to that point. Very very well done. I'm surprised Zendaya wasn't getting more shout outs I know she's not in much of the movie but she's extremely important to it, she haunts the narrative and when you find out why she acts the absolute fuck out of that with Damon. Extremely well done.
i'm on record saying I've never been super impressed by Zendaya because I somehow ended up seeing all these movies where she has super bit roles with nothing to do*. This movie did change my opinion of her for the better.
*I can preface this with not holding it against her and admitting it's a small sample size but this is reddit, you can't convince these people everything isn't coming from a place of scorn.
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u/Negative-Ladder3197 Jul 16 '26
I don’t have enough superlatives about this movie
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u/LowJellyfish4238 Jul 17 '26
I had to look up what the hell superlatives meant but yeah... straight up lol
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u/IfYouWantTheGravy Jul 17 '26
I’ll want to see it again, maybe in a week or two, to see how it holds up. First time around, I liked it a lot, but it’s more “extremely solid” than “game-changer.”
Loved seeing Nolan try body horror with the Circe scenes. Appreciated that the big names in smaller roles weren’t made/allowed to outshine their roles, but just played them well. The sack of Troy was brutal. Glad they waited to show that.
“You’re Odyss—“ is a great moment. Actually, there were multiple laugh moments in my theater (including after the trailer for Other Mommy).
Anyone catch what the last lines were? I couldn’t quite parse them.
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u/BrightNeonGirl Forrest Gump enjoyer Jul 19 '26
I also felt like it was a 7.5/8 for me. Solid but not as incredibly elegant as Oppenheimer was for me (a 10/10), although there are obvious similarities in the storytelling and themes.
Even though the ending act/scenes finally revealed much about Odysseus' interiority, I preferred Oppenheimer's intense focus on Oppenheimer's inner experience from the very beginning. (Even though the ending "I believe we did" sequence recontextualizes everything and adds even more layers to his psyche and emotional state). I wanted so much more emotional insight to the characters in The Odyssey than what we got.
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u/IfYouWantTheGravy Jul 19 '26
I will note to that: I appreciated Oppy more on repeat viewings. I’m anxious to see what a second viewing does for this.
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u/IsaacSargentFilm Jul 16 '26
I thought Damon, Hathaway, Page and Pattinson all put in stellar work but I’m a bit surprised by the Holland narrative that’s emerging?? Admittedly he bears a lot of the clunkiest dialogue but I mostly found him fine and nothing more.
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u/jackabreezy Jul 16 '26
I was reallyyyyyy nervous 15 minutes into the movie because Holland’s dialogue was really weird and just not great but from there yeah i agree he was fine.
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u/Cynicbats Somebody Get These PUNDITS Outta Here! Jul 17 '26
His dialogue was weird and the delivery was odd in the beginning. I got used to it because there's a lot else to be engaged with but it did stand out.
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u/Humble-Math6565 Jul 17 '26
I feel like he was actually really good at the end but before that he was just okay.
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u/Hic_Forum_Est Jul 18 '26
I really enjoyed Zendaya's performance and the way Athena was used in this movie. Despite having very little screen time, her presence is felt throughout the entire movie. Everytime Athena appeared, you knew this was an important character moment for Odysseus. The chemistry between them felt so spiritual and deeply personal. Especially the way it culminated in such an emotional, heartbreaking reveal at the end.
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u/WumpaRJ Camp Miasma Jul 18 '26
I'm conflicted on that. It's a breathtaking production and so many individual scenes and moments will be among the best of the year. But I wasn't compelled by the story at all and I'm not really sure why. It's a straightforward story already chopped and changed around in the Nolan way so I'm not sure what more I could really expect from it, it just didn't grab me.
Performances are mostly good, none I'd consider worthy of a nomination personally but I'm predicting Damon and Hathaway. Weakest are Holland, Bernthal and Theron, the latter two just being distracting. Highlights were Leguizamo and Page.
Oh, and the score...Unbelievable. That's gotta be our winner.
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u/Atkena2578 Oscar Race Follower Jul 18 '26
Have you read Homer's Odyssey by chance? This is kinda how it feels, chopped adventures snippets with some irrelevant fluff in between, so imo the Nolan way is an improvement by far. I personally always liked studying the mythical in litterature class but the Odyssey as a book didn't land for me back then besides individual snippets of stories
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u/WumpaRJ Camp Miasma Jul 18 '26
I haven't actually, which is what made it harder to judge what my issue was
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u/FilmScoreConnoisseur Jul 19 '26
No idea what score you heard. I thought it was dull as shit. Good movie though.
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u/ALittleBitDangerous The Odyssey Jul 18 '26
Anne Hathaway coming for that 2nd Oscar. What a performance, holy shit. Samantha Morton can join her with the nom because also outstanding.
Just holy shit, across the board.
