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My husband brought back the sword and sandals epic AND the Ascots. Nothing but respect. (Universal)
As pretty much any anecdotal analysis would have shown you, Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey Was the big winner at the box office over the weekend. I even say, “Christopher Nolans The Odyssey“feels a little redundant here. Almost as redundant as the title card at the end of the film that says “based on the epic poem by Homer.” As if Homer was out there somewhere and was overjoyed by the call (finally recognition!). I really wish they had done a “From the Mind of Homer…” before the trailer, M. Night Shyamalan style. (Ooh, a new Homer joint! I LOVE this guy.)
Anyway, The Odyssey grossed $124.5 million domestically and $264.1 million worldwide over the weekend. That was good enough for the third biggest opening of the year Toy Story 5 And The Super Mario Galaxy movie. Which, of course, makes it Also the first major non-animated opening film of the year without a sequel (which was rated R to boot).
Almost everyone liked it now including myself (A Cinemascore, 95% on RottenTomatoes if you’re interested in the whole “quantifying intangibles thing”). It cost $250 to make, which seems like a lot, but then again The Christmas of Rock film costs so much and I’m not even sure if the film’s editor saw the entire film. Either way, it seems clear The OdysseyYour risk has paid off.
Why so successful, as the Heath Ledger Joker would put it? (By the way, another Christopher Nolan film). I would argue that the main factors here were: 1. it felt like a big deal, 2. lack of competition, and 3. all the word of mouth suggested it didn’t suck. And that was the big news The Odyssey was the first film ever shot entirely with IMAX cameras, which increased the urgency to see it in theaters and not just wait for streaming (let alone see it in the most expensive format). In retrospect, Christopher Nolan was pretty smart in this regard, betting all he could on making his brand synonymous with “big theatrical experience.” It seems obvious now, but most major filmmakers back then did the opposite and tried to make nice with the major streamers and pretend there was no difference.
The last time the films were generally declared “back” was a few months ago a pair of YouTubers in their 20s it is blamed on the old guard, which is widely cited as the cause. Well, Christopher Nolan is 55 and has been making films for almost 30 years. Given that, not The Can the “Movies Are So Back” episode negate the last one?
As for “we should let all 20-somethings do everything now,” that may be true – some – but I’d argue the basics are the same: audiences are tired of lazy IP stuff and expanded universes (though children’s films are a notable exception to this rule, as little kids don’t have memories long enough to be sick of that shit). Lately, viewers tend to gravitate towards whatever they feel like not The. Christopher Nolan is a known quantity, but may be a big-budget adaptation The The oldest story in the Western canon is the kind of risk that makes people say, “Let’s see if the crazy bastard can do it.”
https://vincemancini.substack.com/p/the-odyssey-made-all-of-the-money
