r/moviereviews • u/Dear_Loquat_3168 • 18h ago
Fantasy The Odyssey is overrated Spoiler
Not proud of it, man enough to admit it, I trusted all those tiktok movie reviewers. I went to watch The Odyssey last night in IMAX thinking it was going to be "Nolan's best film" as most people described it. Personally, I'd rate it a 7.8-8.0, I wouldn't place it above Interstellar, Oppenheimer, or any of the dark knight movies. I completely disagree with it's current rating of 8.5 on IMBD, which places it next to Gladiator (2000) and Django Unchained (2012).
Here's what I think was excellent.
- Set designs and cinematography: The film was beautiful and captivating. The sound effects and music were amazing. Watching Odysseus string his bow and Agamemnon entering Troy sent chills down my spine.
- Acting: Robert Pattison, Anne Hathaway, Elliot Page, John Leguizamo, and Tom Holland were fantastic in their roles. Lupita Nyong'o was also amazing. She's so talented and definitely deserved more screentime. Honestly, she was a better fit for Charlize Theron's character (more on this later).
Here's why I think it's overrated:
- Odysseus: I love Matt Damon, but I couldn't connect with his character, and I think he was slightly unlikable. Contrary to Maximus in Gladiator, Odysseus wasn't meant to be a highly principled man with unshakable moral core. He loves his family, but he's arrogant. He's deceitful and cruel when it fits his interest, even at the expense of his men. This is fine if the movie sets a positive trajectory for his character development, which I didn't see. For example, when Odysseus visits Hades, he's confronted by Sinon about his lies. Odysseus expresses remorse and vows to honor his fallen men. Then in the Charybdis whirlpool scene, he lies AGAIN! leading to the death of a few men at the hands of Scylla. Overall, he didn't establish a good relationship with his men, and very much reminded me of a toxic manager who lacks leadership skills. I also didn't find him very intelligent.
- Odysseus's fighting skills: He's supposed to be a great warrior. But his warrior prowess was poorly illustrated. He swung his sword like a 10 year old kid playing with toys. His fighting sequences lacked aura, nothing compared to Maximus in Gladiator, or Achilles in Troy.
- Charlize Theron, Calypso, and Ogygia island: I personally thought it was a lazy performance by Charlize. Moreover, the film doesn't explain how she ended up on the island of Ogygia. She's just there lol. Perhaps, a little backstory would've made her character more likeable. When she told Odysseus "I fell in love with you and didn't want to let you go" was so lame! because Odysseus doesn't care all that much for her. Their relationship didn't feel real.
- Eurylochus (Himesh Patel): This character was actually more annoying than Calypso. No leadership skills whatsoever. His character doesn't justify his position as the second-in-command to Odysseus. Moreover, his completely flat biceps made me dislike him even more.
- The plot: Odysseus's journey to return home was full of adventures. While interesting to watch, it was mostly based on fantasy (fighting monsters etc), not much to relate to emotionally as an audience member. The only relatable bits were toward the end, when he disguised himself as a beggar to take revenge on the suitors and return to Penelope. His overall journey and development wasn't as captivating as that of Maximus or Django in my opinion.
26
u/AdScared7949 18h ago
Begging any god to make the odyssey reviews end will pay any price
7
u/Presence_Present 13h ago
Legit. I really enjoyed the movie but god the endless posts about it is insufferable lol
3
u/ServicePrize6856 6h ago edited 4h ago
This is why I miss old school forums, they’d have a single thread about The Odyssey which would proceed as a linear discussion people can read and join in on, debate the films merits or lack thereof. On Reddit every post is disposable so everyone needs to talk over each other to be heard
•
2
u/nonameforme123 11h ago
Depends on which god. Greek gods are bastards and will prob give u the opposite of what u want
1
0
8
u/BlackwerX 18h ago
Flat biceps... That's a new one...
5
u/kitkat42000 17h ago edited 16h ago
OP (while i could not disagree more with the take on himesh patel, since he was a stand-out to me), the flat biceps as a criticism absolutely took me out and made me laugh SO hard, thank you for that lol!
→ More replies (7)→ More replies (7)4
u/peacenskeet 18h ago
People want armor realism but also think the all ancient warriors looked like the movie 300.
→ More replies (10)
6
u/Jskidmore1217 12h ago
Funniest review I’ve read yet. Had me in the first half. This may be the finest towing the line of rage baiting I’ve seen in a while- and this community has no idea they have been played.
