Odyssey translator writes scathing review of Nolan film adaptation

What the report says

BBC World News reports that Emily Wilson, the classicist whose 2017 English translation of Homer’s “Odyssey” was cited by Sir Christopher Nolan as an influence on his new film adaptation, has sharply criticized the movie in a review for the London Review of Books. The film, released earlier this month, has otherwise drawn highly positive notices from several critics and has performed strongly at the box office, according to the BBC.

Wilson faulted the three-hour epic’s script, structure and characterization, calling the narrative approach “gimmicky” and saying the film lacked emotional, political and ethical complexity. She argued that the characters’ motivations were unconvincing and said the women in the film, while more numerous than in many Nolan projects because of the source material, were given little depth compared with Homer’s poem.

The BBC notes that Wilson also acknowledged benefits from the film’s release, including renewed public attention to Homer and increased interest in translations of the ancient epic, including her own. She said Nolan’s film could encourage more people to read and might even help support academic departments devoted to literature, languages and history.

Nolan previously told Empire that Wilson’s opening line, “Tell me about a complicated man,” helped guide his version of Odysseus, played by Matt Damon. The cast also includes Zendaya, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron and Lupita Nyong’o. The film follows Odysseus, king of Ithaca, as he struggles to return home after the Trojan War to reunite with his wife and son.