Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey is arguably one of the most admired and financially successful films of the past ten years. Transmuting the famous epic into a major movie spectacle, critics have been so impressed with the film they could barely find words to describe it. Premiering on July 17 2026 the film features Matt Damon in the role of Odysseus, the tricky king of Ithaca, who embarks on a 10-year wander after the Trojan War. Odysseus faces gods, monsters and the failures of his character. At an estimated cost of $250 million, with a runtime of 173 minutes, the movie has grossed more than $1.68 billion at the worldwide box office. It is also the first original, non-sequel Hollywood movie of the last decade to achieve that level of international success.
This movie has got a very positive critical reaction. On the film review rating system Rotten Tomatoes, The Odyssey is given a 95% rating making it Mr. Nolan’s top-rated film – it surpasses his The Dark Knight and Memento, both films with a 94% rating as well as Oppenheimer, film with a 93% rating. Filmgoers have given it even more enthusiastically, with a 97% rating on Rotten Tomato’s Popcornmeter. Metacritic has given it a rating of 89. Because of this, it is one of the best movies of the year, as recognized by critics. Besides that, it is the highest-grossing IMAX movie ever, bringing in $457 million in IMAX-only screenings worldwide.
Roger Ebert’s Matt Zoller Seitz has given it the highest rating of ‘4’ out of ‘4’ stars and described it as “a great epic film with a view of human nature more complex than most films of its genre.” His piece also lauded Nolan’s freedom while making the adaptation, he drew from the Iliad, the Aeneid, and various modern translations – to create a motion picture that explores the question of what people are required to do for one another and how a life of heroism can subtly become a life of sin. Seitz, as a viewer of the movie, has interpreted that Matt Damon’s depiction of Odysseus is in the style of classic Hollywood heroes.
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Though, he has also a more complicated inner life, and his honor has to be violated by him, and his delaying tactics to get home may also be psychological as much as mythological. The very best review in Metacritic, which is very rare to get, has described the movie as a cinema beast with Matt Damon’s best role of his career. ScreenRant awarded the film a perfect 10 out of 10 score, saying it was “intense fascinating sometimes frightening and when it needs to be, moving.” The supporting cast continues to be lauded by different critics. Samantha Morton as Circe delivers the single most terrifying performance of the movie, whereas Robert Pattinson’s Antinous is a smooth and selfish bachelor who has earned praise as one of the finest villains this year.
The trio of Zendaya Athena Lupita Nyong’o as Helen and Clytemnestra, and Tom Holland as Telemachus is another group of top talents cited for the movie’s stellar performances. Also, much of the success of the movie can be attributed to the cinematography by Hoyte v.Hoytema, and music composition by Ludwig Gransson. The film directors were very consistent in their desire to use analog technology. Because of this, viewers found that even the magical creatures looked more realistic through this method compared to traditional digital effects.
It should come as no surprise that not everyone liked the movie without restrictions. Some audience reviewers on Metacritic felt that the film was too long and there were scenes where the dialogue was very plain besides the whole movie was pretty predictable which really got to the audience. They also mentioned that some of the casting choices were just strange. There was a small group of people who mentioned that the film prioritizes big visuals and spectacle at the expense of personal and intimate storytelling. Even those who weren’t fans of the movie still had to say the production was something to behold. Although the film was still not the best, by many critical and commercial standards, it turned out to be the biggest blockbuster of 2026.