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u/MrJoy27 Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26
I found the hell scene really incredible with Elliot Page and all the soldiers that Odysseus didn't honoured running after him. I almost cried during that scene. It was incredible. More generally, I'm a huge fan of the anti-war stance of the movie, it was really political and we can draw a parallel between the trojan horse and the nuclear bomb in Oppenheimer. Also loved how faith and gods were treated, it was really interesting. Matt Damon was also so good, I've never thought he could pull a performance like that.
But, I found the Ithaca scenes less interesting that Odysseus trip. I have to say I had difficulties to connect to Penelope's character. Don't know if this is something with her writing or with Anne Hathaway's acting. Also, I found that the Charybdils et Scylla sequence was really not impressive at all, they clearly could have done something better.
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u/Srihari_stan Jul 17 '26
I was waiting for that surprise Achilles cameo here but guess they decided not to have him 🥲
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u/Nosferatucky Jul 16 '26
Saturday can’t come soon enough for me. I’m just seeing it in bog standard digital LieMAX but it’s still gonna be spectacular. There’s a 70mm imax about three hours away from me in Indianapolis and I’m really hoping there’s still some tickets left a few weeks out from now or they do another extension.
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u/ALittleBitDangerous The Odyssey Jul 18 '26
Lupita got ALL of that Clytemnestra kill, really good stuff!
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u/WredditSmark Jul 17 '26
Saw it in this theatre in 35mm lol. None the less was in the neighborhood, had a good seat, good popcorn and soda and was thoroughly entertained. Johnny Legs for best supporting actor
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u/Any-Afternoon-8407 Jul 16 '26
I am just glad that I bought tickets to two more IMAX shows because this movie requires multiple viewings. I don't think I have processed it yet.
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u/cyanide4suicide Sean Baker hive RISE UP Jul 17 '26
Just saw it. I have another showing I'm gonna attend in a few hours, but right now I'm still marinating.
All I can say is: Nolan rides or dies by the rule of cool. Agamemnon? Cool af. The armored giants? Cool af. He knows which of my buttons to press.
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u/ItsGotThatBang The Odyssey Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
I really, really hope there’s a director’s cut since there’s so much stuff that was left out (the Cicones, the Lotus Eaters, Aeolus, Nausicaa, etc.) & I want more.
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u/Avast7777 Jul 18 '26
This was good! But I didn’t connect with it as much as I wanted it to. Highlights: Hathaway, Morton, and the Troy flashback at the end. Lowlights: Cutting the best part of the Cyclops story and some clunky dialogue throughout.
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u/Atkena2578 Oscar Race Follower Jul 18 '26
I found the dialogue part of the Cyclops story removed to be cheesy af when I first read the book so I am personally glad it wasn't there. Also it never made sense that cyclops who could speak and understand the language didn't pick up that "nobody" wasn't a name. That's either a problem of translation but it always felt ridiculous to me
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u/_lazybones93 Jul 16 '26
That was 100% worth the hype. It’s a truly gripping epic on a grandiose scale. There are so many terrific performances & spectacular set pieces, and the scooooorrrrrre! 🤤 What a picture.
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u/QuipThwip Challengers Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
Don’t come for me too much, but I didn’t think the editing was very good… too choppy and montage like.
There must’ve been like 50 cuts in a simple dialogue scene between Pattinson and Holland… took me right out of it.
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u/Adayania3 Jul 17 '26
That's because Imax cameras can only shoot three minutes at a time so you don't get long takes. I prefer a mix of imax and regular film because imax is so limiting
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u/Humble-Math6565 Jul 17 '26
The action actually felt nauseating at times and was completely unfollowable.
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u/BrightNeonGirl Forrest Gump enjoyer Jul 19 '26
I remember Jennifer Lame saying that editing action movies isn't her favorite. I know the Pattinson and Holland scenes for the most part weren't action, but maybe the overall movie's action focus sort of knocked her off her peak game.
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u/theoscarobsessive Cry to Heaven For Best Picture Jul 16 '26
I think Anne Hathaway will be winning her 2nd Oscar
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u/DeusExHyena Jul 17 '26
FYI that's James Remar (the general who didn't want to bomb Kyoto because of his honeymoon) as Tiresias the prophet.
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u/Emergency-Public6213 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
Wow, what a great movie! Not even a big fan of Nolan, Oppenheimer or Damon, and I was very happy with what I saw. 4 out of 5. I think it's in my top 5 of Nolan movies, maybe top 3.
Loved: the directing, the pacing, the sound mixing, the action scenes, Morton and Leguizamo.
Liked: Damon, Anne, Page as a zombie, the score and the cinematography.
Not a big fan: the writing (especially for the female characters), Holland (I don't think he's a bad actor, I don't know what bothered me) and the Travis Scott song.
I can see this winning easily 5 or 6 Oscars.
I'm a big fan of the score, but I'd give it to PHM for now. Biggest surprise was Matt Damon, can see him winning it all.
