Critics Call Nolan's 'Odyssey' an 'Absolute Triumph'
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- The Odyssey world premiered in London on Monday ahead of its reviews-embargo lift next Wednesday and worldwide release next Friday
- Peter Bradshaw (Guardian) described the three-hour film as "a colossal origin-myth story of postwar disillusion and a loss of innocence witnessed by the dead"
- Anne Thompson (IndieWire) labeled it "the best picture contender to beat" and predicted Matt Damon "could win best actor" for his turn as Odysseus
- Robert Pattinson drew standout praise as the villainous Antinous, with critic Erik Davis saying Pattinson "absolutely stole the show" with a "conniving, manipulative" performance
- David Ehrlich (IndieWire) praised the film as "surprisingly natural" and "less despairing" than Oppenheimer, while noting it was "too clunky to be S-tier Nolan"
- Shot entirely on large-format IMAX film cameras, the production carried an estimated $250m budget and will need at least $500m to break even
- Classical historian Tom Holland (no relation to the film's star) called it "by some way the best cinematic adaptation of a Greek myth I have ever seen," defending it on X after a second viewing
Why it matters: With a $250m budget requiring roughly $500m to break even and Nolan's prior film Oppenheimer sweeping the 2023 Oscars, the unanimous early praise positions The Odyssey as a serious awards-season and box-office contender that tests whether Hollywood's recent big-screen resurgence can sustain a three-hour literary adaptation.
