Tickets Please Reviews: Nolan’s The Odyssey

Writer’s Note:

My personal reviews will not have numerical scores attached to them. I will do my best to describe a movie’s strengths and weaknesses without relying on a number system, but I will provide an overall verdict at the end.

Without further ado, for those who don’t know:

Intro: Making The Odyssey

“The Odyssey is a 2026 epic action-fantasy film written and directed by Christopher Nolan. Produced by Nolan and his wife, Emma Thomas, it is an adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek epic poem The Odyssey. Its ensemble cast includes Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Samantha Morton, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron.

In the film, Odysseus (Damon), the Greek king of Ithaca, undergoes a long and perilous journey home after the Trojan War and encounters mythical beings as he attempts to reunite with his wife Penelope (Hathaway).”

An important note about The Odyssey: Christopher Nolan shot this entire movie in IMAX. In the past, IMAX cameras couldn’t properly capture synchronized sound, so Nolan and his team created a new camera system capable of filming every scene in IMAX.

The benefit of this is that, when you see it in IMAX, it is glorious—simply a marvel to behold. The cinematography by Hoyte van Hoytema is breathtaking, making the world feel alive and real.

The downside is that if you don’t see it in IMAX, it becomes a very different experience. The aspect ratio loses far too much information in my opinion, and the picture suffers because of it. I believe you should meet artists through their chosen medium, and Nolan’s medium of choice here is IMAX. If you see this movie for the first time, do your best to see it in IMAX, though I know that is far easier said than done.

Cast

Personally, I go into most movies as blind as possible. I don’t watch trailers because I want to experience the movie as a whole first.

While I knew some of the big names, Damon, Holland, Zendaya, and Hathaway, I was truly blown away by this all-star cast. Matt Damon is perfect in the role of Odysseus, capturing both a brilliant mind and a tortured soul, but the rest of the cast packs just as powerful a punch.

For the smaller roles in terms of screen time, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, and Elliot Page were excellent. These actors only have five or six scenes throughout the movie, yet they leave a lasting impression.

Zendaya, playing Athena, does an impeccable job capturing the rage and sadness a god would feel while trying to communicate with a man like Odysseus. However, more on her later in the spoiler section of this review.

Elliot Page, as Sinon, is the embodiment of a Greek tragedy, played with complete sincerity before being consumed by bitter regret.

Lupita Nyong’o, whose screen time likely doesn’t exceed five minutes, portrays Helen of Troy and her “identical twin sister” with deep remorse. It is a haunting look at a woman’s role in a man’s war. Eric Voss of New Rockstars said Helen acts as “the sin eater” of this movie, and I couldn’t agree more.

For me, one of the few performances that didn’t fully land was Anne Hathaway’s, though this is entirely personal preference. Some of the high-intensity scenes between her and her son, Telemachus (Tom Holland), didn’t quite work for me. While her rage is understandable, it occasionally felt slightly unwarranted toward him. However, her scenes with Matt Damon showcased beautiful chemistry and complexity that I felt was missing elsewhere. It is still an excellent performance, just a little hit-or-miss for me.

While Matt Damon is the lead, the real standouts of the movie for me were Tom Holland as Telemachus, Robert Pattinson as Antinous, and John Leguizamo as Eumaeus. My personal favorite may actually be Leguizamo.

As Tom Holland has stated in several interviews, he was nervous for the role. To me, this is Holland’s best work yet. Playing a son with far too few options to help, Holland captures a soul trapped in limbo. Bouncing perfectly off Robert Pattinson’s cruel and arrogant Antinous, Holland portrays rage, sadness, and joy through subtle shifts in expression and eye acting.

Despite his first scene involving the dogs, Leguizamo provides the steady heartbeat of the film. Acting as the final steward of the past, much like the dog Argos, Leguizamo demonstrates why the people whose lives were touched by Odysseus remained loyal to their long-absent king.

