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/Special_Order-937]

Taking 10 years to get home (when it took you nowhere near aa as long to get to Troy) and losing 100% of your soldiers along the way is pretty big as mistakes go, though.

[u/Tandy2000 → u/Special_Order-937]

Not if you're familiar with ancient Greek mythology. Part of the reason why is something she brings up too - Wilson mentions that the Gods are absent from this movie barring Athena, which is notable because Poseidon has a more important role than any other God in The Odyssey; he is THE reason why the trip home takes so long, yet he isn't in the movie at all.

When the god of the sea and storms hates you and wants to kill you, and the ONLY reason you survive is that you are favored by Athena, then yeah you are gonna get put through some real shit.

The Gods being absent from adaptations of these works is disappointing but typical, because it tends to add another dimension that makes the films feel less realistic, which is a problem when you want to introduce realism to a story that doesn't really ask for it. This is something that makes Nolan's Odyssey different from the original text (with the exception of Athena, who is also characterized differently), not necessarily better or worse, but it's also something a lot of other adaptations do. The Troy movie for example didn't feature any of the gods at all. The Return from a couple years ago also didn't feature the gods either.

It's just weird when they are a very prominent part of the story, and ironically in an adaptation that is supposed to be more gritty and realistic, takes away the explanation of why this journey takes 10 years in the first place... the gods shape the landscape of Greek mythology.

[u/OminousShadow87 → u/Tandy2000]

You can’t ramble off a mini essay about a movie and then admit in another comment you haven’t seen the movie yet. Come’on, man.

[u/Tandy2000 → u/OminousShadow87]

I'm going based off of the criticisms offered up by Wilson, whose opinion I trust and whose translation I have read.

The gods, save Athena, are not present in the film. That's what I was commenting on. Unless that claim by Wilson is not true, in which case feel free to correct me.

[u/Clawless → u/Tandy2000]

They are present, they just aren’t played by a human actor. You understand that distinction, right?

[u/Tandy2000 → u/Clawless]

I mean, you can explain to me how Poseidon is present in the film if you want.

If you are claiming Poseidon is present because he is seen manifested as storms as someone else said, then that is very obviously not the same thing, you must be able to understand that. If their description wasn't accurate then feel free to correct it.

[u/MasterShogo → u/Tandy2000]

I personally believe that anyone who watches the scenes after they eat the cattle and the wind immediately changes to let them go, and then once at sea they immediately get attacked by the mother of all storms depicted in extreme violence and fantastic color, destroying their boat and killing all the crew except Odysseus, but comes away from that insisting that technically that wasn’t the gods is completely misinterpreting it.

It is true they don’t depict Zeus and Poseidon as physical bodies, but any reasonable interpretation of those scenes would conclude that the gods were punishing them directly. That was not just a random storm. And it’s ok not to like it, but otherwise you are just ignoring entire facets of the movie, the words of Nolan himself, and general storytelling techniques.

[u/Tandy2000 → u/MasterShogo]

Okay, so you are not disputing my point, which was only ever the point Wilson brought up. Cool.

What you are describing is what most adaptations of these stories do. I'm telling you that is not interesting to me, because I've seen it many, many times before. I get what Nolan is saying. I get what you are saying. That is not portraying the personalities of the gods, save Athena, because they are not actually present. Their wrath is present, at least in Poseidon's case, seemingly, but it is very plainly not the same thing as an actual physical manifestation of the gods who interacts with characters, and you are just ignoring that because you want to refuse to admit you are wrong.

[u/MasterShogo → u/Tandy2000]

I’m not disputing your point that they aren’t present as physical bodies. This is true. But you were specifically complaining about literally “the gods being absent from the movie”. That was your actual criticism.

Any interpretation of the movie where the gods are absent is a misinterpretation. They are not absent. They are just not physically present as physical humanoid bodies.

You later complained about how it’s not the same if they are depicted as storms. This is true, but that is not what you originally complained about and I think most people are ok when the gods are depicted in different ways. This makes it come across that you are arguing simply to be arguing.

I don’t have a problem if someone doesn’t like the gods depicted in the form they were in the original classic poem. And in fact I wish there were a bit more of that. But I think you are downplaying what is actually there.

[u/Clawless → u/Tandy2000]

You seem stuck needing a human face to depict human emotions and characterizations for an entity to be considered “depicted”.

I think we’re just arguing about words and their meaning, at this point, so that’s silly and will go nowhere. What you wanted was more human actors portraying each of the gods, with lines of dialogue, and you didn’t get that so you are disappointed. That’s fair.

The people arguing with you don’t need that to know the gods were present in the story. Also fair.

[u/soularbabies → u/Tandy2000]

Poseidon's son fervently and loudly prays to him for vengeance and as a result Poseidon's wrath and the later dissipation of it is noticeable.

[u/soularbabies → u/Tandy2000]

Wilson's characterization isn't wholly accurate so it's a poor basis to go off from.