The Odyssey (2026): A Film Review by Jeff Pajack

The Odyssey (2026): A Film Review (by Jeff Pajack)

Christopher Nolan has been justly praised for his cerebral yet scintillating cinema. From the Batman trilogy to Prestige, Dunkirk and Oppenheimer, Tenet and—my personal favorite—Interstellar, Nolan and his wife Emma Thomas have teamed up to produce some of the most memorable films in the last two decades. After more than twenty years into his epic career, it’s only fitting that Nolan would attempt to produce one of the greatest epics of all time. Homer’s The Odyssey is the ancient story of the Greek king Odysseus and his twenty-year trek to get back home. Nolan has always crafted complex tales with many themes, but a recurring theme is the study of one person’s morally-charged decision, its psychological cost, and its repercussions on that person’s community. The Odyssey is no exception.

In his latest masterpiece, Nolan shows how one man’s sin harms all humanity. Odysseus is many things—husband, father, king, mariner, expert marksman, local legend, dog-lover. However, he becomes known the world-over for his contrivance of a deadly deception. He is the mastermind behind the Trojan Horse, a military conception which Nolan seems to suggest bears moral ramifications similar to the gifting of blankets infected with smallpox or even the atomic bombs. In presenting the giant wooden horse as an offering to the gods, Odysseus dupes the Trojans. They honor the gift by welcoming it into their beautiful city, thereby welcoming their own demise (for concealed within the horse are Greek warriors). There are some Trojans who would rather burn the equine offering, but they do not. After the film’s conclusion, thinking back to this moment is crucial. The desire for base and bitter revenge against the Greeks compels some toward this spiteful act, even if it would anger the gods. However, we are led to believe that, in overriding this blasphemous notion, the Trojans act in accord with Zeus’ law. They even exert incredible effort to transport the horse to their temple, choosing to keep the horse—and their humanity—intact. For while this decision proves fatal for the Trojans, Odysseus and the blasphemous Greeks fair worse. They dehumanize themselves.

By the end of the story, Odysseus’ biggest obstacle to his long-desired homecoming isn’t simply ridding his house of bestial suitors. He also must forgive himself of his own breach of divine law. (And here is, perhaps, Nolan’s biggest divergence from the poem.) It is the shame of his genius deception that has haunted Odysseus and kept him from wanting to return home with his whole heart.

To regain his humanity, Nolan’s Odysseus must accept the cost of triggering so much inhumanity. He must go into exile and leave behind beloved Ithaca. However, in accepting this penance as a consequence of breaking Zeus’ law, Odysseus can again be at peace in his heart. He protects his kingdom, his son (who will reign in his stead), his marriage (Penelope will join him in exile), and his humanity. Just as a guilty man afraid to view himself in the mirror must look upon the reflection of his fallen humanity if he is to remember his humanity, in the same way Odysseus preserves himself and humanity by facing up to his sin. While different than the poem, Nolan’s Odysseus still offers a commendable conclusion to the epic tale, leaving behind a story worthy of a song which will remind fallen man of his inherent dignity.