REVIEW: "The Odyssey"

Genre: Drama; Fantasy; Adventure.

Director: Christopher Nolan

Writer: Christopher Nolan

Starring: Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, John Leguizamo, Himseh Patel, Samantha Morton, Zendaya, Jon Bernthal, Lupita Nyong'o, Elliot Page, Charlize Theron, Corey Hawkins and Travis Scott

It took me a while to write this review, because there are many aspects of Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey that have left me in many grey areas in terms of creating an opinion. The more I think about this movie the more I understand how cerebral Nolan is as a writer/director and that I shouldn't have been expecting an emotional journey... but in the middle of so many meanings and so many messages, my question was "where is its heart?". My answer is: "In Penelope, not in Odysseus!", which turns The Odyssey in a spectacular epic yet sterile adventure with some glimpses of a beating heart!

I am not familiar with the original source material - I know a shorter and teenage-friendly literary version from school - but from what I know, Nolan has cooked a movie that's both faithful to Homer's classic, yet he uses his ability to play with timelines and time puzzles to try to give it a twist and a more cinematic (and daring) approach... and that's what turns the movie into an extremely watchable cinematic venture but also creates empathy issues around Odysseus in the first half of the movie, before audience acknowledges the man before the war, Penelope's husband and a loving king. Yes, Nolan brilliantly created a blockbuster at cost of a more sentimental internal journey. But I don't think it's a discredit... I truly believe it was an intentional directing option a writer/director as cerebral as Nolan made - an option that might be fullfilling for every member of the audience but turns the movie into something universally watchable and that's quite a feat, actually! Everything works perfectly, but somehow the heart of the movie never quite soars to me.

Matt Damon carries the film as he owns the scene with enormous sensibility every time he is in - that's a very particular aspect of his moviestar quality - and once Nolan lets the audience know the character before the war, then Damon carries the audience also. It's a character tailor-made for Damon's talents and the actor embodies him easily. But the beating heart moments of the movie belong to Anne Hathaway as the resilient Penelope who has not only to act as queen alone but also to stand her position in a world full of man craving the "empty throne" she holds - and there's an exquisite scene between Hathaway and Tom Holland where she devours the whole movie as Penelope lets all the anguish that has been consuming her out. Another acting highlight is Samantha Morton as the mysterious sorceress Circe as she steals the film with the most intriguing and horrific moment in the film. John Leguizamo also plays Eumaeus with his whole heart and Robert Pattinson makes for a deliciously mischievous Antinous. Everyone one else deliver nice turns - it's a terrific acting ensemble!

As for the narrative and the way Nolan conducts the script, I found interesting how he made clear the parallels between all wars: no one really wins! Wars are made in name of a the ambition, greed and proud of some men and they are those who might actually benefit from it, not families, not wives, not parents, not children. Like what he did in The Prestige and Oppenheimer, Nolan tries to pull the guilt andall the ghosts that came with the actions of a man, of a hero (though less successfully and only at the very end). Two tales of men contemplating the disaster of their own doing, but due to the narrative needs of The Odyssey, the character study Nolan tries to do here pales in comparison to his previous film.

In terms of craft, we have a director in full command of his film, elevating his own game and I didn't find any technical aspect to point my finger at (well, maybe except the trademark LOUD sound from Nolan's movies, but that's okay at this point): BEAUTIFUL cinematography (Hoyte van Hoytema brings the audience some of the most beautiful shots he has ever done), impressive visual effects, some jaw-dropping production design work, an entrancing score and very interesting makeup and hair options... Nolan's The Odyssey might be actually virtually perfect (still, I am not an expert at historical accuracy around costumes and sets, but I was sold at what I saw). I'm still in wonder with the Cyclops scene due to the use of pratical effects to bring the monster to life and the cinematography + production design works to create the "edge of the world" scene left me speechless.

But is perfection what makes a great movie?

There are few directors that are able to generate this kind of "cinematic event" buzz each time they are set to release a movie, but Nolan tops the list of directors who can achieve such thing. To be honest, I don't think Nolan is able to make a bad film at this point and The Odyssey is no exception: it lands in clear positive ground, but it just didn't land all that much with me. The cinematic tale of Odysseus is epic, with impressive technical values and a jaw-dropping ensemble cast, but I never felt like a part of the hero's journey. It's one of those movie that should be hanged in the Louvre: to be seen and appreciated, but not to be touched, not to be truly felt by a common mortal.

RATING: 7/10

Oscar potential categories:

• Best Picture
• Best Director
• Best Actor in a Leading Role (Matt Damon)
• Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Anne Hathaway)
• Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Samantha Morton)
• Best Actor in a Supporting Role (John Leguizamo)
• Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Robert Pattinson)
• Best Adapted Screenplay
• Best Casting
• Best Editing
• Best Cinematography
• Best Production Design
• Best Costume Design
• Best Makeup& Hair
• Best Visual Effects
• Best Original Score
• Best Sound
• Best Original Song ("When I'm Home")