Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey Leaves Critics Stunned In First Reactions

Christopher Nolan's long-awaited adaptation of "The Odyssey," the ancient Greek poem credited to Homer, is almost here ... and the first reactions are pretty incredible.

Notably, Nolan and his team at Universal Pictures decided that only members of the press would see this movie early, edging out influencers and meaning that all of these first reactions come from professionals. Among them was IndieWire's David Ehrlich, who had misgivings but was still won over on X: "The Odyssey: a surprisingly natural (and less despairing) Oppenheimer follow-up about a man haunted by defying the gods & dooming civilization – this one fights to avenge his own hubris. IMAX obviously immense. too clunky to be S-tier Nolan, but the last act rewards the journey."

The Mary Sue's Rachel Leishman also soundly praised the film, which is led by Matt Damon as the long-lost soldier Odysseus. "'The Odyssey' is as epic as its source material with that level of Christopher Nolan spark that makes it something special," she declared. "It's a story of love and loss and takes you on quite the journey in only the way Nolan knows how. Breathtaking, bold, and perfection."

Erik Davis, of Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes, enjoyed his extended character limit on X for his massive review. After calling "The Odyssey" an "absolute triumph and a crowning cinematic achievement from one of the great filmmakers of our time," Davis also noted that Nolan surprisingly embraced some horror tropes and described the cast as "stacked," doling out particular praise for Anne Hathaway and Robert Pattinson (who play Odysseus' wife Penelope and the villainous Antinous, who tries to court Penelope in Odysseus' absence). "Look, it's the must-see cinematic event of the summer — and quite possibly the year," Davis concluded. "I can't wait to watch it again." 

People honestly didn't seem particularly split on the overall excellence of "The Odyssey," if we're all being honest. As culture writer and journalist Simon Thompson wrote on X, "Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey' is flawless filmmaking, every inch as epic as you'd expect. Leading a stellar cast, Matt Damon gives Odysseus everything in a career-best powerhouse performance. Robert Pattinson is outstanding as Antinous and John Leguizamo's Eumaeus is sublime."

Jazz Tangcay, writing for Variety, split her reaction up into two tweets. In the first, she called the film an "astonishing achievement" and said some of the cast members are giving the best performances of their careers to date ... and then she continued. "Christopher Nolan is a visionary, and 'The Odyssey' is a work of art," Tangcay noted, stressing that "adapting a Homer classic is not easy" before revealing that Nolan has, somehow, "outdone himself." (Considering that she's talking about the Oscar-winning director of the 2023 epic "Oppenheimer," that's saying something.) "You could feel the passion in his storytelling. You feel the passion in the crafts and the acting," Tangcay continued. "Cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema shoots to perfection, and the crafts: costume, sound, editing and Ludwig Goransson's score are phenomenal artistry and so visceral. The battle scenes, especially at Troy, are breathtaking. It's an incredible epic."

Clayton Davis, who covers award seasons at Variety, also breathlessly praised Nolan's film. "In an epic way, #TheOdyssey feels like the Christopher Nolan take on "Hamilton." A multicultural, generational cast anchors this sword-and-sandal epic. Matt Damon leads with grit, while Tom Holland [as Odysseus' son Telemachus] brings the sensitivity and heart."

Matt Neglia of Next Best Picture also took full advantage of a longer word count on X. "Christopher Nolan's adaptation of THE ODYSSEY is as epic as movies get with some of the most breathtaking set pieces he's ever attempted," he wrote. "A colossal achievement of scale, even by Nolan's standards, its commitment to capturing as much as possible in-camera using new IMAX cameras is a staggering technical feat worthy of this sprawling yet intimate story of one man's journey to return home."

On behalf of Discussing Film, Andrew Salazar appeared to agree with Neglia. "'The Odyssey' is a staggering achievement," he wrote on X. "It boasts spectacular & even terrifying set pieces that feel like Christopher Nolan fully embracing the horrors of Greek mythology. Yet, how he tastefully recontextualizes the story for the modern day is what has kept my head buzzing." Salazar continued in another post, writing, "In a world where pride, ego, & entitlement continue to fuel wars & endless bloodshed, Nolan uses Odysseus' ancient tale as a channel to question what it would take for us to truly forgive our past sins. Epic and meditative in equal measure, the ending left me soaring with hope."

Collider's Perri Nemiroff echoed all of that: "'The Odyssey" is a filmmaking feast. A grand and gripping rendition of Homer's epic, and one that feels uniquely Christopher Nolan. It's sincerely hard to imagine any other filmmaker on the planet being able to bring that source material to screen with this much scale, scope and heart."

If you're feeling almost as lost as Odysseus himself, watch this before you go and see "The Odyssey." Do it quickly, though; the movie hits theaters across the world on Friday, July 17.