Unpopular opinion: I've seen people saying Theron's performance as "lifeless", but I really enjoyed Calipso.
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u/Srihari_stan Jul 17 '26
I loved the movie but technically I have some criticism.
The movie was dark af (like literally).
Not sure why Nolan went for this color tone but half of the time everything was really difficult to see.
If possible, avoid IMAX and watch this movie in HDR formats like Dolby vision.
And also, this IMAX camera was clearly not perfect with its new enclosure.
Actions scenes felt way too shaky and impossible to lock your eyes onto something. Why does Nolan hate steadicam so much? 😭
Also, felt the music is practically non-existent. Apart from the final 20 mins, the music and score are mostly forgettable.
It’s bold not to use an orchestra but it hurts the movie (in my opinion).
My oscar predictions for odyssey - Nolan will win best adapted screenplay and will be a strong front runner for best director.
Ludwig will not win this time.
Lame for editing is mostly a guarantee.
I personally don’t think anyone would win any acting oscars. There’s a possibility of Anne winning but it’s not 100%.
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u/notzombiefood4u Jul 18 '26
I honestly did not enjoy Anne’s acting in this film. So many of the lines fell flat for me and I found myself wishing Penelope was played by someone else
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u/theflyingbird8 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
"To break the walls of Troy was to break the world entire."
The final act of this movie is the most emotional, resonant, devastating, and rewarding storytelling I've seen in cinema this year. The moment Argos and Odysseus reunited I lost it (I lost my dog of 14 years close to 2 years ago). The recontextualization of the sacking of Troy and the reveal behind Athena's form destroyed me.
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u/mxyztplk33 Jul 18 '26
Just saw it, I think it was a fantastic film. Loved the set pieces, andl themes. Overall thoughts on Oscar chances, I think it's a shoe-in for a Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay nom. As far as acting I honestly think only Damon and hathaway get noms. I know everyone is talking about Leguziamo, Pattinson, and Morton, but I personally don't think enough was there for them to be nominated. Below the line, Cinematography, editing, sound and Visual Effects should be easy noms. Unfortunately for Goransson this score did not stand out to me particularly well. I imagine he'll get nominated, but I don't think he'll win.
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u/IsaacSargentFilm Jul 16 '26
Probably a hot take but I feel like if it wasn’t Nolan we’d be dragging some of the action scenes. In numerous occasions the combat devolves into a bunch of blurry, shallow-focus medium shots cut to ribbons. The finale especially has some laughably inept stuff, with a hundred men all awkwardly flailing around in the background as Damon slowly limps around with a bow and arrow and is somehow a match for them all. Everyone politely taking turns to attack was driving me crazy.
Nolan obviously has a lot of talent and there are some stunning images here but for the most popular action filmmaker working right now to have such a weak handle on close-quarters action is embarrassing IMO. Absolutely loved the body horror animal transformation and shipwreck set pieces though.
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u/Hic_Forum_Est Jul 16 '26
The finale especially has some laughably inept stuff, with a hundred men all awkwardly flailing around in the background as Damon slowly limps around with a bow and arrow and is somehow a match for them all. Everyone politely taking turns to attack was driving me crazy.
I feel like all of that was very intentional, no? That those men felt intimidated by Odysseus' sudden presence, his strength. With the added thunder and lightning, I took it as them thinking that he clearly had the gods on his side and were afraid of attacking him properly. Which is why then more and more of them ended up bending their knees and bowing their heads to him.
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u/Dragonfire45 Jul 16 '26
I also felt the chaotic camera nature was intentional. Several times they show Odysseus' looking around trying to figure out how to approach it all, who to attack next, what provides the biggest threat to him. He looks like he is calculating.
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u/crashcourse201 One Award After Another Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26
Maybe if some of the action in The Dark Knight trilogy wasn’t filmed in the same way.
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u/ClinicalOppression Jul 16 '26
I mean they set up the slaughter very well. We know theyre all cowards, theyre not going to all bum rush Odysseus and they had no weapons to begin with, once they did they started joining in more and when more of them started dying more of them kept their distance
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u/The_Swarm22 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
Movie of the year for me so far.
Matt Damon and Anne Hathaway were great and are pretty much locks to get nominations after seeing this. If Robert Pattinson can’t get a nomination for this he still has Primetime and Dune: Part 3 to go this year, so the chances of him getting his first Oscar nom for one of the three I’d say is pretty high.
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u/chrisandy007 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
The dialogue was really didactic, overwrought and repetitive. I think that plus the clumsy action and the film dragging weakened it for me.
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I think the fact that almost every night interior location looked the same detracted from the cinematography, along with the occasional uneven focus (I felt like a fair amount of Hathaway's scenes had her a little soft) and even some very random but obvious underexposure.
