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‘The Odyssey’ review: Nolan defies IMAX limits to deliver peak cinema

July 16, 2026

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You Know the Story, But This Is Something Entirely New!

We all think we know Homer’s ancient Greek epic. We’ve read the myths, we know the names, but Nolan’s execution completely reinvents the legend. He strips away the dusty textbook feel and replaces it with a gritty, intense, and psychologically rich reality.

From the very first frame, your heart is pounding. Nolan constructs tension so masterfully that your pulse spikes from scene to scene, never giving you a moment of relief. The film is explosive—not just in its scale and action, but in its emotional delivery. It is pure, unfiltered cinematic magic.

Let’s talk about the set pieces, because wow. The legendary encounter with the Cyclops Polyphemus, alongside a wave of jaw-dropping surprise sequences, is so spectacularly executed that it genuinely puts you on the edge of your seat. The sheer scale of the terror, combined with Hoyte van Hoytema’s jaw-dropping IMAX cinematography and Ludwig Göransson’s nerve-shredding musical score that literally vibrates in your chest, creates a sequence so immense that words haven’t even been invented yet to describe how amazing it is. It is a sequence destined to go down in film history as one of the most intense, thrilling, and mind-blowing moments ever projected onto a screen.

The star-studded cast brings its absolute A-game, but the chemistry they generate together is a force of nature. Matt Damon delivers a career-defining performance as Odysseus. He is at his absolute best here, portraying a battle-weary, intellectually brilliant, yet deeply tormented leader trying to find his way home. Tom Holland is great as Telemachus, bringing incredible vulnerability and resolve to a son desperately searching for his father. Anne Hathaway is incredibly beautiful and poignant as Penelope, anchoring the film’s emotional weight with fierce grace as she defends her home. But Robert Pattinson as the sinister suitor Antinous? He is pure crazy! Pattinson brings a chaotic, wild, and utterly magnetic madness to the screen that completely steals every single frame he’s in.

A 3-Hour Experience You’ll Want to Rewatch Forever

Clocking in at just under three hours (a tight, relentless 172 minutes), this is a film that flies by in what feels like seconds. It is so densely layered, visually stunning, and emotionally resonant that it’s a film you could easily rewatch over and over again, finding something new to marvel at with every viewing.

Make No Mistake

Is it Christopher Nolan’s absolute best film? Perhaps not—when competing with his own legendary filmography, the bar is astronomically high. But let’s be completely honest: it is a monumental, jaw-dropping cinematic experience that you absolutely cannot afford to miss.

This is an experience that MUST be seen on a BIG SCREEN—ideally in IMAX 70mm—for the full, overwhelming cinematic experience. Watch it and FEEL IT! Prepare to be swept away by Nolan’s ultimate triumph.

Special thanks to SM Cinema and Universal Pictures Philippines for their separate invitations to the Philippine premiere of ‘The Odyssey’ in IMAX of SM Mall of Asia and IMAX of SM Megamall.