Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey: A Classic Tale Reimagined?

People who are interested in reading, and especially those who love the classics, cannot have missed the online debate surrounding Christopher Nolan’s new epic film, The Odyssey. Curious to understand what all the fuss was about, I decided to go and watch it.

I admit that I often become frustrated when classics are changed, modernised, or transformed into entirely new interpretations. However, sometimes these adaptations work well. A new perspective can bring an old story to life — but it can also take away some of the things that made the original special.

I am not particularly familiar with Nolan’s complete work. In my younger years, I was a dedicated film fan. I knew the names of directors, actors, and writers, watched most major releases, and followed cinema closely. However, for several years now, I have struggled to become enthusiastic about many of the films being made today, especially those coming from Hollywood.

Looking through Nolan’s filmography, I realised that he directed one film that I consider among the best I have ever seen: The Prestige. What an excellent film that is. I also watched Oppenheimer, which I enjoyed. However, I have little interest in the endless stream of superhero and Marvel films, so I have not seen them. Sometimes it feels as if they are the only type of films coming out of the Hollywood dream factory these days.

When I heard that The Odyssey was going to be filmed, I became genuinely excited. Here was one of the greatest stories ever told: the journey of a hero returning home after war. What could possibly go wrong?

Well, as it turns out, quite a lot.

I have watched numerous YouTube videos by archaeologists, historians, classicists, film enthusiasts, and others discussing the film. It is easy to be influenced by their opinions and by what we see in trailers. Like many others, I initially felt uneasy because it seemed that the filmmakers had taken quite a few liberties with the original story.

Nevertheless, I decided to approach the film with an open mind. Some critics described it as an epic achievement and believed that the story worked well as a modern film. I sat down full of expectations, hoping that I would love it.

Ithaka

The film begins promisingly, with the story opening at the palace in Ithaka. We are introduced to the royal household: Penelope, Odysseus’ wife; their son Telemachus; and the group of suitors waiting for Penelope to choose one of them as her new husband.

Most people know the story of Penelope’s weaving trick and how she delays making her choice. Everyone is wondering why Odysseus has not returned home. Many of the other heroes of the Trojan War have already reached their own kingdoms and settled back into their lives.

Telemachus sets out in search of his father, hoping to discover what has happened to him.

Odysseus’ Journey and Its Obstacles

We then follow Odysseus and his crew as they attempt to return home. Every time they stop to find food, water, or shelter on their journey, they encounter another obstacle.

In the film, the first major challenge is the encounter with the Cyclops Polyphemus. I am sure most readers know the story, but here is a short summary:

Trapped in the Cave Odysseus and some of his men land on the island of the Cyclopes in search of food. They discover a large cave filled with supplies and enter it. The owner of the cave, the one-eyed giant Cyclops Polyphemus, returns home and blocks the entrance with a huge rock. Polyphemus has no respect for the gods or the laws of hospitality, and he eats two of Odysseus’ men.

The Clever Plan Odysseus realises that he cannot simply kill the Cyclops because only Polyphemus can move the enormous stone blocking the entrance. He sharpens a wooden stake and gives the giant strong wine to make him drunk. When Polyphemus asks his name, Odysseus tells him that he is called “Nobody”. When the Cyclops falls asleep, Odysseus and his men heat the wooden stake and blind his single eye

The Escape When Polyphemus cries out for help, shouting that “Nobody” is attacking him, the other Cyclopes do not come to his aid. The next morning, Odysseus and his surviving men escape by tying themselves beneath the giant’s sheep. However, as they sail away, Odysseus’ pride takes over. He reveals his true name to Polyphemus. The Cyclops then prays to his father, Poseidon, the god of the sea, asking him to punish Odysseus. This curse is what makes Odysseus’ journey home so long and difficult.

The entire disastrous journey home begins with that moment of hubris — Odysseus’ inability to control his pride when he reveals his identity. Once Polyphemus and Poseidon know who attacked the Cyclops, the fate of Odysseus and his men is sealed.

All the future suffering comes from Poseidon’s anger, although this connection is not emphasised very clearly in the film. The many challenges Odysseus faces on his way home are ultimately consequences of this single act.

Myth vs Historical Reality vs the Classical Tale

People often say that The Odyssey is a mythical story with no historical truth behind it. Therefore, they seem to argue, filmmakers should be free to change the story and its appearance however they like. However, it is still a classic tale written nearly 2,800 years ago.

The Trojan War, at least as we know it from legend and archaeology, supposedly took place around 1200 BCE, give or take a few decades. Even if the story itself is largely mythical, there are certain facts we know about how the world of the Late Bronze Age looked. This would have given any filmmaker a perfect opportunity to recreate that world as accurately as possible, especially considering the enormous budget available.

There has already been plenty of discussion about the casting, the Viking ship, and other historical inaccuracies, so I will not dwell on those issues here.

My Views of the Film

The Mediterranean

The story takes place in the Mediterranean, a region known for its sunshine, warm colours, and brilliant blue skies. Yet much of the film is shot in shadow, with a dark and muted visual palette.

