Walking out of The Odyssey flooded me with a strange mix of emotions.

Unfortunately, most the discourse leading up to this movie will inform folks’ opinions of it before ever seeing it from start to finish, which is truly an exhilarating experience. That’s what The Odyssey is: it’s a narrative that’s meant to be experienced.

Having never really familiarized myself with Homer’s epic (sue me!), Christopher Nolan’s adaptation is very much a modern retelling of Homer’s tale, one that befits our age. (Make of that what you will.) It feels timely, which isn’t just due to Nolan’s insistence on utilizing modern dialogue (which isn’t as distracting as some have led you to believe), but to the timelessness of the story itself.

While the catharsis of The Odyssey doesn’t quite reach the heights of some of Nolan’s other films, like Oppenheimer or even Inception, the totality of its set pieces make a lot of other movies feel incredibly small. The way Nolan handled “the Trojan horse” was especially enthralling.

What’s disheartening, at least for me, is that the “discourse” leading up to and surrounding this movie’s release will be what some remember about it, which is really unfortunate for a movie this well crafted and conceived and executed. If not for certain casting decisions and chatter regarding those casting decisions, The Odyssey would be as celebrated as Gladiator has become — an epic in its own right. Instead, some will just assume Nolan “went woke” and let what others have surmised about the film to be all they ever think about it.

Instead of outsourcing our opinions and relying on others to think critically for us, perhaps we should judge things for ourselves. Experience The Odyssey for yourself. You’ll be glad you did.

The Odyssey: 8.5/10 ⭐️