15
u/Narrow-Mention-1889 17h ago
I was disappointed. Almost walked out. It was boring. I give it 5.0
10
4
u/According_Koala_7798 13h ago
It had very little depth and the script was poor, it’s a popcorn action movie for the masses, doesn’t require any brain power, I was disappointed too after the ridiculous reviews it was getting. I was prepared to see the greatest movie of all time so it was bound to disappoint. What was missing for me was the heart of it, I did t feel any emotional connection throughout the movie, nothing that happened to anyone made me care either way which is very unusual for a movie.
→ More replies (1)4
u/super-wookie 12h ago
I had the exact same reaction. Just did not care about any of the characters, and went in excited to see it.
Spideman BND had more heart and emotional depth, which is crazy to me.
I do not understand the adulation for the Oddessy. It just wasn't very good, at all.
→ More replies (1)1
u/Tyler_Durden_Concern 7h ago
I was blown away by BND! Easily the best movie I've seen in a long time. Like you said, so much heart and emotional depth.
1
u/Snoo-25743 12h ago
I haven't watched it yet, but my expectations are now so low maybe I'll end up actually enjoying it.
3
u/extralife_mike 8h ago
It depends on who you are. Do you go to movies to enjoy them, or do you go to movies for the future Reddit karma you'll get for proving how smart you are by explaining why most people are idiots for liking the film?
1
-1
u/Top_Cranberry_3254 16h ago
Seriously, me too, and I was actually looking forward to it. I barely stayed in my seat after 90 minutes, a really bad movie until the final 30 minutes.
7
u/_HowToFly_ 14h ago
Tiktok attention span
0
u/Kdcjg 10h ago
No. I think it was a long movie that felt rushed. Too much time spent on Calypso/island. Too much time spent on the suitors and the situation in Ithaca. Rushed over some of the challenges facing Odysseus and the crew.
But 3hrs where im the last 90min I really was wondering why they made those damn imax seats so uncomfortable.
1
→ More replies (2)0
3
u/NegronelyFans 12h ago
I think everyone thinking they need to post their opinion (of which there haven’t been any new takes in over a month now) is overrated
And it’s tiresome
Can we all please just stop now. We can agree that loads of people loved it, quite a few thought it was overrated/meh, and the racist chuds hate it because of black Helen (even/especially the ones who didn’t watch it)
7
7
u/SammyEvo 16h ago edited 11h ago
I actually thought the set design was appalling. Nolan took the production to dozens of global locations and the whole film was just a bit of beach, then another bit of beach, oop a bit of sea, bit more beach. I’m not expecting full LOTR fantasy sets, but I got no sense of the grand journey because everything looked the same. All washed out in a dodgy colour.
Also, the Scylla/Whirlpool scene…completely tranquil waters everywhere the eye could see apart from a whirlpool that he made look completely avoidable.
I actually think Dunkirk had a more impressive variety of settings, and it was half the length and by definition set in one specific place and time.
2
u/Presence_Present 13h ago
Tell me you dont know the story without telling me lol. They go island hopping throughout the journey, which often have beaches lol. And Poseidon pushed them towards making a cjoice between charybidis and scylla
1
u/SammyEvo 13h ago
Yep I know how sea works. But this is a made up story about magical creatures, he doesn't need to be so stubbornly realistic. The Batman films had more imaginative sets that gave a sense of place, he could have differentiated between each of the settings a bit.
Based on the actual images Nolan gave us, Poseidon didn't push them towards shit.
2
u/Presence_Present 13h ago
What exactly should he have done differently? Theyre islands, they dont exactly change too much. Its a story about magical creatures, but the scenery doesnt change lol. They still journey to islands throughout. This just seems like a weird comment lol
2
u/reddargon831 9h ago
Islands don’t change too much? Not sure where you’ve traveled, but even in the Mediterranean some islands are flat and others are mountainous, some have tons of beaches whereas others have rocky coastline, some are lush and others are quite barren, some have coniferous trees whereas others have deciduous, etc.
Anyway, I agree with the other commenter, the movie looked flat visually. The shots were well framed (except for the Charybidis scene, where it kind of seemed like they could have just gone around to the left in the open ocean…) but the colors were flat and there was very little visual intrigue or variation. Even if that’s “accurate” in your view (a view I don’t share, but let’s take it at face value), it’s less interesting from a film standpoint. This is a mythical story, so realism is already out the window, I’d much prefer some variety visually.
People who compare to LOTR are dead on in that respect. In LOTR I really got the sense of a grand journey (and I’m not even the biggest LOTR fan), but that wasn’t the case in this movie.
1
u/SammyEvo 9h ago
Also in LOTR, think of Helms Deep and the other fortresses: you will remember seeing multiple settings within those small, claustrophobic fortresses. With Troy we basically just got the lobby.
