Nolan’s Odyssey Looks Like the Big Screen Event of the Year

Christopher Nolan does not really do small. He does ticking clocks, collapsing cities, dream heists, black holes, atomic dread and men in suits explaining the future of civilisation while walking very quickly down a corridor. So when he decided to take on Homer’s The Odyssey, one of the great foundational stories of western literature, the question was never whether it would be big. The question was whether even Nolan could make something this huge feel human.

On the strength of the first reactions, the answer appears to be a thunderous yes.

Following its London premiere, The Odyssey has been greeted with the kind of breathless early response that makes cinemas start quietly preparing extra showtimes. Entertainment Weekly reported that first reactions from film press were “overwhelmingly favorable”, with the film described as “jaw-dropping”, “staggering” and a “must-see cinematic event” ahead of its 17th July release.

The film stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, the Greek hero attempting to return home after the Trojan War to his wife Penelope, played by Anne Hathaway, and his son Telemachus, played by Tom Holland. The cast around them is almost absurdly stacked: Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron, John Leguizamo, Jon Bernthal, Elliot Page, Samantha Morton and more. People reported that early reactions have singled out Damon, Holland, Pattinson, Morton and others for particular praise, with journalist Simon Thompson calling Damon’s turn a “career-best powerhouse performance”.

Pattinson, in particular, seems to have emerged as one of the early talking points. Fandango’s Erik Davis praised him as Antinous, describing the performance as conniving, manipulative and endlessly entertaining, while also calling the film “an absolute triumph”. The Guardian also noted that multiple critics have highlighted Pattinson’s villainous role, alongside praise for Damon, Hathaway and Holland.

What makes this feel especially exciting is that The Odyssey is not just another major literary adaptation. It is also a technical landmark. Nolan’s film is the first major Hollywood feature shot entirely using IMAX film cameras, with Empire reporting, via Nolan, that the production shot more than two million feet of film across a 91-day shoot. The Motion Picture Association’s The Credits also highlighted the sheer physical ambition of the project, from filming on location to building a full-scale Trojan Horse.

That matters because Nolan has always been at his best when scale and emotion are pulling in the same direction. Dunkirk was not just about planes and beaches; it was about fear, survival and time running out. Oppenheimer was not just about the bomb; it was about consequence. If The Odyssey really does match mythological spectacle with heart, then this could be the kind of big screen experience that reminds audiences why some stories need the biggest canvas available.

Of course, first reactions are not full reviews. The proper critical verdict is still to come. IndieWire’s David Ehrlich, as reported by The Guardian, suggested the film may have some clunky moments, even while saying the final act rewards the journey. That may be the most interesting note of all. Because The Odyssey has always been about the journey: messy, dangerous, strange, exhausting and, hopefully, worth it.

For Nolan, Universal and cinemas everywhere, the early signs are clear. The voyage is about to begin. And this one looks very much like an event.