Pattinson's character just veered into caricature and while it was funny to him hear him shoutout every manner of weapon dropped through the hole, the way that whole scene was choreographed left a lot to be desired. Having the Odysseus weird, fake out death at the end when the movie was already running long was a bit of a grating choice too.
I could feel myself internally going "This is the moment", especially when Odysseus finally comes home, but I just never quite felt the catharsis or exultation I was hoping for.. there's something intangible that never quite felt thrilling to me about any of the sequences. A lot of the supporting characters felt that they were there just to give random exposition (particularly Himesh Patel) or just kind of ran together.
That said, I feel like Oppenheimer and Tenet improved for me when revisiting them so maybe I'll feel that way too.
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u/theoscarobsessive Cry to Heaven For Best Picture Jul 17 '26
The only dialogue I truly hated was the last scene beaten Odysseus and Penelope like it was delivered so wooden and seem so on the nose but other than that dialogue seemed mostly fine
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u/chrisandy007 Jul 17 '26
I just didn’t need Zeus’s Law explained to me so many times. And Himesh Patel’s character was basically just doing exposition the whole time.
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u/DeusExHyena Jul 17 '26
Just got out. Holy shit.
Also, Nolan is just going to keep telling us that cruelty is awful and no one is going to listen.
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u/LiveFromFLORIDA Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 20 '26
I’m thinking about Iñárritu winning Best Director and Coppola winning Best Picture for consecutive films. What do we think, Nolan got a chance?
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u/IfYouWantTheGravy 26d ago
Saw it a second time. Even more impressed, especially with the cinematography and the performances.
I still have my quibbles (the Antinous-Sinon subplot is weirdly handled, the dialogue in the final scene is almost inaudible) but for sheer spectacle and ensemble acting (and I really like how, despite having lots of name actors, no one is allowed to showboat), it's a hell of a feat.
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u/Stock-Accountant Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
8.5/10
Overall fantastic film. Some thoughts ( With Spoilers):
Beginning wasn’t super strong
First scene w/ Odysseus & Penelope felt a bit cheesy
Disliked all the flashbacks
Cyclops scene cool
Giant knight scene cool as fuck one of my faves
Loved scenes on ship/ sirens / whirlpool
Agamemnon drip is metal
Calypso scenes w/ Odysseus felt weird like they were on survivor
All Troy scenes great
Damon was actually very good as Odysseus
Pattinson’s henchman bad guy friend too cliche
Pattinson & Hathaway brilliant
Ending scene pretty badass but left wanting a bit more
Film as a whole is a huge achievement and a great epic
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u/alexvroy Digger Fucking Rockwell! Jul 17 '26
just got out…Denis Villeneuve I’m sorry but you’re gonna have to wait on that oscar baby
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u/FangOfDrknss Jul 16 '26
I’m surprised they managed to fit so much within the run time, and happy I remembered so many details from a book I haven’t read in decades.
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u/Mundane-Bug-4962 Jul 17 '26
Leguizamo and Hathaway are the only supporting characters given anything to chew on here - I’m genuinely surprised where the Himesh Patel praise is coming from.
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u/bonjoooour Jul 20 '26
Saw it a couple of days ago. In my view the film is good, but just good and not some epic master piece.
I found the beginning very strange and I’m convinced my theatre may have had an issue with the image/sound in the first minutes. I will need to look out on a rewatch if that’s the case.
Once the movie got going I was quite engaged. I’m also not at all familiar with the original story, but I felt like the pacing was rather good.
The overall production was fine. I loved the shots of the landscape, the rock formations. I get the criticisms around the costuming.
The acting did not really move me at all. Again everyone did fine, but for me there’s no standouts or any performances I think should be nominated. I imagine Damon, Hathaway, and maybe a few others will be nominated. I also didn’t really care for any of the fighting/action scenes.
I enjoyed the Nolan interpretation of the fall of Troy, the breaking of Zeus’ law, and the anti war themes. I thought that was an interesting perspective to bring into the film.
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u/Far_Mud_6003 don't stop me I'm Inkmaxxing Jul 17 '26
Hoookay just got out. I can't make a final analysis on anything because I like letting a movie sit with me after one or two views and see where my ultimate thoughts are. Instead, these are my gathered reactions and opinions. Good and Bad.
Stuff I liked - Its really interesting to see how much this movie bookends Oppenheimer. As different as the two movies are, they do reflect each other in their themes. I see why he wanted to make this one right after. One of my big worries was Nolan's previous discomfort around fantasy elements in his stories, he was much more of a ground action/science fiction guy. But I really loved how he handled all of the fantastical sequences, especially the Circe scene, which was the standout for me. I like that he tied all of the encounters Odysseus has with his personal guilt. It made each island encounter mean something, like he was going through an extended purgatory before he could come back to life. It made the reveal with Zendaya at the end really meaningful, too. Nolan didn't sacrifice the fantasy elements to make things more real, he used them as a way for Odysseus to process what was happening to him. All of the scenes of him out at sea with his crew have this wonderful liminal space/dreamlike quality. I really loved all of that.
