‘The Odyssey’ Reviews Are In, and Critics Keep Reaching for the Same Words

Christopher Nolan built his career on turning dense, difficult ideas into blockbuster spectacle, and after the Oscar sweep of ‘Oppenheimer,’ expectations for his next project were always going to be enormous. That next project turned out to be ‘The Odyssey,’ his sprawling take on Homer’s epic poem, and it has spent the past several weeks generating some of the loudest pre release buzz of his career. With the film’s July 17 debut now just days away, the conversation around it has shifted from anticipation to actual reaction.

The production itself became part of the story. ‘The Odyssey’ was shot entirely in IMAX across locations including Greece, Italy, Morocco, Iceland and Scotland over 91 days, and it runs two hours and 53 minutes. The ensemble is stacked, with Matt Damon as Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, Tom Holland as Telemachus and Robert Pattinson as Antinous, alongside Lupita Nyong’o, Jon Bernthal, John Leguizamo, Himesh Patel, Mia Goth, Charlize Theron, Samantha Morton and Zendaya.

Now that the full review embargo has lifted, the pattern emerging is striking, critic after critic is landing on the same descriptions. The wave of reactions has been overwhelmingly, almost unanimously positive, with writers repeatedly reaching for words like staggering, monumental and flawless to describe Nolan’s adaptation. That consistency is exactly what has turned the rollout into its own news story.

Variety’s assessment set the tone early, with Jazz Tangcay praising Nolan for adapting Homer’s epic into a work as great as its source material while singling out Hoyte van Hoytema’s cinematography and Ludwig Göransson’s score. ScreenRant’s response was similarly rapturous, calling the film a must see theatrical experience and a new gold standard for blockbuster cinema, with Anne Hathaway’s performance singled out as an awards lock.

Not every reaction has been uncritical. IndieWire’s David Ehrlich described the film as less despairing than ‘Oppenheimer,’ calling it too clunky to be top tier Nolan even while praising its final act. That kind of mixed take has been rare, and prediction markets have taken notice, with Kalshi forecasting a 93.4 percent Rotten Tomatoes score, which would rank among the top five of Nolan’s career.

The path here was not entirely smooth. Before anyone outside press screenings had seen the film, backlash spread online over casting speculation, including confusion about Elliot Page’s role and criticism of Lupita Nyong’o playing Helen of Troy, along with complaints about costuming. None of that seems to have dented the critical response once the movie actually screened.

With Oscar pundits already floating Best Picture and acting nominations, and comparisons to ‘Oppenheimer’ piling up in review after review, ‘The Odyssey’ looks positioned to be one of the defining releases of the summer. Now that you have seen critics practically finishing each other’s sentences over Nolan’s take on Homer, are you convinced this is the epic they are describing, or still waiting to judge Odysseus’s journey for yourself?