-Director Christopher Nolan
By Kim Sparkes
Director Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster film adaptation of The Odyssey has surpassed $1 billion at the global box office. He brings to the screen one of the foundational texts of Western culture – a 2700-year-old, 12,109-line epic poem that was passed down through an oral tradition before being committed to writing in the 7th century BCE, and is traditionally attributed to Homer. I enjoyed it for its towering cinematic experience, but I also love that it’s bringing more people into cinemas and sparking a renewed interest in reading the classics.
The film follows the legendary Greek hero Odysseus (Matt Damon), King of Ithaca, who wins the Trojan War for Agamemnon (Benny Safdie) with his wooden horse. As Odysseus embarks on the perilous journey home, he encounters gods (Charlize Theron, Zendaya and Samantha Morton), monsters (Bill Irwin), ferocious storms and tragedy. Telemachus (Tom Holland), Odysseus’s son, searches for hope that his long-lost father is still alive. His mother, Queen Penelope (Anne Hathaway), is under growing pressure from a pack of wolfish suitors to marry, including Antinous (Robert Pattinson), who have taken up residence in the family palace.
Nolan said, “I wanted to create a world where you really can imagine that you are on that boat with Odysseus, and figuring out how we can take incredible ideas and outlandish scenarios and make them real.” He achieved this by shooting with IMAX film cameras across six countries – Morocco, Greece, Italy, Iceland, Scotland and the United States – recreating the beaches of doomed Troy, the cavern of the Cyclops, the underworld of Hades, and the island homes of Calypso, Circe, the Laestrygonians and Ithaca, all connected by the vast, wine-dark seas of Homer’s epic.
Argus, Odysseus’s faithful dog, is proving to be one of the biggest stars of the film. John Leguizamo (Eumaeus) said, “The dog is a Portuguese Podengo — there are only, like, 75 of them in the world or something. They are an ancient Italian breed.”
As Nolan put it, “I decided to do The Odyssey because it is the ultimate dog story”. One of the film’s most heartbreaking moments comes when Odysseus finally returns home, unrecognised as a beggar. After 20 years of waiting, faithful Argus gets one final glimpse of Odysseus before passing away.
Ralph Hardy’s 2016 novel, Argos: The Story of Odysseus as Told by His Loyal Dog, may be of particular interest to dog lovers. And if you’re interested in reading the best translation of the epic poem, Professor Edith Hall, from the Department of Classics and Ancient History at Durham University, recommends Daniel Mendelsohn’s 2025 translation.
The Odyssey has been interpreted and reinterpreted countless times over 2700 years. This film is Nolan’s version from one of our finest contemporary storytellers – and it should be seen on the big screen.