Perhaps Nolan wanted to emphasise the darkness of war, suffering, and loss rather than the beauty of the setting. While I can understand that artistic choice, I feel it takes away much of the natural splendour of the Mediterranean and presents the landscape in an oddly unrealistic light.

The Storyline

The story is told through a series of non-linear timelines and flashbacks, which appears to be very much Nolan’s style. To be fair, The Odyssey itself is not told in strict chronological order.

I generally enjoy this kind of storytelling and often find it highly effective. In this film, however, it is somewhat confusing. The narrative constantly shifts between different threads, leaving the viewer with fragments of the story that do not always seem to connect into a coherent whole.

The Women

Lupita Nyong’o was once asked a hypothetical question in an interview: what would she ask Homer if she could meet him? Her answer was:

“I’d say to him, ‘So, Homer, how do you feel about the amount of time given to these women on screen, considering how little time you gave them?’”

I think that question might be more appropriately directed at Christopher Nolan.

The women who appear in the film are largely reduced to brief encounters, giving the audience little sense of who they are or why they matter. Penelope is the obvious exception, but it would be difficult to ignore her given her central role in the story.

Women may make up only about a quarter of the named characters in The Odyssey, but their importance is immense. They are independent, intelligent, and powerful figures who drive many of the story’s most important events. In fact, many classicists regard The Odyssey as one of the most female-centred works in ancient Greek literature.

Unfortunately, that aspect of the story does not come across particularly well in the film.

One Swedish film critic described the film as “asexual”, and I think that is an apt description, particularly regarding Odysseus’ relationships with women. It makes one wonder whether a certain modern moral sensibility influenced the adaptation.

In the original story, Odysseus clearly has relationships with both Circe and Calypso, and possibly with other women as well. The film largely removes this dimension of his character. Instead, Odysseus is portrayed as being as faithful to Penelope as she is to him. He is visualised as an honourable hero with no faults.

The Underworld

I was disappointed by the Underworld sequence. I had hoped for a more imaginative depiction of the realm of the dead, a place where Odysseus could truly descend into another world and then return to the living.

Given the possibilities offered by fantasy and modern visual effects, this could have been one of the most memorable parts of the film. Instead, I found it rather underwhelming.

Zeus’ Law

The concept of Zeus’ Law, the sacred obligation of hospitality, is certainly important in Greek culture and mythology.

However, it is repeated so often throughout the film that it eventually becomes slightly ridiculous.

The Sea Peoples

The Sea Peoples are mentioned several times during the film. They are the name given to a number of unidentified groups who attacked Egypt and other parts of the eastern Mediterranean around 1200 BCE.

The theory was first proposed by nineteenth-century Egyptologists based on reliefs found at the Mortuary Temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu. The Sea Peoples are often associated with the Late Bronze Age Collapse and are sometimes linked to the decline of Mycenaean civilisation around 1200 BCE.

The problem is that this historical concept was completely unknown both at the time of the Trojan War and when The Odyssey was written. Towards the end of the film, Odysseus even speaks about the aftermath of the war in terms that sound almost post-apocalyptic.

Needless to say, people of that era neither possessed such a historical perspective nor understood the broader geopolitical events unfolding across the Mediterranean.

That said, the mystery of the Sea Peoples remains a fascinating subject and one of the great unanswered questions of ancient history.

Regretting the War

At the end of the film, Odysseus reflects on the Trojan War and appears to regret having fought in it.

This feels more like a modern interpretation of warfare than something that comes directly from the original text. Yes, war is terrible, and most of us today view it that way. However, Homeric heroes tended to see things differently.

In the original story, Odysseus is generally proud of his achievements at Troy. After all, he was the man who conceived the idea of the Trojan Horse. He sees himself as a great warrior, though not without regrets.

His regrets stem from different sources: the loss of his companions, the mistakes that brought Poseidon’s wrath upon him, the years spent away from home, his separation from Penelope and Telemachus, and the suffering endured during his ten-year journey back to Ithaka.

Those are the burdens that weigh most heavily upon him.

Overview

In the end, there were simply too many things I did not like about this film.

First of all, I found it far too long. Personally, I think Nolan could have reduced or even removed many of the scenes depicting the Trojan War. In this case, those events could have been conveyed through dialogue rather than shown directly on screen. Ironically, the film often chooses to tell rather than show in places where visual storytelling would have been far more effective.

There were moments here and there when the film managed to draw me in, but overall I found it surprisingly dull. At one point, after what felt like an eternity, I checked my watch and realised there was still another hour left to go.

That was not an encouraging moment.

I also found much of the dialogue painfully weak. More than once I found myself admiring the actors’ ability to deliver some of the lines with complete conviction, without blushing or appearing embarrassed.

The last time I felt this way was while watching Wuthering Heights—another film that, in my opinion, suffered from poor dialogue and poor storytelling.

The only positive thing I can say is that The Odyssey is slightly better.

I suppose that says it all.