Greek translator and University of Pennsylvania professor Emily Wilson has unleashed a scathing review of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, calling it a “confused” and “abysmal” adaptation of Homer’s text.
Wilson took to the London Review of Books to publish a lengthy assessment of Nolan’s blockbuster epic and how, at least for her, it failed (via The Guardian). Her review began simply enough, praising The Odyssey as an easy-to-follow tale that her “teenagers had a good time” with, but her positivity mostly ends about one paragraph in.
“It’s a family-friendly audiovisual spectacle,” Wilson said, “like an elaborate Fourth of July fireworks display – and with about the same level of narrative and emotional depth.”
Ouch. Wilson’s thoughts on Nolan’s latest movie only heat up from there.
“But the film’s vision is too confused, its characters too underdeveloped, to deliver what it half-promises in terms of big ideas – although it is very good at conveying big bangs and big giants,” she added.
It’s unclear if Nolan, an infamously phoneless filmmaker, has had time to digest Wilson’s thoughts on his work, but he might have his feelings hurt if he has. The director referenced Wilson’s translation of the Greek story when speaking with Empire late last year, so he’s certainly familiar with her work.
Wilson’s full review doesn’t mark her first foray into the topic of this year’s The Odyssey. Last week, she criticized the film for its changes to the source material, saying she was concerned Nolan “was trying to pack everything in while missing themes that were essential to the poem.” Her review allowed her to elaborate on some of the elements she found to be particularly bothersome.
“But I would be ashamed to have written any part of this script,” Wilson said, calling back to Nolan citing her work. “Sadly, Damon’s Odysseus isn’t complicated or wily or artful.”
She continued later in her piece: “Nolan’s Odyssey lacks many of the elements that make the poem great. It has nothing convincing to say about time, memory, history, war, or about the relationship between one warrior’s glorious return and the lives of his family, adversaries, comrades, friends and neighbors. It lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth. Its narrative structure is gimmicky. The writing is abysmal. None of the characters has convincing motivation for their actions or words. There are no sex scenes, and all the food looks horrible.”
Wilson signed off on one bright note: The Odyssey is convincing audiences to go back to movie theaters. She’s celebrated the idea that a big-budget movie had managed to ignite interest in Homer’s work for a new audience before, and it’s still something she’s happy to see today.
“Perhaps the film will persuade a few college administrators not to cut their literature, language, and history departments,” she explained. “Nolan, who studied English at University College London – where students still study The Odyssey as a first year ‘foundational text’ – is doing his best to get the general public reading again, and I am grateful.”
Wilson has an undeniably deeper relationship with Homer’s work than the average moviegoer, but that hasn’t stopped the army of fans who have turned up in theaters to see what Nolan’s latest is all about. With solid reviews (we gave it an 8/10) and good word-of-mouth, The Odyssey has seen enormous success at the box office. Its opening weekend brought in $264.1 million globally, while its second weekend, with only a 19% drop, accumulated another $215.3 million.
For more, you can read what Nolan had to say about the changes he made to the story. You can also see what Universal did to stop the flow of leaks that popped up online over the weekend.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
