Review: 'The Odyssey' is an up-close-and-personal epic, as director Christopher Nolan makes a classic both timely and eternal

Since Christopher Nolan has established that he is perhaps the greatest movie storyteller of our era, it seems fitting that he would tackle what should be considered the most influential story of any era — and not at all a surprise that his movie, “The Odyssey,” is a moving and gripping telling of Homer’s epic poem.

Even if you have never read “The Odyssey” — and somehow I managed to be in that group — it’s impossible to have lived on Planet Earth for any amount of time and not be exposed to the story’s themes or ideas. If you have any idea what a siren is, or a Trojan horse or a cyclops, you know a bit of “The Odyssey.” Even The Police and Mumford & Sons have made references to it in their lyrics.

The story starts with the hero, Odysseus, played here by a brawny Matt Damon. When Nolan, who wrote the screenplay and directed the film, introduces him, he’s not sure who he is, having eaten too many lotus flowers and grown forgetful, content in a life with the beautiful Calypso (Charlize Theron). But we know what he doesn’t, that Odysseus left Ithaca to fight for King Agamemnon (Benny Safdie) against the Trojans, and 20 years later hasn’t returned.

We learn of Odysseus’ journeys as he slowly remembers them again. Sometimes he remembers the bloody siege of Troy, started when he and his men hide inside a giant wooden horse statue — and when the Trojans drag their trophy into the city’s gates, the waiting soldiers attack Troy from within. 

Mostly, he remembers his crew, trying to make it back home after the carnage. But Odysseus and his men encounter deadly dangers, including the giant cyclops Polyphemus (Bill Irwin), the alluring sirens, the trickster Circe (Samantha Morton), and the twin perils of the multi-headed monster Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis. Oh, and they make a trip to the underworld, where Odysseus is confronted by the many men who have died fighting at his side.

Meanwhile, back in Ithaca, Odysseus’ queen, Penelope (Anne Hathaway), has stayed faithful, hidden behind screens for 20 years to avoid the suitors who want to gain the throne Odysseus has left vacant. The most conniving suitor is Antinous (Robert Pattinson), whose schemes include killing its heir, Odysseus and Penelope’s son, Telemachus (Tom Holland), who goes on an odyssey of his own to find out whether his father is still alive.

Nolan and cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema (who’s shot Nolan films going back to “Interstellar”) make the epic seem up close and personal, and whoever held the bulky IMAX cameras to get the stunning handheld look got a full workout in Greece, Italy, Morocco and other places. The bone-rattling sound mix combines with a propulsive score by Ludwig Göransson (an Oscar winner for “Oppenheimer” and “Sinners”) to heart-stopping effect. 

“The Odyssey” boasts a full boat of great supporting performances, including: John Leguizamo as Odysseus’ loyal servant, Eumaeus; Elliot Page as a young soldier; Lupita Nyong’o in the dual roles of Helen of Troy and her sister, Clytemnestra; Himesh Patel as Eurylochus, Odysseus’ second-in-command; and Zendaya as Athena, who visits Odysseus in his nightmares.

Hathaway hasn’t been this compelling in ages, giving Penelope a Machiavellian guile and a widow’s grief. Holland is slowly growing up into roles like this, and Pattinson is great as an oily villain. If there’s a scene-stealer here, it’s Morton, who only appears for a few minutes but makes them indelible.

Leading the way is Damon, who conveys the gravity of command, the guilt of sending men to die, and the confusion of someone wanting to forget his past but needing to remember it.

Through Damon’s Odysseus, Nolan makes “The Odyssey” more than a video supplement to an ancient literature class. Instead, with the character’s struggle to make sense of the chaos of war — and finding there is none — this version of the old story feels as fresh as the daily news.

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‘The Odyssey’

★★★★

Opens Friday, July 17, in theaters everywhere. Rated R for violence and some language. Running time: 172 minutes.