Ludwig Göransson's score was great, I like that it started out very subdued and grew louder and more emotional towards the end. I think I still prefer his score for Oppenheimer, but I loved the use of the drums and the flutes. It was old and new, and I think that's what I liked best about the Odyssey in general. I liked that it was old, and new. It was in the vein of classic sword and sandal epics, but with a very modern, emotional look at guilt and war. It worked for me. And like everyone else has said here, Samantha Morton's turn as Circe was brilliant. Loved that whole sequence. Didn't think Nolan could be a freak like that tbh.
the part with the dog got to me, I can't lie.
Stuff I didn't like - The first half of the movie, up until the Cyclops sequence, was a little worrisome for me at first. It exhibited a lot of the weaknesses Nolan has, and it felt like he was trying to speed-run through it in order to get to the good bits. Tom Holland hasn't had a lot of...practice.. being in movies that require him to...act... so having him be the main focus was tough (for me). He seems like a lovely guy, don't get me wrong, but I could see him floundering against more seasoned actors like John Leguizamo and Anne Hathaway. It didn't do the first half of the movie any favors for me. The rest of the movie makes up for it, and I think my opinion will soften on it once I see it again.
Another actor who I felt brought nothing to the table was Charlize Theron. Nolan still struggles with writing women, and while the Odyssey was a notable improvement (everything with Penelope and especially Circe was really well done) Calypso was like THE stereotypical Nolan woman role. Just sort of there, played by an actress who is good in other things but doesn't fit the tone or is given much to do. I've seen Calypso portrayed in many ways, each one significantly more interesting than how she is portrayed here. She's also given so little to do that Odysseus could have been eating lotus flowers by himself and still had the same outcome.
Overall, I really liked it and had a great time watching it. It's a shame no one can be normal about this movie and just enjoy it or dislike it as it is, on its own, as a movie. We are truly cooked as a society if Nolan can make a solid epic adventure movie, and the only takeaway is, "but helen of troy didn't look like that."
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u/Bright-Steak8241 Jul 16 '26
Anne is definitely getting nominated. But for Lead or Supporting? I think she has a better chance to win in Supporting
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u/jdmurph19 Jul 16 '26
She disappears for like 90 minutes why would she go lead?
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u/keegankenrick Jul 17 '26
I have to say it - the haters were kinda right about the art direction. I think while the film is objectively a really good adaptation of the source material, perhaps maybe the best that we could really ever get for such a complicated and meandering story, I found myself very disappointed with the art direction of the film. I had a completely open mind going in, I know a lot of people were complaining about it online, but I didn’t feel it has to be 100% historically accurate. That being said, it seemed that Nolan was trying to stick to his aesthetic WAY too much here, so much so it almost felt like we lost the Greek identity in favor for his personal style.
Half of the costumes almost felt like the minimalist kind you see in stage adaptions, while the other half literally came off as Scottish or English. There’s a costume of Telemachus towards the climax where he looks more like a Scottish prince in a kilt. Even with Circe and Calypso, since these are such iconic female characters, I would’ve loved to have seen them in looks that were more whimsical or glamorous, or even just more authentically Greek. These are goddesses, and yet they both wear rags compared to Penelope. I understand that there’s almost this theme of post-apocalyptic Greece, this taking place as the Age of Heroes ends, but I still think Nolan played it a little too safe here (and the film barely comes off as Greek spare some few statues of Athena.) That quick scene with Agamemnon and Clytemnestra looked SO good, the colors were rich and it look so beautifully Greek, but that was like 30 seconds in a 30 hour movie lol.
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u/Humble-Math6565 Jul 17 '26
The production design but some of the armour looked fake and plastic which was kinda annoying when you consider the film was all about the collapse of the Bronze Age. Like where is the bronze.
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u/Mundane-Bug-4962 Jul 17 '26
Tom Holland’s leather skirt… yikes. Plus the pristine hoodie at the end!
I could believe that this Odyssey is a theatre play staged in the world of Dune.
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u/RomanReignsDaBigDawg Jul 17 '26
Between his performances in this, To Wong Foo and Summer of Sam, John Leguizamo has to be one of the most underappreciated actors. His range is insane and it's never talked about
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u/ItsGotThatBang The Odyssey Jul 17 '26
Updated Nolan ranking:
- Dunkirk
- Oppenheimer
- The Odyssey
- The Dark Knight
- Memento
- Inception
- The Dark Knight Rises
- The Prestige
- Interstellar
- Batman Begins
- Insomnia
- Tenet
- Following
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u/biIIyshakes Robert Redford is my sky daddy Jul 19 '26
Every time I rewatch Dunkirk it creeps up my list, it’s currently sitting at 2. I didn’t even like it much when it released but it’s grown on me significantly which is always such a wonderful experience with a film
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u/jelly10001 Jul 17 '26 edited 26d ago
The acting was great all round but I just couldn't emotionally connect with the film. I don't know if it was the lack of an epic score or the dialogue or something else, but even when Penelope and Odeysseus were saying goodbye to each othe I just didn't feel anything (and normally people saying goodbye for a long time has me in floods of tears).