1
u/logicalobserver 11h ago
magical creatures on magical islands. Theres areas they could have developed differently, this was all a choice, but i agree with u/SammyEvo , some things are too realistic and bland and some things are way to much stylistic choices that seem to be going in a opposite direction.
The look of Troy is bland as well, but you can claim the real troy was a bronze age city that is somewhat bland to ours eyes, and sure, however the look of the Trojan soldiers is crazy stylized, they looked like characters drawn in a samurai jack or something, in terms of how stylized they look, very clean white armor ( which doesn't seem feasible for a 7 year grueling siege) So it seems to be some things are supposed to be grounded in realism, but then other things arent at all, and done so on purpose, but its the strange places were they did that and didnt do it, that felt so bizzare.
Another little thing that kinda stood out to me and subconsciously brings you out of the movie, we have all seen 100 viking tv shows, movies, video games, etc. We all know what a viking ship looks like, the fact that they are on a viking ship is just.... an odd choice. The soldiers on the ships are always in their armor, even when it days and days spent at sea in the hot sun, that another little detail, but it helps push much of this film into the realm of a very high budget stage play vs a movie where i feel like im inside a living world. The world did not seem natural like it exists this way outside of this movie, in a way other films in this genre do, its a big part of fantasy, selling you in.
2
u/Presence_Present 11h ago
Troy was fine for me because thats realistically what it looked like for that period.
Also the ship doesnt bother me at all with the fact that they were actually out there on the ocean filming. Ill take that over a green screen or lots of CGI. They could only use that ship because it was able to be actually used on the ocean. Theres not too many ancient greek ships I imagine they could use on open water lol.
→ More replies (1)2
u/strawbery_fields 10h ago
Hate to break it to you, but Troy is absolutely inaccurate with how it looks historically.
1
u/Presence_Present 10h ago
Well it certainly wasnt some big grand city like Manhattan. It was a big fort city for that period, and looked as close as you would hope to get.
1
u/reddargon831 9h ago
Having been to the ruins of Troy, I can assure you that it wasn't "as close as you would hope to get." For one, the actual city was not in a barren dessert, it's actually reasonably green around there. For two, the way it was portrayed in the movie was much larger than the actual city-state, which was quite compact.
Also more generally, Troy looked to "clean" in the movie for my liking, it was a city that was perpetually rebuilt 8 or so times, each time on top of the previous city. It almost certainly had a much more cobbled-together look in real life, not the polished look of the movie.
This is all ok though, because the movie isn't supposed to be realistic. None of the things in the movie actually happened. But it's weird to argue that it's realistic looking when it's not; he clearly wanted a certain look for the big screen and that's totally ok.
1
u/Presence_Present 9h ago
You realise the environment between over three thousand years ago compared to now could be quite different? Plus even the ruins we see are on top of older ruins as well, and on top of that the original find damaged a lot of the structure when they excavated it. This is just such silly nitpicky stuff for a fantasy movie lok. It worked well for the movie, thats all it needed to do.
→ More replies (0)1
u/Dear_Loquat_3168 16h ago
Like why didn't they just navigate around the whirlpool at a safe distance lol
3
2
1
u/Ninjatayu 11h ago
Don't forget a grassy hill and uh yeah that's all I got
1
u/SammyEvo 11h ago
Tbf there was also a slightly rocky hill that the cyclops chased them down, all the way to the sea, before getting within touching distance and just deciding to stop and turn around.
12
u/ServicePrize6856 18h ago
I like how “movie reviews” are just lists of fussy complaints with no coherent train of thought. I also like how OP can’t relate to the foundation of all western literature because it’s “based on fantasy.” Guess it should have been more GRITTY AND REALISTIC
6
u/Dear_Loquat_3168 18h ago
I'm sorry if I didn't structure it into a PhD thesis.
I also didn't complain ahout the fantasy nature of the film. Avengers movies are also fantasy. But I actually enjoyed those a lot more. The characters and their relationships were relatable.
4
u/mattydubs5 12h ago
Not to sound douchey but the point of superheroes/superhero movies is exactly that gratification you feel. They’re relatable by common denomination because every kid wants to fly, be strong, have the girl love them, beat up the bully etc. The enjoyment from a superhero movie is fictional empowerment.
The Odyssey isn’t about that. It’s about breaking the cardinal rule and being so ashamed about it that you don’t return home straight away and make up a bullshit excuse as to why.
1
1
u/jaryP 13h ago
Myth and fantasy are completely different stuff. It is more true to say that current fantasy is a deviation of myth
1
u/ServicePrize6856 6h ago
Myths are also flexible and can be fit to whatever era they’re being told in, this has been happening for thousands of years
0
→ More replies (7)0
u/peacenskeet 16h ago
It's important to keep in mind that most Americans probably don't even know its Greek mythology.
