The Odyssey

A Breathtaking Dark Visual Poem of Human Failure.

Sometimes even epic poems from the past can say something meaningful about our time, and certain feelings or narratives never go out of style.

In an era dominated by ragebait and performative criticism, Christopher Nolan has somehow become one of the most hated directors, whose every creative choice is already judged before people even engage with what is actually happening on screen.

Pretentious? Absolutely! But he proves once again that he knows how to create magnificent blockbusters.

Homer’s Odyssey is one of the most adapted works in cinema, theatre, music, and any form of art… and there is an obvious reason for that.

It’s not just a Greek classic, it’s a journey of a man, Odysseus, who travels the seas to fight a battle and return home after 20 years. It’s a story about guilt based on bad decisions and death.

A story of a lost man who has to face his own demons, while women are at the centre of his curse and salvation… and please don’t tell me that this time Nolan didn’t write excellent female characters because, at this point, it’s becoming a social narrative of hate more than a real observation of what’s going on on-screen!!!

A stellar cast that didn’t disappoint. Every character choice was just perfect, and everyone did an amazing job (still applause to Robert Pattinson, with his mega-evil gaze).

This is a personal adaptation and a story that feels as relevant today as it did centuries ago. And that’s where Nolan’s interpretation becomes particularly interesting.

The story follows a very personal adaptation of the poem, while Nolan’s style, in classic Nolan fashion, is breathing in every second of the movie, which perfectly surrounds his vision with Ludwig Göransson’s music, taking you into this dark and extremely thorough, provocative tale.

I felt completely hooked by it, but it’s not an easy watch. The things in there are much more complex than just a book-to-film adaptation. If you look a bit closer and leave all the critics about the Batman armour and the Viking ships, you will totally get why those choices were made.

This is an introspective journey not only of a man who, because of his ego, killed his fleet’s men, but also a much darker version of what history, or fictional books based on myth, tell us about how humanity is broken and has never learned from its past.

As I mentioned above, women are at the centre of the story: the ones who wait, deceive, and guide a man who is strong in physical appearance but weak in his intentions. Ironically, this might contain some of Nolan’s most interesting female characters to date because they become emotional, symbolic, and even moral forces within the narrative.

And no, this isn’t about spoilers—who doesn’t know at least a little about The Odyssey?! But naming and discussing all the characters involved would require a review of its own.

But it’s also very important that Homer wrote the book after the Odyssey had been passed down by word of mouth for many years. So his writing is an interpretation of the stories he heard…

same for Nolan.

This is not just a story about heroes, monsters, and gods. It’s a story about guilt, trauma, ego, and the painful consequences of our own choices, trying to survive the weight of our past. Because beneath all the mythology lies something much more uncomfortable.

“The Odyssey” is a thriller of draining tension and emotional discomfort disguised at times as a psychological-body horror. A movie interested in myth, symbolism, and timelessness.

The real monsters are not the creatures encountered during the journey, but guilt, grief, and the inability to move on from what has already been done. Just look at our surroundings,  at what’s going on in the world, to understand the real meaning behind the words and the images the movie evokes, which have been translated into a ferocious horror imaginary by Nolan.

A story about humanity’s inability to change, to look inside itself, and to blame others for its mistakes. A story about men whose pride destroys entire worlds. A story about carrying guilt for so long that even the idea of home no longer feels comforting.

A perfect blend of past, present, and future. And perhaps that is why Homer’s work has survived for centuries. Because despite all our technological progress, despite thousands of years of history, we are still not that different from the people who first listened to this story.

We still make the same mistakes. We still destroy things because of pride. We still struggle to live with our own demons.

I only wish that some parts, particularly Circe and the Sirens, had been explored a little further, as they are among the most fascinating and psychologically rich moments of the poem. But despite this minor complaint, this remains one of the strongest cinematic adaptations of Homer’s work.

I left the theatre feeling overwhelmed by both its beauty and brutality, as it captured me inside a dystopian past that feels dark, brutal, provocative, and emotionally draining… And honestly? That is exactly how I have always imagined Homer’s world.