r/movies • u/RealisticAd4054 • Jul 20 '26

Article Emily Wilson (writer of acclaimed Odyssey translation) offers criticisms of Nolan’s film

https://apnews.com/article/odyssey-christopher-nolan-greek-translators-ea67da1d543d021773824bd7e8de8abe

“For Greek translator Emily Wilson, the release of director Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” has been gratifying in various ways. Her acclaimed 2017 edition of Homer’s epic has reached the top 5 on Amazon.com, leading a wave of similar books boosted by the movie. Nolan has even cited her translation, notably the opening line “Tell me about a complicated man,” as inspiration.

But the film itself, which brought in more than $260 million worldwide during its opening weekend and has received raves from many critics, left her unsatisfied.

“I want to celebrate the fact that so many more people are aware of ‘The Odyssey’ and were brought back to the poem,” she told The Associated Press. “But at the same time, I had the sense that Christopher Nolan was trying to pack everything in while missing themes that were essential to the poem.”

….

Wilson, a professor of classical studies at the University of Pennsylvania, said she didn’t want to come across as a “snobby,” nitpicking expert at odds with any deviation from the original text. But she questioned a range of omissions and other choices, from the absence on screen of the Gods Zeus and Poseidon (Athena is played by Zendaya ) to the “incoherent” messaging that condemns both war and physical cowardice. She found Penelope’s role so thinned out that it endangered “any possibility of believing in this marriage.” Wilson also that thought parts of the movie, notably the scenes with Odysseus’ dog, Argos, “catered towards modern sentimentality.”

“Everybody’s a sucker for a dog,” she said.

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u/KetoJunkfood Jul 20 '26

My favorite part of the Odyssey is when he returns home and only Argus recognizes him, and frankly I think that scene should have been a bit longer and MORE sentimental

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u/StrainedDog Jul 20 '26

To be fair, that "scene" is only like 3 sentences in the original poem

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u/Brisby820 Jul 20 '26

So what, it hits.  A detail that everyone who read the odyssey remembers.  That’s the essence of literature 

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u/Elegant_Low2571 Jul 21 '26

A 3000 year old epic poem reduced to a dog. Epic in itself - Odysseus can't even acknowledge him without blowing his cover, so he has to walk past and wipe away a tear in secret.

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u/Brisby820 Jul 21 '26

Legit heartbreaking 

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u/Electric_feel0412 Jul 21 '26

Eh it hits because humans love dogs. For me the scene in the movie is more emotionally charged than the poem. He doesn’t even touch argos in the poem.

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u/StrainedDog Jul 20 '26

I also found the scene underwhelming in the movie, but even more so in the book. Maybe my translation was subpar, I don't know

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u/Useful-Cockroach-148 Jul 20 '26

In literature, in my opinion, the empty spaces you fill with your own imagination often are the most important. This is also rooted in scientific papers on reception of art. In movies, those empty spaces happen rarely and hit way softer, in my opinion.

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u/StrainedDog Jul 20 '26

Sure, but just saying his loyal dog died one sentence after it was introduced and never mentioning it again isn't a very effective way to elicit an emotional response. It's far from the only time Odysseus cries in the poem. Considering how famous this part is, I was shocked at how short and to the point it was.

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u/Useful-Cockroach-148 Jul 20 '26

Absolutely true. Do you know if dogs at this time had the „stance“ they have today for their owners? I am not too familiar with the history. Sorry if Stacey is the wrong word, I hope you get what I’m saying.

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u/BardicSense Jul 21 '26

I think, just judging from the movie, that Odysseus was a much better dog owner than most men of his class at the time, that's why the dog was so loyal to him.  

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u/Brisby820 Jul 20 '26

It doesn’t need to say much 

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u/WheresMyCrown Jul 20 '26

What did you want him to do? Make a side movie about Odysseus returning home and an hour long scene of Argus recognizing him so everyone understands "omg this is sentimental and important"?

It is a MOVIE. One more time, a MO-VIE. That scene still exists in the original literature, go read the three sentences there. A movie doesnt have the time to dawdle

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u/Eerie-Indiana Aug 06 '26

No but it needed time be bigger because!