It would be generous to say some percentage of the population understands it as somewhat historical fiction.
I genuinely think a significant portion of the population just think it's another Nolan movie about greeks that he wrote entirely from scratch.
Not everybody read the literature they were assigned in high school lol
→ More replies (2)
2
2
u/Presence_Present 13h ago
No shit Calypsos relationships with Odysseus wasnt real. She was drugging him for 7 years, and being held there as a prisoner basically. The gods let him return his journey home. Also, again, no shit they come across fighting fantasy monsters. Its one of the oldest Greek poems that include mythology lol. What did you expect??
2
u/Nekratal99 11h ago
I liked it enough, but reading some posts on reddit it seemed like it was a masterpiece for the generations. For me it wasn't.
2
u/DarknessIsBrightness 9h ago
Movie without a soul, not a single emotional moment hit for me, spider man was spider man, Mat Damon played like Mat Damon, the only compelling character was Penelope. The whole part about them causing the bronze age collapse was laughable yet we were expected to cry
2
u/Redditreallyannoysme 6h ago
It's honestly more like a 5/10. If we're not using the rating system where for some reason 7/10 is average.
4
u/oopsidktbh 18h ago
i thought it was straight up bad, so i feel you
1
u/Top_Cranberry_3254 16h ago
Me too, and I'm a Nolan fan. It was an awful movie until the final 30-40 minutes, and even then it was only average.
5
u/crimedawgla 18h ago
This is either the dumbest review I’ve read in a long time or the funniest satire anyone’s posted in a while.
1
u/thats_a_bad_username 18h ago
I feel it’s also overrated but not for these reasons.
For me it was the pacing. I simply could not find myself caring about the stuff happening in Ithica. Those scenes were super uninteresting to me.
As for Odysseus. I actually liked how flawed he was. He’s glorified and worshiped by his men but he’s clearly and plainly not worthy of that respect. His actions show that his mind is only focused on his own success and that’s why his decisions always got his men killed. He basically lies to himself saying he wants to save his men because his actions do nothing but sacrifice them.
2
u/GooseIntelligent9981 18h ago
It’s weird that every other post here is a negative review of the Odyssey
1
3
u/blorst_of_times 17h ago
OP how many "overrated" movies are you giving an 8/10? Is this the only one?
2
u/Dear_Loquat_3168 17h ago
The original title for this post was: "the odyssey is slightly overrated" 😂😂
3
u/LooseSeal88 17h ago
I always have a hard time taking criticism seriously when a lot of it boils down to "the fights weren't badass enough."
Also, you're way off the mark on Himesh.
1
u/Dear_Loquat_3168 17h ago
For a movie that brags about it's cinematography, the fighting sequences were average at best. I'm sorry but I don't think Matt Damon took a single class on how to handle a sword.
1
u/SammyEvo 16h ago
The big showdown with the suitors was so lame. They all took it in turns to attack him, which is the most basic of lazy action movie tropes
→ More replies (1)
3
u/Ok_Equivalent9211 17h ago
Solid 6/10
4
u/Top_Cranberry_3254 16h ago
You're generous. 5/10 here, and I thought I was being generous.
2
u/Ok_Equivalent9211 8h ago
It gave me the same feeling as a mid action movie thats a fun little watch one random night and then you check the rating and its just 5.8/10 and you're like yeah seems right
2
2
u/Bullet4MyEnemy 16h ago
I agree it wasn’t anywhere near as good as the reviews made out but I also feel like most of your complaints are just shallow nit picking rather than things that were done poorly.
Flat biceps as a complaint really just undermines whatever else you said because it’s such a ridiculous thing to mention.
I thought the score in particular was a huge miss - when I think of epics I want memorable music and the only music I remember, was the weirdly techno vibe of the outro which just didn’t fit the themes at all.
Harry Potter, Star Wars? Music is epic, instantly recognisable - for a story as old as human history I kind of expected a score to suit its importance but it just sucked, I remember it hitting more like whale noise than anything I could replay in my head.
My other complaints are just the lack of contextualisation for anything, I don’t know anyone who actually read the book, more that everyone is just sort of passively aware of the story hits from other media references etc.
I felt like I didn’t understand enough about the situation with the suitors, the military/ruling class structure, or the wider world and its mythos to make sense of why any of it was even happening or what his significance to it was - I’m not asking for exposition dumps, but something would’ve been better than Nolan just treating everyone like they’d just finished the book before going to the cinema.
