I LIKE MY MEN DRAGGED THROUGH HELL

This is, in my view, one of the better interviews about the Odyssey because it points out that a LOT a people are all twisted in knots over the wrong question(s).

The notion of historical "authenticity" to Homer is a chimera. As if there was some sort of historical reality behind the Odyssey (or the Iliad either).

There wasn't.

First, the "world" that Homer depicted was a blend of (mostly) late dark age Greek social structures (and some warfare) with some genuine late bronze age elements tossed in ... like the figure-8 shields and boar's tusk helmets. As I've joked before, Homer wrote fantastic, iconic war stories, but terrible historical fiction. Because he literally didn't know what war (or life) in the bronze age was like. So guess what? He talked about the world he lived in. His society.

Even the ancient Greeks themselves screwed up these visuals when THEY recreated scenes from either story on pottery. I give you the famous Vatican Amphora (344) of Achilles and Ajax playing a boardgame:

Guys ... Look at the helmets. Those are archaic era helms (as is the pot itself, c. 540 bce). The shields are right, but the helmets are not, and I'm not really sure what they're supposed to be wearing on their bodies. Even the game they're playing is wrong.

THE ODYSSEY IS A FICTIONAL STORY. There was never an Odysseus, never an Achilles, never an Agamemnon, or Helen, or Ajax, or... You get the idea.

And as that article points out, the right question, the interesting question, is how each generation retells it: what they focus on (and what they don't).

So I went to see it last night. They were sold out of the Trojan Horse popcorn dispenser. (sob) But I liked it. I was a little startled by a couple choices, and very happy with some others, especially the famous Katabasis (the trip to Hades's realm). It was, in many ways, the heart of the film (and message) Nolan wanted to tell.

The episodic nature of the story fit how Homer told it. Although Nolan's version is somewhat circular intentionally. You get the "beginning" at the end--as it should be, psychologically. (For some reason, especially Americans--although not American Indians--have trouble with non-linear storytelling.)

There were a few things I thought Nolan might have included that he took out, but most of what he took out (including shifting the ending to one more Dante-esque) made perfect sense for the story he was (re-)telling. Also, ditching the gods (for the most part) worked. And he had the common sense NOT to include Achilles, even in flashback.

Btw, I still think The Return with Fiennes and Binoche is a superior retelling, and somewhat more faithful to Homer, although it had even less mention of gods and only covered the end of the story. It's quite different in some ways--certainly not as huge in scale--but both Pasolini's version and Nolan's version converge in their fundamental grasp of Homer's message: War is terrible and those who fight it come back forever changed. Wounded in their souls.

So yes, I also liked Nolan's, even if I'd tilt the scales to Pasolini in overall quality. Matt Damon is very good; I liked his Odysseus. He's still not Ralph Fiennes good. And I'm afraid Juliette Binoche trampled all over Anne Hathaway, who's not bad in the role, just completely outclassed by Binoche. So put two amazing actors in your film and yes, it's probably going to come out on top, even with a much smaller budget. YMMV.

Anyway, go and see the Nolan film, and don't worry too much about the armor, or the casting, or any of the details. Remember, the ancient Greeks didn't get that right, either. There was never a "canonical" version of Homer until we get to the mythographers of Alexandria (Apollodoros, Asklepiades, Kallimachos, etc.) in the Hellenistic age, and those guys (famously!) argued among themselves over what was "right." So the ancient Greeks happily updated the story details to fit their own world and mind's eye.

The real question to ask: Why did Nolan remake the Odyssey? What is he trying to tell us using a story that's perhaps as much as 2800 years old? And what about that story still makes it resonate now?

the killer angels of house atreides

we got Jon doing aegyo in 2026 help meeeee😭😭😭

obesssion!!!