One Of Hollywood’s Most Anticipated Epics Just Faced Its Toughest Review Yet… From The Person Who Understands The Original Story Better Than Almost Anyone. The Film Had The Scale. The Star Power. The Breathtaking Visuals. Yet A Leading Scholar Behind The Classic Work That Inspired It Says Something Essential Was Missing. The Influential Translator Has Publicly Challenged The Adaptation’s Screenplay, Claiming The Movie Failed To Preserve The Deeper Meaning, Emotional Weight, And Literary Power That Made The Original Story Legendary. Her Words Have Left Fans Divided, With Some Defending The Filmmaker’s Vision While Others Question Whether The Adaptation Went Too Far From Its Source.

Christopher Nolan cited Emily Wilson’s 2017 translation of “The Odyssey” as an influence on his own interpretation of Homer’s epic poem while on the press tour for his latest blockbuster. Wilson is not returning the favor. In a negative review of Nolan’s “The Odyssey” for the London Review of Books (via The Guardian), Wilson criticized Nolan’s adaptation for lacking “psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth.” The author, who is also a professor of classical studies at the University of Pennsylvania, added that Nolan’s “The Odyssey” has “nothing convincing to say.”

The Odyssey' Cast, Characters & Greek Mythology Backgrounds

“I had hoped that Nolan’s affinity with these Homeric themes might push him to new creative heights, and enable him to conjure more believable characters. But ‘The Odyssey’ features his usual combination of grandiosity and superficiality … 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,” Wilson’s scathing review reads.

She adds: “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.”

What does 'The Odyssey' translator Emily Wilson think of Christopher Nolan's  film? | Mashable

Nolan sung Wilson’s praises during his press tour for “The Odyssey,” telling Empire magazine that he used the opening line of her translation (“Tell me about a complicated man”) as a guide for bringing his Odysseus (Matt Damon) to life on the big screen. But Wilson concluded of Nolan’s film: “I would be ashamed to have written any part of this script.”

Wilson previously spoke about her criticisms of Nolan’s movie in a Sunday Times interview, although she did admit the movie was having a positive effect on the culture’s interest in Homer and “The Odyssey” at large.

“The release of ‘The Odyssey’ is still an event to celebrate,” Wilson said. “This epic is bringing audiences back to cinemas … translations of ‘Odyssey,’ including mine, are flying off the shelves … [and] perhaps the film will persuade a few college administrators not to cut their literature, language and history departments.”

Audiences don’t appear to be sharing Wilson’s dissatisfaction with Nolan’s “The Odyssey.” The movie received an “A” CinemaScore during its opening weekend and has turned into one of the year’s biggest blockbusters at the box office. The film earned a massive $90 million in its second weekend domestically.

“The Odyssey” is now playing in theaters nationwide.

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