The seats shook with every rumbling step and bloody stab. The Skokie IMAX theater was packed the entire two hours and 52 minutes for The Odyssey. The almost wall-to-wall screen provided me with a direct escape into Ithaca, a small island off the coast of Greece. Hearts longed for the return of Odysseus, hero of the Trojan War and King of Ithaca, to the throne in Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s ‘The Odyssey’.
The movie follows two timelines: Telemachus’ (Tom Holland’s) journey to find his father, Odysseus, as well as Odysseus’ (Matt Damon’s) voyage home after being lost at sea following the war. This is all happening while his wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) struggles to hold onto the throne in Ithaca and fend off the suitors, including Antinous (Robert Pattinson), trying to win her hand.
The Odyssey earned its R rating due to the gore, violence, and language, according to IMDb. It seemed that every few minutes someone was stabbed, eaten, drowned, or killed.
Surprisingly, limited Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) was used in the production of The Odyssey. Nolan wanted to minimize CGI use as much as possible, according to Devin Meenan from SlashFilm, a movie reviewing website. This is in line with his previous work, such as Oppenheimer, where he also did not use CGI, according to Meenan.
Although it did get confusing at times due to the story occurring in multiple timelines and places, overall the film was very enjoyable and left me in awe.
However, there are several parts in the movie that were frightening for viewers, featuring mythical creatures or witchcraft. If you are easily frightened by bloodshed, loud sound effects, or flashing lights, be forewarned that these are very prevalent in the movie.
The Odyssey achieved a 94 percent on the Tomatometer, which measures a positive number of movie critics who reviewed the movie, and a 97 percent on the Popcornmeter, which measures the number of audience members who reviewed the movie, according to Rotten Tomatoes. It also received an 8.5 out of 10 stars with 29.8 percent rating it 10 stars and 29 percent rating it 9 stars, according to IMDb.
The Odyssey has a captivating plot and in-depth character development. The relationship between Telemachus and Odysseus was carefully established and Antinous’ villainous character was well thought out and the effects were well created.
Although an old story, the film provides high quality entertainment and is something worth watching.