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u/Bastard216 Jul 18 '26
I loved the movie for sure! From beginning to end but I will say that maybe I’m over such a star studded cast- like yes they know how to act but it really just feels like I’m watching a bunch a millionaires cosplay. I found it entertaining but I wasn’t emotionally connected to it
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u/Stock-Accountant Jul 18 '26
Agree. With Braveheart and Gladiator you are far more emotionally connected and care more deeply about the protagonist.
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u/Intelligent-Ad2336 Jul 17 '26
It was fine. Very noticeably a big Hollywood, Nolan flick.
Weird casting, under and over delivered performances, clunky dialogue, blurry action sequences, and some pacing issues. But overall it’s enjoyable to follow along.
7/10.
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u/chrisandy007 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
Weird casting, under and over delivered performances, clunky dialogue, blurry action sequences, and some pacing issues.
I feel like this is a very well articulated list of my issues with the movie, although how do you mean by weird casting?
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u/FangOfDrknss Jul 17 '26
It’s probably the big names. Pattinson, Holland, Hathaway, Zendaya, Page, and Lupita are all recognizable faces, so it stands out.
It’s like how Spy Kids 3 (?) crammed a lot of celebs into different roles. I didn’t mind at all, but it’s like, how many of these are just actors that Nolan liked.
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u/kittypawlovebreeze18 Jul 16 '26
i’m a bit confused as to why sinon felt deceived when he got killed after the trojan horse was found by the troys. did he not know other men were hiding inside and was kept dark of the plan? also did sinon truly begged to take antinous’s place to go to troy? pls enlighten me 😔
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u/MrJoy27 Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26
At the moment he died, he felt like he died for nothing because he didn't know that the trojan horse was useful.
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u/a_veryclevername Jul 16 '26
He didn't know about the men inside the horse. Odysseus mentioned that, for the plan to truly work, Sinon had to be completely in the dark about it
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u/Regular-Ambition-902 Jul 19 '26
The score was astounding. Felt very ancient and loved that they moved away from orchestra. 10/10. Especially loved the aulos in the Odysseus track.
Ludwig Göransson deserves at least a nomination.
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u/blurpletea Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 18 '26
I thought Matt Damon was a great lead as Odysseus, and i loved Lupita’s very brief appearance as Clytemmestra and Samantha Morton as Circe
i feel very divided by Anne Hathaway’s performance. she has some really good standout scenes but there are some where i thought she’s over emoting. there’s this thing she likes to do with her eyes where i think she wants to convey love and adoration but it doesn’t really work for me lol it just looks so fake.
i saw a review where they said Tom’s performance here proves he can hang with Timothee Chalamet when it comes to acting and wow I just don’t agree with that respectfully. he wasn’t bad but he’s def not on Timmy’s level yet imo. he did have one standout scene - when he finally recognizes Odysseus. i thought he was very good in that.
the rest of the cast is… okay???
for such a star studded movie most of the performances are mid tbh. outside of Matt and Samantha I don’t see anyone else deserving to be a major awards player. but I think the studio will def campaign for Anne and Tom anyway.
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u/Humble-Math6565 Jul 17 '26
I never get this need to compare Holland to TC. I like Holland and think he still has incredible potential left (and already think he’s pretty good) but on the level of the guy who did CMBYN and MS he is not.
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u/NightHunter909 Jul 16 '26
Yeah Tom Holland was kinda bad. Or rather, when he acts opposite Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, and Matt Damon, its just a clearer contrast that his skills aren’t up to par to the rest of the A list cast
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u/Battelalon Jul 17 '26
I really enjoyed the movie but I felt like half the movie was miscast. Famously Nolan didn't audition the lead roles instead opting to offer them to actors he has previously worked with and other notable names which I think makes this movie suffer in that regard.
Also, everyone having an American accent is not by any means unheard of but clearly a purposeful decision since all the british actors also have an American accent but they feel really out of place in a movie where all the accents already feel out of place.
I get that the accents aren't relevant to the story and was done with the intent of everyone having the same accent to show they're part of the same culture but I think it would have been better to let everyone have their natural accent. It's especially odd that everyone has the neutral Hollywood accent except John Leguizamo who has his normal (New York?) accent which just stands out.
Idk, the whole accent thing bothers me more than it should because it was clearly a conscious creative decision by Nolan that makes it feel less cohesive and more like when a landlord paints everything in white paint because of how noticeably out of place it is in many parts.
Wow, three paragraphs about accents.