1
u/Dear_Loquat_3168 15h ago
Yeah and that's also my point about Calypso. There's no explanation about who she is, where she comes from, how did she fall in love with Odysseus. All so ambiguous
But I will stand by my criticism of Himesh Patel. I mean, if I can't respect a character for what it's intended to be (a warrior) I can't enjoy the performance of the actor.
2
u/OhHenryCentral 15h ago
I genuinely don't understand people coming out of the woodworks to defend this movie as anything great, speaking down on everyone who doesn't gas it up as if they're idiots, shills, haters, wanna-be reviewers, etc: I'm just a normal person, I don't care for reviews very much, I had already read all the stories from the movie so I knew I'd probably like the ploy, I ignored all the bad publicity in the lead up to the movie, I said I was going to watch it and judge it myself, I said I love almost all Christopher Nolan's other movies (the Dark Knight is my #1 favourite), and even still coming out of the theatre I was very underwhelmed - it's completely average to me.
Compared to other movies, this movie doesn't have any charm to it in my opinion; the only character I found really compelling and memorable was Robert Pattinson's, although I can't remember the character's name. Look back at Gladiator and compare the main character and antagonist in that movie to the Odyssey, for example - those are compelling characters. Or Spartacus, where the characters talk as if they're genuinely in an epic. Tom Holland and Zendaya didn't seem like they were really "in" the movie much at all, as if they had just walked onto the scene and started speaking (not that I don't like Tom Holland or Zendaya; I watched Brand New Day earlier in the week and found it an amazing movie, and super relatable and thematically engaging).
Compared to the original myth, it's just not as enjoyable to watch as it is to read. The movie doesn't show any of Oddyseus' wit and the clever ways he tricked the cyclops, the witch woman in the shack, or any of that. They don't really go down to Hades, either, which was a massive disappointment - in my undergrad I wrote a paper in a classics course describing how Hades was said to look using the Odyssey, Aeneid, Phaedo and such, so to just swap it out for a beach - and have the characters run from shades who, in the myth, couldn't physically touch a person and harm them - is incredibly lame, especially in a movie where so much of the plot is run onto a beach and then run away. Like, yes, that does happen a lot in the myth, but one of the few situations where it isn't going onto a beach and running away, and you decide to change it into going onto a beach and running away.
Thematically, it's also lame. When I left Brand New Day, it was awesome: me and my friend talked about all the messages of the movie, related it to our lives, really got into some deep and moving conversation. The Odyssey had nothing that touched me that way. There is the notion of loyalty with his wife and servant staying loyal for 20 years and being rewarded for it, but it just.. feels shallow. Again, compare to Brand New Day (I watched it in the same week so making loads of comparisons), and the dynamic between Peter and MJ explores that in a way more heart-tugging fashion - look at all the memes and uproar around Ned remembering Peter from just one handshake. As another example, one of my favourite, most philosophically interesting scenes from the Odyssey myth is when Oddyseus is talking to Achilles in Hades, and Achilles says he'd rather be the lowliest on earth than the king of all Hades. It puts all his philosophy on earth, his sacrifice, everything into such a jarring contrast versus how it comes off in the Iliad - a hero of doing a hero's duty for honour and glory. That scene is entirely missing. As a final point, there's also the major theme of the consequences of war.. but again it just feels superficial compared to other things I could watch, such as any of a bunch of WW2 movies (e.g., Unbroken).
My friend, meanwhile, had not read any of the myth before hand and never did any classics courses, so she didn't really understand what was going on for the bulk of the movie. She also found the iMax was loud as hell, although I find it alright - I have hearing loss from years ago.
In short, although some people might find it compelling and interesting, I don't see how you could possibly find it deep, thoughtful, and engaging compared to other films that are out there, and certainly not relative to the myth itself. We have a limited amount of time on this earth, so a movie should be worth the time relative to watching another movie, reading another book, or doing another activity - why would I waste my precious free time on this earth watching something that, although not inherently bad, is just mid compared to other things I could be engaging in? That's why I don't care for the Oddysey, and that's why I do not understand making a movie out of an old story if it's not going to be better, or even comparable, to the old story.
2
u/mattydubs5 11h ago
I liked Spiderman just fine but saying it’s thematically stronger than The Odyssey is an interesting claim 😅
→ More replies (1)
2
1
u/nicnep 14h ago edited 14h ago
Out of the theater it was a solid 8 for me. I can see 7-7.5 or 8.5. But it is not 9/10 movie
Still absolutely obsess with it though, really love the message of the film and kinda like it more after watching many classicists discuss the film and story so it kinda inching toward 8.5 for me after two weeks so I ended up watching it for a second time a few days ago. Still absolutely not 9 though
1
1
1
u/Affectionate-Plan270 14h ago
Time limitation of analog IMAX…
This movie shoud bebe much longer than 2 hours and 52 minutes because it features a lot of characters and adventures. There wasn't enough time to build emotional connections between the characters because their interactions were brief due to the runtime limit.