Samantha Morton, playing Circe, stole every scene she appears in. Acting as a moral compass for many of the men in the story, Morton changes not only the tone of the film but leaves a lasting impression on both the audience and Odysseus himself.

Pacing

Clocking in at just under three hours, The Odyssey is largely wonderfully paced.

The only section that felt too long for me was the Cyclops sequence. While the special effects, puppetry, and forced perspective were beautifully executed, the scene lingered longer than necessary and didn’t land as powerfully for me as it did in the poem.

However, from start to finish, I was completely captivated by what was on screen. Every shot feels alive with detail, and the movie kept me engaged the entire time.

Art Direction

A great deal of discussion has surrounded the costume design for this movie. Personally, I’m not one to make a fuss over it.

This is an adaptation of a largely apocryphal story filled with giants, sirens, gods, and journeys into the underworld. If you require strict historical realism in your adaptation of The Odyssey, portions of this film may not work for you.

That said, every piece of armor, clothing, art, and music fits perfectly within the world Nolan creates. Nothing ever feels out of place when viewed through the lens of the story being told.

A great example is Agamemnon’s armor.

I’ll admit, I didn’t like it when I first saw promotional images. It looked far too modern for my taste.

However, once I saw it on screen, I couldn’t get enough of it. The armor appears largely impractical, which I believe is the point. While Odysseus (Matt Damon) and Menelaus (John Bernthal) are frequently covered in dirt, blood, and dust, Agamemnon’s armor remains pristine.

It visually communicates that it is far more important to Agamemnon to look important than to actually participate in battle. The monster designs are phenomenal. Each creature feels both monstrous and strangely human, reflecting the core themes of the story.

The Score

For me, the most standout element in a film filled with standout elements was Ludwig Göransson’s beautiful and lingering score. Ever since seeing the movie, the siren-like sound of the ancient aulos, a double-reeded woodwind instrument, has not left my mind. When Odysseus plucks his bow, the sound of a lyre can be heard, stirring the hearts of everyone listening.

When this soundtrack becomes available on vinyl, I fully intend to wear out the grooves.

Spoiler Discussion

I wanted to keep this review largely spoiler-free, but I need to discuss what may be my favorite aspect of this adaptation.

If you wish to avoid spoilers, stop reading here.

In a Time of Apparent Magic

The movie opens with these words. Though the film depicts magical creatures, gods interacting with humans, and seemingly impossible moments of wonder, the question I found myself asking at the end was:

“Did any of that actually happen?”

This is where Athena, as portrayed by Zendaya, becomes especially important.

In the final act, it is revealed that the figure Odysseus repeatedly sees is the visage of an innocent, unnamed citizen of Troy who was taken from her home and beheaded before his eyes.

Since The Odyssey originated as an oral tradition that was eventually written down and based around broadly accepted historical events, it stands to reason that embellishments would emerge over time.

All of the magical events in the film occur through retellings of Odysseus’ journey, either from his own fractured memory or from stories told by those he encountered.

The fantastical elements may simply be embellishments added through generations of storytelling.

Even in Homer’s original text, Odysseus is an unreliable narrator.

In Nolan’s version, however, I believe there is another interpretation.

Odysseus’ mind was shattered during the war.

He witnessed the carnage he helped create, permanently breaking Zeus’ laws and his own sense of self. His journey home becomes a process of confronting what he has done and accepting the role he played in the downfall of civilization her fought for.

Even the nearly mythical “people from the sea” are ultimately revealed to be Trojans returning home after the war rather than literal sea people.

That said, I also think all the magic could be completely real.

What I love is that there is more than one way to interpret it, as there so often is with a Christopher Nolan film.

Verdict: Masterpiece — Must See

For me, everything worked in this movie.

I view it as perhaps Nolan’s magnum opus—a culmination of all his artistic efforts.

Using one of humanity’s oldest and most influential stories, Nolan creates a version that truly feels like his own.

This is a film I will revisit many times, and I suspect I will continue finding new things to appreciate with every viewing.

I also hope, likely in vain, that we one day receive a continuation of this story through Telemachus.