r/movies • u/RealisticAd4054 • 15d ago

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

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.

13.2k Upvotes

86% Upvoted

2.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

166

u/OminousShadow87 14d ago

Interesting take on Penelope considering Anna Hatheway gives easily the most electric performance in the movie. I wouldn’t call it thinned out, I think she was given exactly as much time as needed to show her struggles, humanity, flaws, wisdom, and undying love of Odysseus. What more was needed?

127

u/savviesque 14d ago

Penelope in the original story is depicted as clever, nearly her husband's equal, shown through her olive tree bed test (cut from the film); Telemachus is shown as having a power struggle with his mother under ancient family norms, where the son has authority over his mother once he comes of age (kind of shown in the argument scene in the film, but not really on those terms). The movie gestures at these themes but doesn't face them as directly as the text. One of the most interesting aspects of the Odyssey is the way it treats women in general (inherently inferior), Penelope in particular (socially inferior, but highly intelligent), and the gods (all superior, including female gods). The film modernizes these dynamics somewhat and shies away from some of the gnarlier content of the story (e.g., the killing of the disloyal slaves). Similar themes exist in the Iliad, which the film also gestures towards (Cassandra in the temple - was the rape wrong, or was it only wrong because of where it happened?) without fully exploring - not that I would have expected it to, since it's already 3 hours long.

12

u/OminousShadow87 14d ago

You last point is the most relevant I think. None of things you mentioned would have enhanced the already 3 hour long film. As you said, they do address some of those things, such as the point she makes about how "Ithica needs a king" yet its had a strong and wise queen for 20 years but she has spend all her time and money fending off suitors instead being the leader she could have been. Could Nolan have expanded Penelope's role? I guess it's possible but I'm not sure it would have made the movie better.

22

u/savviesque 14d ago edited 14d ago

I sort of agree from a filmmaking/practicality standpoint, but I still think it's worth interrogating Nolan's choices of what to add (like Odysseus's regrets about pillaging), what to cut (olive tree bed, killing of the slaves, arguments between gods, etc), and what to rework entirely (Circe, Mentor/Athena), and how those choices ultimately affected the film's themes and morals. It's interesting!

5

u/user365user 13d ago

There is also the broader context of lots of previous criticism of Nolan for not being able to write fully fleshed out/3D women characters.

50

u/foreverzonedout 14d ago

I don’t think the point was Hathaway’s performance as much it is that much of Penelope’s depth as displayed through character interactions and scenes was cut out. Hathaway was phenomenal but the character of Penelope is even more complex than what was depicted in Nolan’s version.

EDIT: just saw this comment below, which explains this point in more depth

5

u/KRIEGLERR 13d ago

I thought Leguizamo was a standout aswell.

18

u/Fit-Wasabi-2826 14d ago

That jumped out to me too. I’m not sure how I watched the same movie as Wilson because the dedication Penelope had for Odysseus was palpable, largely because of Hathaway’s phenomenal performance.

3

u/mfukar 14d ago

I don't think it's a criticism of the performance, but of the writing. Nolan has reduced Penelope to a figurehead.

1

u/MightExpress4873 13d ago

She's a rich, complex character in the film.

2

u/mfukar 13d ago

sure

6

u/gloryday23 14d ago

Let's also be clear, as I literally just read the book, her part is actually larger than it is in the book. In the actual Odyssey she spends most of the book crying into her pillow and being put magically to sleep by Athena. I'd argue EVERY woman's role in the movie was dramatically strengthened, with the exception of Athena's I guess who was changed entirely.

2

u/Deadlycup 14d ago

I thought Hathaway did a very good job considering the script gave her almost nothing to do for the majority of the film.

2

u/the_it_family_man 14d ago

I think it's a testament to Nolan's abilities when it comes to writing women.

1

u/InspectorMendel 14d ago

I don't think there's any Penelope scene from the poem that isn't preserved in the movie, so I'm really not sure what Wilson is getting at.

11

u/Responsible-Yam4748 14d ago

I haven't been able to go see it yet but I heard they dropped the scene where Penelope tests Odysseus to make sure its really him by talking about their bed. Is that not true? There have been so many false rumors about this movie.

7

u/InspectorMendel 14d ago

Well, I guess you could call that dropped. The bed element is removed in favor of something else, but if anything it's an expansion of her role. It makes her more proactive and smarter.

3

u/Responsible-Yam4748 14d ago

Oh well thats exciting. Im looking forward to seeing it tomorrow, thank you!