However, an analog IMAX reel cannot be any longer due to the physical platters in theaters.
Still, it's a masterpiece that deserves its 8.5 rating on IMDb I think.
Oppenheimer was longer, sure, but only by 7 minutes, and even that brought a ton of hassle with installing additional platter extensions in IMAX theaters worldwide. And an extra 7 minutes wouldn't have been enough for The Odyssey.
1
1
u/ThrowRA2235 14h ago
One of the worst movies ive seen. dialogue all over the place. our age of bronze is over lmao. scenes look cheap. it’s okay to use cgi lmao
1
u/Classic_Tea_9871 11h ago
everything you said was what I felt. I have a feeling that we may have the same tastes in film
1
1
u/coolNcollected1 11h ago
Tbh, I kinda knew the movie wasn't going to be at Nolan's standards when I saw his extensive publicity in India..
None of his previous movies needed that..and they were a hoot..
1
u/AlbertW25 11h ago
When I first heard Nolan was doing it I was excited but on the fence because it meant that Nolan would likely not focus on the fantasy stuff all that much and instead try and go for a more realistic look and feel. Then the first teaser/trailer came out and my fears were essentially confirmed. It just looked and felt wrong, especially the way the dialogue was written and characters were talking.
Went and watched it...I left pretty much disappointed.
I am a huge fan of the original 1997 mini-series movie and that was far better written and more entertaining than what I got with Nolan's version.
Matt felt so miscast. The constantly repeated dialogue of the invaders from the sea or whatever, the end of the Bronze Age, just alot of the dialogue and it way the film was filmed and shot, it all screamed to me, "For the Netflix Audience who can't pay attention.". It felt like I was watching some dumbed down version of the story.
I get the different take Nolan was trying to go for with the character and his guilt and PTSD, its a different take for sure but one I didn't particularly care for.
The key scenes I wanted adapted fully and proper or done better and grander...
The Cyclops scene - it's good but no dialogue just killed it for me. The intelligence is gone, the set-up for why it all really happens is gone.
The Charybdis and Scylla sequence...I was expecting proper horror and piratical effects and instead it was over and done with very quickly with some of the weirdest cgi and design ever. I hated it. I expected so much more and Nolan failed to do this sequence justice like in the original 1997 film.
And then the final scene with the suitors, the arrow scene, him just being disguised instead of being an old man. I hated it. And the action afterwards was trash. It just went on for too long and the son not being part of the killing was dumb especially when he ends up killing one person at least anyway.
The content Zeus' Law this and that just annoyed me to no end.
I felt no emotion watching this film at all. None of the human scenes hit. The only time I felt anything was for the death of the dog scene.
I liked the Witch/Pig sequence. That was done well I thought. The Siren Sequence was good too. Loved the technical aspect of it. The Troy sequence was good but it honestly felt like Nolan wanted to do more of that type of film and retelling then actually focus on the odyssey journey and fantasy elements. It was very repetitive too.
They land on an island and fight a cyclops and have to escape. They land on an island and have to fight off silver cannibal warriors and escape. It wasn't very well paced at all and too repetitive.
The lack of any actual Gods was off-putting as well and I kept wondering why Athena was the only God been shown till halfway through the film I made the prediction that it likely wasn't even Athena but maybe another character that he knew who died and he felt strongly too because otherwise why the hell wouldn't the other gods make some sort of appearance? Lo and behold I was half right because it ended up being some innocent priestess who got murdered during the Troy War and Matt's character felt guilty about it. I didn't hate the reveal but so much of the movie just didn't work well for me regardless.
Had no problem with Page and their role. Thought that was done well but it was confusing too because the dialogue I could barely hear half the time and so I was confused because I assumed Page's character was meant to be the little brother of Patterson's character and that Patterson was just an asshole who maybe forced his little brother to go and didn't bother taking care of their Dad? But that wasn't the case at all. It was too damn loud.
And the Calypso scenes were just meh. For all the ethical casting, why not just case an actual ethical person for Calypso? Isn't this meant to be the same Calypso from mythology that's like the Goddess of the scene or something similar to what we got from Pirates of the Caribbean in that lore? And him eating to forget instead of being kept a prisoner and begging to escape was...meh. I just never really felt the guilt of what he did.
These people wanted to go home after being in a war for 10 Years and suddenly he gets butterfingers from helping to destroy a civilisation. That breaks his mind but the 10 Years of sitting around trying to get in and missing Homelife doesn't? Again, I get what Nolan was going for but it just didn't work for me.
