‘The Odyssey’: Why Christopher Nolan Is a Weird Fit for the Story

One of the most anticipated upcoming movies is Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. Nolan is one of the most widely respected directors working today, but he might not be the right artist to bring The Odyssey to life for the 21st century. Here’s a look at what his previous work might have to say about his new version of Homer’s epic.

Christoper Nolan should not overcomplicate ‘The Odyssey’

The Odyssey is one of the most beloved works of Western literature, yet it hasn’t inspired a classic movie. There are straightforward adaptations, like the 1997 miniseries of the same title, and loose adaptations, like the Coen brother’s O Brother, Where Art Thou?, but none are essential films.

Enter Nolan. He’s known for his Dark Knight trilogy as well as Memento, Inception, and Oppenheimer. Aside from Quentin Tarantino, he’s probably the most acclaimed living filmmaker. He is planning a new film version of The Odyssey.

Hopefully, his movie will blow the others out of the water (no pun intended). However, he seems like the wrong fit for the story. Nolan’s movies tend to be deeply complicated narratives. The Odyssey is a lot more straightforward than Inception. We can only hope Nolan doesn’t overcomplicate a universal tale.

‘The Odyssey’ is not a superhero story

Some fans might think that Nolan is a good fit for The Odyssey because he has directed so many acclaimed superhero movies. That is not a good case for him. Yes, superheroes have some superficial similarities to Greek mythological heroes. However, modern people sometimes forget that Greek myths are foundational to a lot of Western art and thought. They deserve a lot more reverence than Batman, Superman, or Deadpool.

Of course, Nolan is a serious filmmaker. He’s made straightforward movies, the most famous being Oppenheimer. We can just hope that he doesn’t decide that The Odyssey works better as an Inception-style headtrip.

What Christopher Nolan had to say about Homer’s epic

During a 2024 interview with the British Film Institute, Nolan connected The Odyssey to his approach to narrative. “You don’t have to just tell a story from beginning to end,” he said. “It’s really only in the cinema of a number of years before the 1980s and ’90s that it’s demanded. My personal theory, which I’ve never bothered to research academically, is that television is what straightens out the narrative of Hollywood films for thirty-odd years, and it’s when VHS comes along that it starts to get freed up again.”

Nolan noted that Homer was telling stories nonchronologically long before he came along. “That’s a big reason why, when I started in films with Following and Memento, it was still seen as radical or unusual not to tell the story chronologically, which has never been the case in literature,” he said. “You go back to The Odyssey, it’s never been the case that you’re supposed to tell a story from beginning to end. That’s been the exception in every other narrative medium, it’s really only in movies that that was for a time demanded, and I don’t think it is anymore.”

Nolan had something interesting to say about The Odyssey, but that doesn’t mean that he’s the right director to bring it to the screen.