There is a legitimate argument that Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey (as well as The Iliad, its equally famous companion piece) is the most important work of literature ever written, or rather spoken. This is not solely because of age, having its roots in antiquity, but also because of the sheer cultural impact it has had over the millennia, influencing not only art, but politics, religion, philosophy and just about every other field of inquiry that revolves around plumbing the depths of the human condition. Cinematically, there has never been any shortage of works that use Homer’s poem as inspiration, whether directly or through mere allusion or homage. It seemed inevitable that we’d see a major director deciding to venture into making another adaptation of the poem, since we tend to get a new one every few decades, which is clearly based on the belief that many filmmakers believe that it is within their wheelhouse to make the definitive version, if any such concept can actually be achieved. The most recent, and perhaps the biggest we’ve ever seen and are likely to see, comes on behalf of Christopher Nolan, who has indicated that this material was something of a passion project for him (especially since he was apparently originally sought to direct the film Troy, before he had the cultural cache that he proudly holds today), and which he managed to utilise his ongoing ascent to become arguably the most important filmmaker working today, at least in terms of commercial relevance. His intention here is to make a film that is primarily built around the story contained in Homer’s “Odyssey”, while also introducing key elements of “Illiad”, finding a way to bind the two texts through both their narrative connection and their more abstract philosophical foundations, telling the story of Odysseus’ journey back to Ithaca after twenty years spent away from his kingdom, told through both his perspective and that of his son Telemachus, who has grown weary of only knowing his father through the stories told by others, and who decides to seek out answers to his fate, even if it proves to be a perilous endeavour. As perhaps the definitive on-screen version of this story (something that is up for debate, but which I think is relatively clearly in favour of Nolan’s vision), The Odyssey is an incredible work, a well-made fantasy epic handcrafted by a director who once again proves to be nothing short of a complete visionary.

There are several reasons these stories, concocted thousands of years ago and where their origins are about as ambiguous as they can be (we still don’t even know if Homer was a real individual or if the name was just applied to a collective of unnamed poets and bards, with many literary historians leaning towards the latter), not only remain popular, but also deeply influential in a way that very few works of literature produced in the last couple of centuries have been able to demonstrate. Part of it is the escapism aspect of these stories – we’re often fascinated by the distant past, since it is so starkly different from our own present lives, and the desire to imagine the world being a more whimsical, mystical place can be very appealing. Nolan is evidently fascinated by the same idea, based on how much work he does to bring this story to life, choosing a very specific perspective that emphasises the near-universal appeal of not only Greek mythology in particular (which is perhaps the most globally popular, but far from the only set of beliefs that have become of interest over time), but also the concept of exploring the ancient world as a whole. The focus here is on telling a coherent story while also not avoiding the abstract elements that sometimes tend to get lost in many more conventional adaptations. The Odyssey revolves around a simple premise: the king of Ithaca succeeds in a decade-long war, but his efforts to return home are constantly derailed by his encounters with a variety of mystical beings, vicious monsters and hostile natural conditions that make it seem like he is destined never to return home. This is the aspect of this story that many are aware of, and which forms the foundation for much of what Nolan is interested in exploring. The idea of an odyssey in general is always very compelling, where a clear goal is set (in this case returning home), but where a range of obstacles lie ahead, each one becoming more perilous than the last. This is one of the core elements that makes The Odyssey such an influential piece of literature, and while it may be the skeleton of this film  (and would always have been the focus), we can appreciate the director’s fervent efforts to take this simple premise and turn it into something extraordinarily compelling, drawing on our inherent and insatiable curiosity about the past and how it tends to be romanticised into a time where everything seemed to be so much more enchanting and interesting than modern life, which has always been what has drawn audiences to these stories.

