When a film has a stacked cast of A-listers including Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson and Charlize Theron, it’s remarkable that more people will go see “The Odyssey” in theaters not because of who’s on-screen, but rather who’s behind the camera. 

In an era where movie stars no longer guarantee box office success, Christopher Nolan is in an elite class of filmmakers who are able to fill that void.

“The Odyssey,” adapted from Homer’s epic poem circa Ancient Greece, tells the story of Odysseus (Damon), the king of Ithaca known across the land as the “hero of the Trojan War,” and his years-long journey home. 

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Waiting for him in Ithaca are his wife Penelope (Hathaway) and their son Telemachus (Holland) — neither of them are certain whether Odysseus is still alive. Their palace has become overrun by potential suitors for Penelope as the throne remains vacant, the most prominent being the villainous Antinous (Pattinson). 

Throughout his tiring journey home from Troy, Odysseus comes across iconic adversaries, including the Cyclops Polyphemus (an unrecognizable Bill Irwin), the sorceress Circe (brilliantly performed by Samantha Morton) and the Sirens.

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Anne Hathaway is Penelope and Tom Holland is Telemachus in “The Odyssey,” written, produced, and directed by Christopher Nolan. (Melinda Sue Gordon © Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.)

A lot has been said about “The Odyssey” in recent weeks: between the absurd internet rumor that transgender actor Elliot Page was cast as Achilles — which is entirely false — the off-the-cuff remarks about Homer from Lupita Nyong’o, whose casting as Helen of Troy sparked backlash in itself, as well as reports that Nolan allegedly relied on classicist Emily Watson’s more modern interpretation and translation of Homer’s poem.

Minor casting decisions and mildly flippant interview comments shouldn’t dictate whether to see a film. To get worked up over petty squabbles is just exhausting. If you choose not to see “The Odyssey” simply because of what you read online, that’s your prerogative. As for me, I simply go by a film’s quality and entertainment value. On both counts, “The Odyssey” passes with flying colors. 

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Matt Damon is Odysseus and Zendaya is Athena in “The Odyssey,” written, produced, and directed by Christopher Nolan. (Melinda Sue Gordon © Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.)

What I couldn’t get out of my head as I was watching “The Odyssey” was juxtaposing it to the live-action “Moana” I saw the week prior. Both had eye-popping budgets, yet everything about “Moana” appeared absolutely fake and lazy and everything about “The Odyssey” looked so real (again, this is a movie with a Cyclops). 

That’s because only one of these movies committed to actual artistry, as Nolan reliably does. The mere existence of the live-action “Moana” is more offensive than any of the aforementioned so-called controversies that preceded “The Odyssey.”

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Robert Pattinson is Antinous in “The Odyssey.” (Melinda Sue Gordon © Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.)

From “The Dark Knight” trilogy, Inception, Interstellar, Dunkirk and 2023 Best Picture winner Oppenheimer, Nolan continues to raise his own ceiling, as “The Odyssey” is by far his most ambitious film yet. He’s a master craftsman who was able to take a lot of moving parts and put them together in a cohesive and (mostly) coherent narrative. 

Nolan essentially cast half of Hollywood and there’s only so much screen time to go around for them. Some were able to maximize it with strong performances (Pattinson and Morton were among the standouts) while others were underutilized despite their incredible talents (Theron, Zendaya, Nyong’o). Damon does a perfectly fine job as Odysseus, but nearly any leading man could’ve given that performance. 

Nearly every production element of “The Odyssey” is top tier, from Hoyte van Hoytema’s stunning cinematography, Ludwig Göransson’s powerful score, the editing, the production design, the costumes, the visual effects — there’s a lot to marvel at.

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Matt Damon is Odysseus in Christoper Nolan’s “The Odyssey.” (Melinda Sue Gordon © Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.)

The Verdict

It’s always an event when it comes to a Nolan picture, and “The Odyssey” — the first movie ever shot entirely on IMAX film — is no exception. It’s a captivating, remarkably made epic worthy of being seen on the silver screen — the bigger, the better.

★★★ ½ — SEE IT NOW

“The Odyssey” is rated R for violence and some language. Running time: 2 hours, 52 minutes. In theaters now.

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