Despite its success at the global box office, the new film Christopher Nolan, The Odysseyhas received strong criticism, not only from movie buffs, but also from some experts on the subject.
Emily Wilson, a graduate in Classical Studies from the University of Oxford, professor at the University of Pennsylvania (USA) and English translator of Homer’s poem, has said that the production “lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth”.
In an article published in the London Review of Bookstitled “An Uncomplicated Man,” Wilson discussed how the filmmaker approached the story.
“Nolan’s The Odyssey lacks many of the elements that make the poem great. It provides nothing compelling about time, memory, history, war, or the relationship between a warrior’s glorious return and the lives of his family, adversaries, comrades, friends, and neighbors.“, wrote.
He added that the narrative writing is “terrible” and alleged that none of the characters have a compelling motivation for their actions or words. “There are no sex scenes and all the food looks horrible.”
And, although he assured that the film is confusing and its characters are poorly developed, Wilson acknowledged that he has sparked renewed interest in the Greek epic, as it is attracting audiences to movie theaters and translations are selling more.
Nolan is doing “everything he can to get the general public reading again, and I appreciate that”said the translator.
Nolan’s film chronicles the dangerous journey of Odysseus/Ulysses (Matt Damon) back to his kingdom of Ithaca after the Trojan War. On the other hand, his wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) awaits his return while ruling out the suitors who have settled in his palace.
In a recent interview with EFE, Nolan said that, upon addressing The Odysseyhe realized that the oldest history “has a most adventurous non-chronological structure”.
“It was something that made me feel humble and, at the same time, very emotional. Yes, I try to be very faithful to the structure of the original poem precisely because it is so adventurous. They are stories within stories, memories within memories. It is, in fact, an incredibly sophisticated story and whose adaptation I enjoyed very much,” he explained.
Nolan has indicated that he used the first verse of Emily Wilson’s translation as a guide for his Odysseus/Ulysses.
The Odyssey premiered on July 16, 2026 in movie theaters and, despite the translator’s criticism, the British media have praised the film. The Telegraph called it “the film of the year” and The Times described it as “a masterpiece in every sense”, while the standard He considered it “a colossal work.”
With information from EFE.