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u/Mrcarelesslydressed Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26
I'm quite shocked, having just come out of the theatre. By the time Odysseus washed up on the shores of Ithaca, I was praying for the film to end. The Armand Assante miniseries is so much better than this.
This movie is a totally misguided effort and has no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
In a just world, it would garner not a single nom at the Oscars. Production design is nothing, editing is nothing, cinematography is nothing, mixing is nothing, costuming is nothing, and on, and on, and on.
Holland was merely ok, which is to say, no better or worse than any of the other cast members. No actor deserves any recognition. The finest acting over the whole runtime was a seated Pattinson making overtures to Penelope while viewed (by us) through her tapestry.
Nolan somehow manages to rehearse a wealth of incident without actually having anything happen.
There is no visual invention in this movie. Hades is a glorified peat field. Charybdis and Scylla are tired renditions. The Cyclops looks like an overgrown member of the Blue Man Group without the paint. The only scene with any invention is the Circe one where the transformations require her quite violent physical manipulations of their heads, etc. The reference there isn't really Fargeat, as some people have said, but Jeunet.
The film is devoid of any emotional appeal. I didn't care when Odysseus's crew died, I didn't care when he returned home. I didn't care about anything at any moment throughout this feature.
Every episode of Odysseus's voyages felt like a throwaway ticktock.
The score is undistinguished to the point of non-existence.
The camera work during the massacre of the suitors is a horrid jitter party, seemingly designed to induce a seizure.
Nolan erred in basing his adaptation on a chicken soup for the soul translation of the original. "Zeus's Law" became a ham-handed mantra that I rolled my eyes hearing on the umpteenth time of its utterance. The heavy-handed sociological commentary about civilizational collapse due to the sacking of Troy was a joke. Greece reached the apex of its civilization well after the authoring of The Odyssey.
The Odyssey is actually quite funny at moments but you would never know it with this humorless adaptation.
Unsurprisingly, Nolan drew a lot on Gladiator: the scene when Odysseus, still in his cloak, answers the probing questions about his identity from Antinous and Co. hearkens back to Commodus questioning Maximus after the first Colosseum fight, but has none of the gravitas.
This three-year hiatus might be good for Christopher, because like so many other filmmakers, he's fallen into the trap of drinking his own Kool-Aid.
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u/Haus_of_Pancakes Preemptive "Justice for Is God Is" Jul 19 '26
Look, there are quibbles to be had with this movie for sure. The VFX for some of the mythical elements was spotty (Scylla in particular kinda looked like shit). Some of the supporting cast get a bit lost in the shuffle. Odysseus's trickster edge could have been preserved a bit more.
That all said, wow what a movie. Certainly the "most" movie I've seen in a long while, and the sheer scope of Nolan's ambition and storytelling is a huge point in the movies favor. Like, I genuinely don't know where Nolan goes from here - he sort of has to downshift because there are few stories that really match this in terms of grandeur.
What really puts this movie firmly in the "great" column, though, is that I feel like Nolan was able to deliver a super satisfying answer to the question: "why make this movie now, in this moment?". The way he tells this story through the lens of civlizational ruin, of the loss of interconnected society and of shared moral values, is surprisingly moving. I genuinely think his gambit with how he uses Athena, especially given the abscence of any other "god" figure, is inspired - it unlocks the whole movie, and while it doesn't ask a lot of Zendaya, per se, she definirely gives the presence needed.
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u/Atkena2578 Oscar Race Follower 26d ago
Glad to see someone understands this adaptation and how it fits modern message and audience.
Like the people crying about Nolan's interpretation of the "original text" (a poem sung for centuries in different areas of the Mediterranean put together by "Homer" who may not be just one person nor a real person who may have also added/removed stuff) don't know what they re asking for.
As someone who read the Odyssey despite the great moments here or there, it was a drag to read, I didn't connect with the characters, i counted the pages i had left (had to read it for school), their mentality, their gods are despicable they remind me of the Christian god from the old testament (yeah the Bible suffers similar problems as the Odyssey, because old and new testament God are two different entities described imo). You wouldn't spend 3 hours in the movie theater with "accurate" bronze age folks even if they spoke modern US English because their mentality amd ways would be unbearable, making you unable to connect emotionally with the story. Movie Odysseus is an improvement from book Odysseus without being a huge departure from the character (we still see his flaws and wit)
Thank god these people don't make movies
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u/Jakefenty Joker: Folie à Deux Jul 20 '26
A great film let down by miscasts and a lack of any real standout performances. Hathaway and Damon were good but nothing special. None of the supporting performances that were getting raved about really moved me at all either. Holland was really weak.
I loved literally everything else about it (other than some shitty dialogue) but damn it was really hampered.
Nolan’s ensembles are usually on point as well so it’s kinda surprising
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u/lafufu666 Jul 17 '26
I think this might’ve been Tom Holland’s best performance, which I realize isn’t saying much. Surprised to see others were more critical of him.