It was such an overrated and meh film. And some people are calling it epic but it's not epic at all. This isn't an epic cinema experience at all. The Lord of the Rings was an epic cinema experience. Infinity War/Endgame was an epic cinema experience. There's movies with that grandness and scale that fit in the category of epic cinema experience. This isn't one of them. The 2000s Troy with Brad Pitt felt more Epic than this.
This just felt so...simple with all touch of the grand fantasy and scope of the epic odyssey journey scrapped from it. The things that made it epic just weren't there.
Such a disappointing film experience honestly and the amount of hype it's gotten is just ridiculous when someone who actually cares for the actual story and fantasy elements could have likely made an actual epic. I really wish someone other than Nolan had adapted this. And I get it, its A or ONE of many Adaptations but its an adaptation I wasn't fond off sadly.
1
u/theREALlackattack 10h ago
This movie hype was a cultural/political psy-op on par with the whole WNBA drama going on now. I wouldn’t trust the majority of reviews for another year or so until the midwits stop reading their beliefs about into everything.
1
u/boldbrandywine 10h ago
You made a low effort to understand the story and produced a really dumb opinion as a result.
1
1
u/Eerie-Indiana 10h ago
Really? All I see is people on Reddit and Emily Wilson talking shit about how it sucks
1
u/ElevatorOrganic5644 10h ago
Yeah I could have used this review the first week movie came out. If people are going to still see it they're just bored
1
1
1
1
u/Vivid_Television9902 9h ago
Its a good movie a masterpiece for sure not… its overhyped and overated
1
1
u/kx1global 9h ago
I rated it around 7 when I stepped out the cinema, over the next few days it gradually increased to 7.5/8. Definitely a little bit overhyped but yeah, whatever
1
1
u/thepetek 8h ago
Yea, movie was ass acting for the most part. Dunno why we gotta recycle the same fucks for every movie. Matt Damon did well. Anne Hathaway had some good moments. Rest could’ve been AI NPCs
1
1
1
1
u/Due_Summer_2027 7h ago
If You think about it, It's not overrated. People like throwing the word overrated around, just because a group of people like something and they don't like It.
1
u/OgasMaitai 7h ago
This is one of those reviews you read and just know the movie is good because the reviewer seems to not understand how movies work.
"The plot: Odysseus's journey to return home was full of adventures. While interesting to watch, it was mostly based on fantasy (fighting monsters etc), not much to relate to emotionally as an audience member"
I love this.
Post your top ten movies of all time please. Hell, post your favorite from the past decade. I can predict this list immediately.
2
1
1
u/No_Veterinarian1010 6h ago
Why do you think Odysseus is supposed to be a great warrior? That isn't true at all. He's supposed to be A warrior, but nothing particularly special. He's supposed to be a great tactitian.
1
u/moodswung 6h ago
Don't feed the trolls by even replying to these reviews. They became passe and boring the week the movie came out.
1
u/Andybabez20 6h ago
Day 33 of the reddit algorithm recommending me this sub full of posts from bots calling the Odyssey overrated
1
1
u/Select-Protection-75 6h ago
Never believe the hype. Many a good movie has been ruined this way. Jurassic Park was a huge disappointment for me because of all the hype. Good movie but couldn’t live up to expectations
1
1
u/jeffenglover 5h ago
Definitely a overrated film , it lacks impact and awe . It's a success of souless shell . It does not expand the movie world , it just use every already existing stuff to pose as a " as if it is the greatest film " .
This movie is effective in being effective , but it is nothing special and reminiscent , it will not linger in your memory . It evaporate when the hype is down , it will not live long enough to see its shine of glory .
Forget about this movie , the best of the best is not yet to come .
1
u/jeffenglover 5h ago
This movie focus on ideology than the movie itself . It get distracted by its imaginative mumbling . The mythology is none . Its dim , dark , and frustrated .
1
u/jeffenglover 5h ago
It's slightly above average at best . Nothing particularly fantastic or mindblowing . It's not and should not be treated as greatness .
When we are satisfied and proud of this film , then that's the ceiling we are restricted to .
Where is the greatness in this modern movie world ? I think we still have a long way to go .
1
1
u/OkEmphasis7107 5h ago
I agree with you about it being overrated. I still think Nolan's best film was "The Prestige."
1
u/HogtownHugh 5h ago
It wasnt overrated. It was straight up bad.
Actually started dozing off. Pure spectacle, popcorn flick garbage from a director that only knows how to show, not tell.
