The Odyssey is out in theaters now, and is every bit as masterful as fans of Christopher Nolan might expect. However, there is one specific choice that, while not detrimental to the movie, does have some jarring moments.
The Odyssey features an absolutely star-studded cast that includes Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Mia Goth, Benny Safdie, Jon Bernthal, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Elliot Page, Himesh Patel, Bill Irwin, Samantha Morton, Jesse Garcia, Will Yun Lee, Corey Hawkins, Josh Stewart, Jimmy Gonzales, Maurice Compte, and many more.
The new Nolan film is a nearly flawless example of a true blockbuster epic. However, the film’s tone and dialogue, while not detrimental to the movie’s overall experience, are something that I found myself constantly noticing while watching the movie.
The Odyssey’s modern dialogue can be jarring at times
It’s no surprise that Nolan’s The Odyssey takes some modern approaches throughout the movie. This includes things like the language and tone of the movie, with actors speaking in a more modern dialect and using words that might not have existed during the ancient days when Greek mythology was prevalent. When footage of the movie was first shown off, I even commented that the criticism of the dialogue, and lack of accents specifically, was mostly overblown nonsense.
However, after watching the movie, there’s some legitimacy to it. To be clear, any criticism saying the movie is worse due to a lack of accents or actors saying certain words is nonsensical. The movie is without a doubt a massive achievement by Nolan, and one that rises to the occasion in a number of ways. The action sequences, acting, and visuals of the movie are all spectacular, and that’s before getting into the more technical aspects like the cinematography and excellent score from Ludwig Göransson.
Despite this, though, the movie’s modern language does provide a bit of a surprise every time it happens. Much has already been made of Tom Holland’s Telemachus and Robert Pattinson’s Antinous’ conversation where they used words like “daddy” and “dad” to describe Matt Damon’s Odysseus, but the use of contemporary English is one that would occasionally draw me out of the movie and have me wondering if maybe a more split approach wouldn’t have been better.
To Nolan’s credit, he has a great reason for going with what he did. Speaking to the Los Angeles Times this month, Nolan said the use of modern English was done to prioritize “language that has emotional not intellectual meaning to people.” Nolan also said he wanted a more “earthy narrative,” and had no issue making the choice, even though he knew it might lead to some debate. Also lending credence to Nolan’s choice is that most modern translations of The Odyssey use contemporary language as well, in an effort to make things a bit more understandable.
In the end, this only amounts to a minor nitpick in what is, by mostly all other regards, a masterful movie. Nolan has succeeded in almost every way in his latest epic, and even though it was a bit odd at times hearing ancient Greek heroes using modern slang, it never fully took away from the end result, which shows just how much of a success Nolan has on his hands.