However, while we can appreciate the idea of Nolan making a film that exists purely to be entertaining, a wonderfully off-the-wall journey through the world of myths and monsters that have enraptured audiences for centuries, there is actually much more to The Odyssey than we see on the surface, which comes down to the director having more than one bold intention in terms of what he wanted to explore with this story. Every one of his films is driven by his desire to look at certain subjects through a more intelligent, nuanced lens – he’s certainly not satisfied to just make a version of Homer’s poem that focuses on Odysseus’ encounter with various monsters, since while this may be what most people associate with the story, it’s not the only interesting element by any stretch of the imagination. The Odyssey is as much about history and culture as it is about fantastical depictions of the past, and Nolan is committed to taking on the challenge and delivering a film that functions as both a fantasy epic and a compelling exploration of social and political structures at the time. The latter may sound like one of the many attempts to remove the whimsy from the story, but it actually has the opposite effect, making the film much more intriguing. There are versions of The Odyssey that go to extraordinary lengths to situate the viewer in the most extravagant, over-the-top version of the past, where logic is entirely suspended to the point where it begins to resemble an entirely distant world rather than our own. There’s a misguided belief that Nolan is too self-serious and never wants to embrace the unknown, making everything too overly academic and dour, and while the argument is not entirely without merit, it does do an immense disservice to a director who wants to find the balance between the fantastical and the plausible. His version of The Odyssey is intriguing precisely because he finds fascinating ways to tell the story – the gods that populate Homer’s narrative are present, but not seen in the way that they usually are. A roll of thunder represents Zeus, tumultuous waters represent Poseidon, fields of sulphuric sand represent Hades and a range of other interesting choices are made in how the story is brought to life. This allows the other component of The Odyssey, namely the examination of cultural themes such as gender, religion, political structure and identity, all the more rich, since a slightly more grounded approach (albeit one that doesn’t entirely dismiss the more abstract, fantastical elements of the story) solidifies the realistic aspects even more, leading to a multilayered narrative that feels so much richer and more engaging than we would have initially expected.

One of the great benefits of becoming inarguably one of the most sought-after filmmakers in Hollywood is the ability to work with just about any actor, especially when a large portion of the industry has made it clear that they would be more than willing to leap at the opportunity. Nolan has taken full advantage of that, since several of his recent films over the past decade have been filled to the brim with a range of memorable actors, all of whom clearly signed on to play roles in these films solely to say that they have collaborated with someone whose cultural importance only grows with every film. The Odyssey is not any different, with a sprawling and eclectic cast, consisting of a wide range of actors, each of whom leaves an impression, even with a single scene in some cases. The film is led by Matt Damon, reunited with the director after his supporting part in Oppenheimer, and he delivers a career-best performance as a man who simply wants to get home after being away for twenty years. Many actors could’ve easily played this role (and Nolan has made it clear that he never writes with specific actors in mind), but Damon’s commitment – both physically and mentally – is extraordinary, proving once again that he is one of our most interesting actors. He’s certainly not a stranger to carrying these films, but unlike some of his work in science fiction and action (where he was nonetheless very good), it is his performance as Odysseus that proves his mettle as not only an action star, but also someone who can infuse his characters with incredible depth. It’s a wonderful performance, and will likely be seen as one of Damon’s landmark roles. Other major parts are played by Tom Holland, whose Telemachus is incredibly endearing (even if he’s not the most interesting character), and Anne Hathaway, delivering a deep, soulful performace as Penelope, a woman who has been waiting for her husband to return for two decades, and refuses to give up hope, which is made more complicated by the presence of Antinous, the film’s primary villain, played to excessive perfection by the always wonderful Robert Pattinson. There are so many standouts in the supporting cast that it feels almost overwhelming to highlight all of them – John Leguizamo is the most sympathetic character in the film, playing the blind goatherd Eumaeus, who I’d argue is the soul of the film, while Samantha Morton proves that someone can steal an entire film with just a single scene. Similarly, Elliot Page, Lupita Nyong’o, James Remar, Himesh Patel and several others all do fantastic work, hardly being the focus but rather making invaluable contributions to a film that hinges on the cast’s ability to commit entirely to the premise.