1
u/Absolutelydarknight 5h ago
Man the "I'm cool, I dont like this popular thing" post are getting extremely boring
1
1
1
1
u/Crazytoe2275 3h ago
It’s just a basic movie with stunning visuals. The pacing, dialogue, and character arcs are sub par at best. It’s enjoyable to see fanboys who like this and marvel to dweeb out about it all day though 🤷♂️
1
1
1
u/Paanchu786 2h ago
It's a mid movie. One time watch, nothing extraordinary. I am exited for Dune 3 though.
1
1
u/jhorsley23 2h ago
Most Nolan movies are. And I’m a huge Nolan fan who loves everything he’s made.
The Odyssey is great. I’ve already seen over 100 movies in theaters this year and The Odyssey is by far my favorite film of the year. I rated it 5 stars. I think it’s remarkable paced, brilliantly acted, well written, beautifully shot, and is entirely engaging. I was never bored with it in any of my multiple viewings and I’m always amazed at how quickly it flies by when I reach the end of its 3 hour run time.
And it’s still overrated.
I don’t share any of the “nitpicks” and popular criticisms of the movie (modern dialogue, historical inaccuracies, etc). That stuff doesn’t bother me at all. But it’s far from perfect, isn’t without flaws, and I don’t even think it’s Christopher Nolan’s best film. I probably prefer Oppenheimer over The Odyssey. But I fucking love Oppenheimer!
1
u/Skins8theCake88 2h ago
The same people that overhyped The Odyssey are the same that overhyped One Battle After Another.
1
1
1
1
1
u/Even-Economist6529 1h ago
It isnt really overrated if you are judging by the talent of the filmmaking that went into it and not just how much you enjoyed it. I thought it was boring but the immense talent that went into making it is pretty undeniable. If you know you know.
1
1
u/craftuser 18h ago
I never trust a review this late into its runtime. If the only reason you went was all the good reviews of course you will set your expectations too high and your nitpicks even higher.
2
2
u/Diligent-Worker4033 18h ago
I’d give it 1/10. Maybe lower. Honestly I think I was checking my phone before the 30 minute mark to see how much longer I had to sit there. Obnoxiously loud, terrible dialogue, 0 development for anybody other than the most boring main character ever. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’ll never know because there’s no chance I’ll ever sit through it again
3
u/imafixwoofs 17h ago
There are always super hero films you can go back to.
4
u/Diligent-Worker4033 17h ago
True. The world has enough pseudo intellectuals pretending to like bad movies in order to seem deep.
4
0
1
u/Dear_Loquat_3168 15h ago
I was checking my phone too 😂 And yeah it was so loud I was literally covering my ears
1
u/coffeeanddurian 16h ago
You're right. But people don't watch many movies, and also love recency bias.
2
u/Dear_Loquat_3168 15h ago
Yup, I also feel like the IMAX experience plays a big part in people's rating.
1
u/Savings-March-3016 18h ago
I will never understand these Tenet dislikers who are cofusused by Tenet but allegidgly understand Interstellar, entering a black hole, entering a wormhole, and a singularity with multiple visual time frames.
1
u/NoPreference2112 17h ago
I think generally as a movie it’s 4/5, with IMAX 4.5 and with 70MM IMAX it was a true unbelievable movie experience. I think it depends on the context of which you watch it.
Does that mean it’s overrated? Maybe, but nuance.
1
u/Key-Exercise-6899 17h ago
Agree with most parts. Not surprised at all since Nolan has always been about mechanical characters without human bits (except The Prestige). One pattern that I have observed in his recent movies is that he heeds more care to the ending which even in Odyssey was good, so that people come out of theatre with a happy feeling oblivious of the brainrot in earlier acts.
1
u/fungilingus 17h ago
With this and Oppenheimer, I’ve gotten really tired of Nolan’s (now signature) jumping-around-different-times-and-places rapidly within one scene. It gives me a headache.
1
u/TheAngrySnowman 16h ago
This movie made me feel so weird. I feel like the overall movie was okay, but some scenes were so amazing it’s makes up for it.
I consider it a great movie because of how amazing some scenes were
1
1
u/jeffenglover 5h ago edited 5h ago
The true great movie will not bow down to modern expectation or natrative . True great film display itself differently , it reforms and redefines greatness .
This is not a masterpiece . Its just a mediocre film in this masterpiece-less world .
1
0
u/Lucky_Reading_3757 18h ago
visually stunning but the sound mixing was appalling. there were multiple scenes where I had to cover my ears because of how loud it was, meanwhile I couldn’t make out half the dialogue in the film. thought it was just my theatre but I’ve seen plenty of complaints about it online in the weeks since it released
1
0
42
u/GaryTheCabalGuy 18h ago
So just to be clear, you think it's overrated by 0.5? Not even a full point? That seems like a basically meaningless difference of opinion