Grade: A+… Christopher Nolan loves to push boundaries and break records. In his latest movie, The Odyssey, he achieves both feats. The Odyssey is the first movie shot entirely with the iconic IMAX camera. The IMAX camera is not easy to work with due to its size and 400 pound weight. It is also very loud and it will often drown out the actors trying to perform their lines. To combat the noise, Nolan came up with an IMAX camera enclosure he called “The Blimp.” The Blimp is soundproof and solves the issue of the IMAX camera making so much noise. It required six people to operate and maneuver the camera. Being that The Odyssey was filmed on location in Greece in sometimes mountainous areas, a helicopter was needed to get the IMAX camera to the desired filming location. Matt Damon recently went on Amy Poehler’s podcast “Good Hang” and stated that The Odyssey was the hardest movie for him to make to date. Nolan is the real deal and, for the most part, shuns CGI for practical effects. Using practical effects over CGI is naturally harder for everyone involved.
Damon said on the podcast that for the famous cave scene with the Cyclops puppet, the crew would be at base camp and they would learn that they would have to hike up to the cave and people would complain because the average amount of sleep anyone would have would be about 4 hours a night. It was a very physically demanding movie to make. Was all the effort (and wait) worth it and did Nolan do Homer’s 2,800 year old Greek mythology epic justice?
Without a doubt the answer is a very bold yes.
Despite the near 3-hour runtime, the movie is so well-paced and action-packed that it flies by and you’re immediately ready to watch it again. At least that is how I felt after it ended. I was one of the lucky ones to snag a very sought-after IMAX 70mm ticket. Some people had their opening night tickets up on eBay for thousands of dollars. Not sure if anyone actually paid that amount (I hope not) but those were some of the listings I did see. What I am sure of is that the hype is well warranted.
Aside from the two unnecessarily woke cast members that have maybe 12 minutes of screen time total out of the 173 minute runtime, the rest of the star-studded cast did a great job. It is sad that Nolan had to go woke for a few minutes in order to be eligible for the Best Picture Oscar. Film is art and I believe nobody should tell anyone how to make a movie.
The Odyssey is a spectacle that is not to be missed. Rally all of your friends with a battle cry and see it on the biggest screen you can possibly find (IMAX 70mm if you can find a ticket) and you will experience one of the best movies of the year that will surely be the Best Picture favorite come Oscar time.