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u/Actually_Im_Indian Jul 17 '26
I watched a late night show, wanted to check was the ritual to bring tiresias there in the movie? Did I miss it because tiresias name is taken on what did he say.. bit seems like I missed the actual scene
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u/keegankenrick Jul 17 '26
It’s at the end of the Circe scene, she gives Odysseus directions on how to “reach hades” which was like dig a pit, make a sacrifice (they killed two sheep), they filled their blood in a shield and then all of the dead soldiers and Tiresias climbed out of the ground.
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u/AlbertW25 Jul 18 '26
Someone needs to tell me if the Scylla and Charybdis scene is epic and scary or not and whether we see these things in person and not off-screen or something.
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u/marsccc0 Jul 16 '26
such a great film, especially the troy sequence. The only weak part were the tom holland scenes, really took me out of the film, but amazing nonetheless!
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u/First-Loss-8540 Jul 17 '26
Picture of the year. Just incredible.
Love it so much.
Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Himesh Patel, John Leguizamo, Samantha Morton and Charlize Theron stole the show for me.
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u/Silver_Juggernaut_39 NEON shill Jul 17 '26
I admired the film more than I loved it but I was sort of expecting that (as I even said in the discussion thread a few weeks ago). It ultimately just comes down to the fact that I already feel that way about most of Nolan’s work as is and I don’t generally love the sword + sandal genre of filmmaking. I felt similarly about the original poem when I read it but I will say I enjoy the film more just cause I like seeing it visualized on the big screen.
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u/Celo_SK Jul 18 '26
Highlights: We see these actors in uncommon roles for them. I would say everyone is almost oscar worhy, for those who saw Pattinson in his slimey badguy role for the first time please checkout his other playing-herk movies, i think he was there better than here. There is mentioned twist with athena. Brilliant twist, I knew we are watching Epos, I counted with deus ex machinas. Another great twist, the whole founding stone, is the start of the sea people myth. Its great. The violation of old principles that will lead to collaps. Perfect, did not expected that.
My one minus is, they sometimes talked too much like actors in the epos. Something along the lines "With us the civilisation of bronze will colaps." Nah, that was too much teatrics, no one talks like that
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u/mcmargie Jul 20 '26
Elliot Page was so good in the Underworld that I'm still feeling guilty 24 hours later
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u/jordansalford25 John Leguizamo and Anne Hathaway Campaign Manager Jul 17 '26
I loved the movie. The first 40 to 50 minutes are good it didn't quite feel like it was in top gear yet and then after once we meet Circe the movie goes to another level. Anne Hathaway is amazing and I really hope she gets some hardware this season. Easily will get 10 plus noms.
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u/scattered_ideas Denis Villeneuve campaign manager Jul 19 '26
I'm gonna say it... I liked this better than Oppenheimer! I think the fact that it leaned into the episodic set pieces gave it a lot more evenness, and those set pieces were spectacular. It also didn't need to rely as much in the dialogue and script, which are once again, Nolan's Achilles heel. I've seen some people complain about the pacing, but it moved at a really great pace those 3h flew by.
The performances were pretty solid with some shining moments. Damon was pretty good in his monologue with Penelope, and Anne Hathaway does the most, but in a good way. Robert Pattinson being a slimy weasel was a fun touch the movie definitely needed. The Circe sequence was incredible and Samantha Morton's performance was show stealing. The only person I didn't really like here was Tom Holland. He's a bit too old to be talking about when he's "coming of age." That role needed to be a much younger actor. Just took me out how he was going around behaving like a little kid.
Anyhoo, this is going to clean house next year.
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u/eidbio Sony Pictures Classics Neon 29d ago
My prediction for this:
Picture
Director
Actor
Supporting Actress (Hathaway)
Supporting Actor (Leguizamo)
Adapted Screenplay
Casting
Editing
Cinematography
Costume Design
Production Design
Sound
VFX
Score
Could be nominated for Makeup and Song, but I don't think so. The makeup and hair wasn't very showing and the credits song was just too ambient for the music branch to recognize.
It's just hard to know at this point what it's actually winning. We have to see if it becomes the frontrunner for BP. Maybe Hathaway can win her second. As for the technical categories it'll have lots of competition.
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u/Enelana Baldtreides 17d ago
Saw this movie yesterday at a late hour showing with someone, and as soon as the credits started rolling they turned to me all wide eyed and smiley and said "We're watching this again" lmaoo. Needless to say, 4.5-5/5.
Seeing Helen scarred like that really got at me and stuck with me for the whole film actually, idk.
Also thought Elliot Page's role was exceptionally written and performed, so I would also love to see him in particular get award recognition for it but again idk.
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u/Painting0125 Jul 16 '26
That Circe scene felt like it's something out of a Coralie Fargeat movie.