Matt Damon as Odysseus
On Tuesday of this week I went to see Christopher Nolan's film version of Homer's "The Odyssey". It has been in the news a lot recently.
My favourite film critic, Mark Kermode, voiced a few reservations about the film but in the final analysis he urged film lovers to go to see it - preferably on an IMAX screen to get the full epic effect. IMAX auditoriums provide a specialised cinema experience featuring giant, curved screens, powerful custom sound systems, and steep seating. IMAX films are created with high-resolution cameras, digital or 70mm film projection, and proprietary image enhancement to make movies feel massive and immersive. IMAX simply means - Image Maximum.
As it happens, Sheffield is home to one of the biggest IMAX screens in this country. It is within the Cineworld complex in The Don Valley. I intended to take Mark Kermode's advice.
When I told my pub quizmates about my plan, Mick was quite keen to join me. He admitted that he hadn't visited a cinema this century even though he is a keen and pretty knowledgeable film buff with a large library of DVD recordings. Seeing "The Odyssey" on an IMAX screen would be a special treat for him.
And so we settled back into our padded seats smack in the middle of Row F. There we sat for the next three hours both hoping to be wowed by "The Odyssey".
As the final credits rolled we agreed that the experience had been okay but neither of us had been overwhelmed. There were various gripping episodes and moments such as the cave scenes with the giant cyclops Polyphemus. Quite jaw-dropping.
Mick and I agreed that at times we struggled to make out the dialogue in the booming IMAX multi-speaker sound system. We also agreed that Matt Damon was terrific as Odysseus - one of the best film roles he has ever played.
Mark Kermode said that Samantha Morton's portrayal of the sorceress - Circe had been faultless but in our blunt Yorkshire way we thought it was "nowt special".
I was a little irked by the modern American English accents and it did not sit right with me when Telemachus (Tom Holland) refers to Penelope (Anne Hathaway) as his "mum" and to Odysseus as his "dad". In addition, it seemed odd that Helen's part was played by a well-known black actress - Lupita Nyong'o and Odysseus's second-in-command, Eurylochus was played by British-Asian actor Himesh Patel. In my discomfort about this I guess I may be quite old-fashioned but certainly not racist.
"The Odyssey" was created with the assistance of a $250 million budget but it has already grossed £950 million at the box office. This is a phenomenal return. I guess that in making this film, Christoher Nolan had to ensure that it would appeal to the mass market and this key factor would surely have influenced a lot of his choices.
By the way and co-incidentally, it is claimed that Homer, the famous author of "The Odyssey", was buried on the island of Ios - not very far from where I was rescued by Greek fishermen in my own little odyssey. It was his mother's home island.
Anne Hathaway as Penelope
Lost in translation ...
ReplyDelete* Between Mr Newman and Homer is interposed a cloud of more than
Egyptian thickness - namely, a manner, in Mr Newman's version, eminently
ignoble, while Homer's manner is eminently noble. *
On Translating Homer by Matthew Arnold (online).
Arnold judged Francis William Newman's translation of The Odyssey
an archaic atrocity, stuffed with Anglo-Saxon words - like bragley for proudly.
Arnold disliked Newman's English hexameters and cited Paradise Lost.
Yet he dismissed William Cowper's translation of The Odyssey as too Miltonic.
Arnold was a Balliol man though his classical scholarship was nothing like Jowett's.
His online essay is still a pleasure to read.
Francis William Newman was brother of John Henry Newman, the most
eminent convert to Roman Catholicism in 19th Century England.
Is Anne Hathaway the next Lady Macbeth ?
DeleteAs for Macbeth - a man under the spell of the Weird Witchy Sisters
and his domineering wife - I would cast Benedict Cumberbatch or
Tom Hiddleston or Idris Elba or Tom Hardy.
Interwoven into the Scottish play is an occult curse.
There's a prayer that removes the curse known only to exorcists.
I spoke to a priest who knows the prayer but he would not recite it to me.
Genius daughyer "no-one" has been to see it but I will wait until it comes to TV, or even DVD. I am no longer comfortable with booming surround sound.
ReplyDeleteThe film has little appeal to me but your thoughts are interesting. Matt's teeth aren't as perfect as those of many American actors.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your review; it is only the second one I've been reading (the first one was on someone else's blog a while ago). It has confirmed for me that I don't need to see this film.
ReplyDeleteWhat would you have preferred to the American accents? A Greek-sounding one? I agree about the use of "Mum" and "Dad" not appearing to be very authentic, but then so are Matt Damon's perfect teeth - real people, especially men who had been out at Sea for such a long time - didn't have such good teeth in those days.
Well at least Damon has his own teeth, rather uneven. When the gods meet their human underlings it is all very emotional by the look on his face. I have 6 small volumes of the Iliad but have never been able to read it. 18th century I think. The Odyssey would be too violent for me.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see it but I cannot stand the booming sound in theaters that you mention here. Loud environments are very uncomfortable for me and the last few times I went to the movies it the sound really put me off.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Black and Asian actors playing the Greek parts, that wouldn't bother me at all. Since the phenomenal "Hamilton" by genius Lin-Manuel Miranda and his casting of all ethnicities in it, I've rather come to like multi racial casting in traditionally white roles. (It did seem strange at first).
I'll wait until I can see The Odyssey at home. My tv screen is large (although of course not by theater standards) and I'll be able to enjoy the film without being rendered half deaf by the volume.
I think I'll wait until it's available on television and maybe not even then. I have not been encouraged by reviews I've read to rush out and see it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Meike's view - my first impression was that the teeth were a little too 21st century!
It's not my cup of tea, but I am amused by the outrage over the casting of Lupita Nyong'o and Elliot Page.
ReplyDeleteI'm still not interested in watching it.
ReplyDeleteYes, I've heard that Matt Damon is getting rave reviews for his performance. He is not a particularly favourite actor of mine, so I'm curious to see this film for that reason too. "Colour-blind casting" does not bother me because, hey, non-white actors deserve to work too, you know? All too often "historical accuracy" is an excuse used to exclude them from roles in white countries. We live in multicultural countries now and need to adjust.
ReplyDeleteInteresting... from what I gather the critics and commentators here in the USofA have panned it, but I don't pay much attention. Being in the Classics biz, I shy away from most modern interpretations lest my historical hackles be raised. (Have I mentioned I hold a degree in the field???)
ReplyDeleteMy son saw it and said he liked it.
ReplyDeleteThree hours, is a bit long.
ReplyDeleteInteresting review.
ReplyDelete