As soon as this film was announced to be going into production, many immediately started to debate how Nolan would approach the material, not only on a narrative level, but primarily in terms of the technical aspects. While many are agnostic towards his work based on the writing and character development (which I do think is a valid criticism – he’s improved over time but he’s not as strong a storyteller as some of his peers, something that does seem to be slowly being rectified with each new film), it’s difficult to deny the scope of his filmmaking, which has seen him consistently challenging the confines of the medium in a way that is nothing if not impressive. The Odyssey is not an empty spectacle by any means, which is a result of the director working laboriously to bring his unique interpretation of Homer’s poem to life on screen – and it’s certainly not an easy feat, since he both needs to distance this film from the many other adaptations over the years (although I’d argue that Nolan was probably confident in the knowledge that he wouldn’t run into too many unfavourable comparisons with previous versions, since he had nearly unlimited resources allocated to crafting this film), and tell the story in a way that breathes new life into this well-worn narrative. On a technical level, the film is an astonishing achievement – he reunites with some previous collaborators like  Hoyte van Hoytema, whose cinematography is some of the most exquisite of the past few years (and which I’d dare to say is a career-best for the esteemed cinematographer), while Ludwig Göransson proves that he is already firmly in the canon as far as film composers go. His score for The Odyssey is astonishing – clearly inspired by music likely to be heard during the period, he implements traditional instruments that we can reasonably assume formed a part of the culture at the time in which this film takes place, with the results being a mystical, engaging score that ties the images together beautifully. Nolan also is as sparing as he can be when it comes to the use of visual effects – there is some CGI used throughout the film, but only where it is entirely necessary, with the priority being given to practical effects. This is certainly more work than other filmmakers would be willing to do, but it’s this precise, meticulous attention to detail that separates Nolan from many of his peers. He sincerely adores the art of creating cinema, and when presented with the opportunity to do something practically, particularly in collaboration with some of the finest artists in their respective crafts, it’s not surprising that he is willing to do the work. Every aspect of The Odyssey is astonishing, drawing us into this narrative and allowing us to get blissfully lost in this genuinely impressive voyage into the past.

Hindsight is always important, and I will be the first to admit that I’ve been quite cynical about Nolan over the years, finding some of his films to be quite remarkable, others to be absolute ordeals. Unsurprisingly, The Odyssey falls into the category of the former, which is not only a testament to the fact that I am one of the countless people who have a strong fascination with anything revolving around the antiquity (in particular the mythology), but also proof that Nolan is steadily becoming one of the most important filmmakers working today, and someone who is only getting more interesting as he allows himself to expand into other genres and stories, likely the result of his name only growing in prestige with every new film, which tend to be both critical and commercial successes to the point where we simply cannot deny his relevance any longer. I am not entirely sure if this is going to be Nolan’s peak as a filmmaker – it most certainly is my personal favourite of the films he has made – since he seems to be intent on pushing himself further with every new project, this one in particular being more than enough proof of his ability to take arguably one of the most cherished, important texts in history, and turning it into a wall-to-wall spectacle, a complex and engaging epic fantasy film that is filled to the brim with unforgettable moments. The performances are remarkable, and co-exist alongside some genuinely impressive technical elements, with the use of practical effects, striking cinematography that captures the many different locations on which the film was shot (the sheer number of places Nolan uses to represent the world through which Odysseus and his crew travel is astonishing – simply reading about the production of this film is as awe-inspiring as the final product) and a range of other elements all come together to form a truly unforgettable work. It may have certain minor issues with historical accuracy (many have noted the lack of authenticity in terms of costuming, production design and language – but its worth noting that at no point did Nolan suggest that he intended to make a film that was absolutely pitch perfect), but these are minor quibbles that don’t do anything to distract from the mastery on display with this film, an entertaining historical epic that moves at a steady pace – it might be the fastest three hours any of us will encounter – and proves the astonishing ability of cinema to transport us to entirely different eras and places, making The Odyssey a personal peak for Nolan and one of the year’s absolute best films.