The Odyssey (2026) – Film Review
Director: Christopher Nolan
Cast: Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway
Certificate: 15
By Roger Crow
Fifty years ago, when I swapped one school for another, my memory of that last day in 1976 was a large mural on the wall my classmates and I had created of Odysseus and his men hiding under sheep in the Cyclops’ cave.
I remember at the time thinking it was one of the greatest stories ever told, and now filtered through the cinematic lens of Christopher Nolan, the same is very much true.
Few stories have stood the test of time quite like The Odyssey, and now the acclaimed filmmaker brings Homer’s epic tale to the big screen with his trademark blend of spectacle and emotional depth. Featuring an all-star cast led by Matt Damon, this ambitious adaptation features breathtaking visuals, gripping action and a fresh take on one of literature’s greatest adventures.
It’s fascinating to see trademark touches from previous movies. There are flashes of Inception here, The Dark Knight there (in Benny Safdie’s Agamemnon), and Dunkirk, as well as old school cinema classics like Jason and the Argonauts.
“Pure cinema”
Damon is Odysseus whose epic quest has taken him far from home and his beloved Penelope (Anne Hathaway – Oscar material). While he’s away, his home is invaded by party crashers, including the scheming Antinous (Robert Pattinson – also excellent). He’s set his sights on the throne, and it’s only a matter of time until Odysseus’s son Telemachus (Tom Holland) gets a knife in the back.
The film oscillates between past and future, and there’s also an Inception-style moment when he has no idea how long he’s been away from home, like he’s fallen asleep in level three of that 2010 thriller.
And, in typical Nolan style, the speech at times is obscured by crashing waves (see also Tenet). The Cyclops scene is pure cinema, and arguably the first proper monster seen in the Nolanverse. (I’d be amazed if Nolan hasn’t been inspired by Goya’s painting, Saturn Devouring His Son).
Samantha Morton’s witch Circe is also the stuff of nightmares, and for the most part it feels like an epic arthouse movie. Until that third act, and an action scene which is easily one of the best of this or any other year. I doubt Homer had planned the conclusion of his own story like a kick-ass battle scene, but when it arrives, it is the stuff of adrenaline-pumping nirvana.
“Perfect blend”
Academy awards are guaranteed, not least for Christopher as Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. I didn’t see it in IMAX, which is a shame as it’s the first movie shot entirely in the format, but may have to make the effort and see it again in said ‘Enormovision’.
However, I have no complaints. Yes, the movie is a bit dark in places, as the director intended, but it’s such a full-blooded, satisfying affair, even if all the cast, including the Brits, speak in American accents, and the phrases ‘Mom’ and ‘Dad’ are used instead of the default ‘father’ and ‘mother’, which is the norm for historical epics.
Any doubt that Christopher Nolan’s run of phenomenal blockbusters would finally hit a stumbling block were soon put to rest, and kudos too to Matt Damon for taking on such a demanding role, and pulling it off. Oh, and the presence of Charlize Theron, John Leguizamo, Zendaya and Elliot Page only adds to the high calibre of the production.
As ever, see it on the biggest screen you can in the comfiest chair and enjoy. It’s food for the mind and soul as well as that perfect blend of arthouse epic and multiplex blockbuster. Little wonder it earned back its $250 million production budget in its opening weekend. If there’s any justice it will do $1 billion before that home entertainment release when it loses 80 per cent of its impact.
Adopted Yorkshireman Roger Crow developed a passion for film and TV in the 1970s and 1980s. He has been a published film and TV reviewer since the 1990s; a world travel and restaurant critic since the noughties, and for the past decade has assessed the pros and cons of live gigs and theatre productions around the UK. His ideal day would involve reviewing a performance of Bat Out of Hell, followed by a Pad Thai while being serenaded by Texas on a cruise around Europe.
crowsfeat.com; nostalgiahhh film podcast
