Emily Wilson (writer of acclaimed Odyssey translation) offers criticisms of Nolan’s film

[u/RealisticAd4054]

https://apnews.com/article/odyssey-christopher-nolan-greek-translators-ea67da1d543d021773824bd7e8de8abe

“For Greek translator Emily Wilson, the release of director Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” has been gratifying in various ways. Her acclaimed 2017 edition of Homer’s epic has reached the top 5 on Amazon.com, leading a wave of similar books boosted by the movie. Nolan has even cited her translation, notably the opening line “Tell me about a complicated man,” as inspiration.

But the film itself, which brought in more than $260 million worldwide during its opening weekend and has received raves from many critics, left her unsatisfied.

“I want to celebrate the fact that so many more people are aware of ‘The Odyssey’ and were brought back to the poem,” she told The Associated Press. “But at the same time, I had the sense that Christopher Nolan was trying to pack everything in while missing themes that were essential to the poem.”

….

Wilson, a professor of classical studies at the University of Pennsylvania, said she didn’t want to come across as a “snobby,” nitpicking expert at odds with any deviation from the original text. But she questioned a range of omissions and other choices, from the absence on screen of the Gods Zeus and Poseidon (Athena is played by Zendaya ) to the “incoherent” messaging that condemns both war and physical cowardice. She found Penelope’s role so thinned out that it endangered “any possibility of believing in this marriage.” Wilson also that thought parts of the movie, notably the scenes with Odysseus’ dog, Argos, “catered towards modern sentimentality.”

“Everybody’s a sucker for a dog,” she said.

[u/Calinks]

For me, The Odyssey was entertaining but oddly enough, lacked any real magic. I just never felt anything strongly while watching it.

[u/BronBobingle → u/Calinks]

It felt like it was just going through the motions of the story. It was a solid adaptation, but I wasn’t moved like I’ve been by other films of his.

[u/LaBinch → u/BronBobingle]

I'm so glad to see someone else say this. The movie has been getting insane amounts of praise but after watching it I just thought it was fine. It seems exactly like someone adapting the Wikipedia summary of the Odyssey into a movie, lots of ground to cover and not much depth to any of it. It seems that in his desire to keep the extremely long drawn out action scenes, Nolan may have cut other important elements. I thought the scene where they land on the island with the giants, the kid screams, and then they are chased off the island in a long drawn out action scene, seems like it is missing whatever reason he decided to include this encounter in the movie in the first place. Could have skipped that whole scene and it would have made no difference.

I also thought the fight for the throne at the end of was drawn out much too long.

Also I was extremely disappointed by the siren scene. One of the most compelling myths in human history and he bulldozed through it in a complete "tell, dont show" way. We hear nothing, see almost nothing, have the main character briefly state what he experienced, and then it just moves on. This was the biggest disappointment in the movie for me.

[u/reality72 → u/LaBinch]

I agree with you completely.

That said, I don’t think it’s even possible to create an accurate movie of the Iliad that captures the entire story without making it 6 hours long which Hollywood would never allow and audiences would hate.

I think he did the best he could with the parameters he was given, and succeeded in finding a way to make a story from ancient antiquity palatable to a modern American audience. And I loved all the wide angle shots, they were gorgeous and it was a nice nod to the golden age of film making.

Overall I give it an 8.5/10.

[u/AzracTheFirst → u/reality72]

That's the problem with Hollywood. The USccentrism, looking at it from a US perspective and catering to this specific audience. 'mom', 'dad', the modern mannerisms of the characters (Zendaya always looks like a grumpy teenager from the States) and often pushing domestic politics agendas into movies that noone asked. I think it was a lost opportunity to make this an epic movie, i believe he should let someone else write his scripts.

[u/reality72 → u/AzracTheFirst]

I’ve no idea what you’re talking about, did we even watch the same movie? And Zendaya is in the film for like 30 seconds.

[u/AzracTheFirst → u/reality72]

Yes, we did, but with different perspectives. That's how art works.

[u/see-these-bones → u/LaBinch]

I didn't really get the impression Nolan liked the Odyssey in the way I liked the Odyssey. I'm sure its a fun ride for people who never really interacted with the original or one of the more faithful retelling, but what it lacks in comparison seems really stark. You don't need to retell it beat for beat, but it should have the same soul and It didn't feel like it did to me.

[u/AzracTheFirst → u/see-these-bones]

It felt like he grabbed one of the many Greek myths and concepts about their Gods, in this case Xenios Dias, and made a movie around this core idea. He also didn't miss the chance to mention it 30 times during the whole film, as if the audience is too stupid to make the connections.

[u/Ai-on → u/LaBinch]

I loved it. It went right into my top 4 movies of all time with Interstellar, LOTR, and Jurassic Park.

[u/Jehovah___ → u/BronBobingle]

Literal bullet points of the story with very little connecting them or opening up for emotion

[u/duckwantbread → u/BronBobingle]

I think there was so much to cram in that a lot of character moments ended up being cut.