Never bet against Nolan. THE ODYSSEY is incredible, muscular filmmaking by a director who’s still firing on all cylinders. All the moaning about the casting from certain sections of the internet seem downright silly when you see this cast in their roles on screen. They’re all superb. Like an expertly crafted theatre ensemble. In fact, the film very much has the feel of a gripping stage play. It’s intimate and grounded. Though there’s scenes of huge battles and outlandish fantasy elements, they never overwhelm the personal, relatable stories being told. It feels both authentically ancient and contemporary all at once. And I think it might be the best film I’ve seen so far this year. Amazing stuff.
I saw it projected in 70mm at Picturehouse Central, which looked great in terms of sharpness and warmth – though the strobe-y flicker of film projection is weirdly distracting now I’m used to (near-perfect) modern digital projection. I’d love to see it in IMAX but with Laser projection rather than film. Sorry – I know that probably makes me sound like a heretic!
Now seriously, where the hell can Nolan go after this? Maybe he could try something really difficult. Like making a good STAR WARS movie – haha!
