Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey brings Homer's epic to life, showcasing the timeless significance of ancient maritime tales in modern cinema.
Cinema · Maritime · Culture
Christopher Nolan's new film brings the epic of Homer's Odyssey back to the forefront, reminding us why a maritime narrative that has existed for thousands of years remains alive today.
Released in July 2026, The Odyssey, directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, and Anne Hathaway, has brought one of the most exalted narratives of these lands and seas, the Odyssey epic, back into the global spotlight.
The boundaries of cinema, the power of the epic
The film has been critiqued from many different angles, from casting choices to the way the story has been adapted for the big screen. The details of this discussion could be the subject of another article. For now, let us suffice with this fundamental question:
To what extent can the grandeur, poetry, and beauty of the epics that emerged from the geography of Mesopotamia, Anatolia, the Aegean, and the Mediterranean over thousands of years—such as Gilgamesh, creation narratives, the Iliad, the Odyssey, Köroğlu, and Saltukname—be expressed within Hollywood molds?
In today’s world, which focuses on selling goods and services, owning, and being visible, often pushing fundamental human values to the background, reflecting the spirit of ancient times is a challenging task in itself. Even if this spirit is somewhat captured, it is even more difficult to convey it seamlessly to the transformed masses of popular culture consumers.
Moreover, ancient epics like the Odyssey are works that have been passed down from generation to generation through the magic of words, without being written down for centuries. It is not easy to fully present human tragedies, magical stories, and multilayered symbols within the limited duration of the visual art of cinema.
Nevertheless, reminding people of such a valuable human treasure, even through a popular film, is a commendable effort. On this occasion, let us briefly touch upon the poet of the epic and its subject.
Homer, the Iliad, and the Trojan narrative
The historical personality of Homer is uncertain; it is not clear where he was born or exactly when he lived. The Iliad and the Odyssey are generally dated to the late 8th century BC to the early 7th century BC. The island of Chios and Smyrna, present-day İzmir, are among the centers most associated with the Homeric tradition.
The Iliad attributed to Homer does not narrate the entirety of the Trojan War or the fall of the city from beginning to end. The epic focuses on a period of about fifty days in the last year of the ten-year war and the wrath of Achilles. However, the general story of the war, which is believed to have taken place around present-day Troy, has been embedded in collective memory through Homeric epics and later classical narratives.
According to the mythological narrative, the war ostensibly breaks out over a woman. Helen, the wife of King Menelaus of Sparta, is taken to Troy by Paris, the son of King Priam of Troy. The Achaean kingdoms on the Greek mainland consider this a matter of pride and honor and form an alliance; they march against Troy with a great fleet.
The most famous warriors of the narrative are Hector of Troy and Achilles of the Achaeans. Some of the Olympian gods support the Trojans, while others support the Achaeans. The superiority in the war shifts back and forth over the years. Various cities and peoples of Anatolia also side with Troy.
The famous wooden horse incident is not narrated in the Iliad. This event has gained fame through other narratives of the Trojan cycle, references in the Odyssey, and later classical works. In tradition, the idea of the wooden horse is attributed to Odysseus; elite Achaean warriors hide inside the horse and emerge after the city gates are opened, preparing for the fall of Troy.
A sailor's epic: The Odyssey
The main subject of the Odyssey is the return of Odysseus, the King of Ithaca, who fought on the side of the Achaeans, after a ten-year struggle at sea following the Trojan War.
The Odyssey distinctly differs from the Iliad in terms of narrative style and the development of events. While the tragedy of war and epic tension are prominent in the Iliad, the Odyssey is almost like a grand adventure novel of antiquity. In Odysseus's long sea journey, monsters, extraordinary creatures, fairies, and sorceresses appear. The hero also gets caught up in some romantic adventures in the lands he visits.
Odysseus is not only a traveler but also a bold and cunning warrior who participated in the Trojan War. According to later mythological narratives, he is the one who finds Achilles, who is disguised as a girl and hiding in a palace, and convinces him to join the war. The idea of the wooden horse is also linked to him; Odysseus is at the forefront of the warriors hidden inside the horse.
The fleet behind Tenedos
According to later narratives of the Trojan cycle, when the wooden horse is left at the city as a supposed gift of peace, the Achaean fleet pretends to lift the siege. The ships give the impression of returning to Greece; however, they actually retreat behind present-day Bozcaada, known in antiquity as Tenedos.
The ships anchored here are not visible from Troy, but they are quite close to the city. After the wooden horse is taken inside the walls and a signal is given at night, the fleet sets sail again. The waters south of Bozcaada are still among the anchorage areas used by ships waiting to enter the Dardanelles today.
Directly opposite the anchorage is the famous Ayazma Beach. While swimming in the cool waters of Ayazma, one cannot help but imagine the Achaean ships that anchored here, hidden behind these shores, over 3,200 years ago.
The five main parts of the epic
It exceeds the limits of this article to narrate the Odyssey section by section. However, for those curious, let us convey the main outlines using the summary from my article titled 'Sailors and Athena,' published years ago on DenizHaber.com. In that study, I used the edition published by Can Yayınları, translated from the Ancient Greek original by Azra Erhat and A. Kadir.
A brief summary of the epic
The Odyssey tells the story of Odysseus's struggles to return home after the Trojan War and what happens in Ithaca during his absence. The epic is structured in 24 books; for ease of explanation, it can be addressed in five main parts.
1. Telemachia, Books 1-4
This section is the story of Odysseus's son Telemachus. Nearly ten years have passed since the end of the Trojan War, but his father has still not returned home. As rumors strengthen that Odysseus is dead, the wealthy men of Ithaca court Penelope and settle in Odysseus's palace. They spend their days eating, drinking, throwing parties, and consuming the wealth of the palace.
The suitors wait for Penelope to choose one of them. However, Penelope is determined to wait for her husband. Disturbed by this situation, Telemachus, guided by the goddess Athena, clings to the hope that his father may still be alive and sets out to gather news from the warriors who returned from Troy.
2. Calypso's island, Book 5
With Athena's intervention, the Olympian gods allow Odysseus, who has been held on Calypso's island for seven years, to return home. The water nymph Calypso genuinely loves Odysseus and offers him immortality in exchange for staying with her. However, Odysseus, unable to forget his wife Penelope, whom he has not seen for twenty years, rejects this offer.
Once permission to return is granted, he builds a raft and sets out to sea. After enduring storms raised by Poseidon, he washes ashore in the land of the Phaeacians.
3. The land of the Phaeacians, Books 6-8
Nausicaa, the daughter of the King of Phaeacia, finds Odysseus on the beach; she gives him clothes and helps him reach the palace. The Phaeacians welcome their guest well and promise to send him home.
4. Odysseus's adventures, Books 9-12
This section is the heart of the epic. During a feast organized in honor of Odysseus by the Phaeacians, a bard sings songs about the Trojan War. Odysseus's eyes fill with tears. When asked who he is, he recounts his departure from Troy with twelve ships, the dangers he faced at sea, the loss of his ships and companions, and finally his arrival at Calypso's island. The Phaeacians then send him back to Ithaca on a ship.
One of the most well-known events of the epic occurs in Book 12. The sorceress Circe warns Odysseus against the Sirens. In later depictions, Sirens are often shown with the heads of women and the bodies of birds; they lure sailors with their enchanting songs and lead them to disaster. Circe advises that the crew's ears be blocked with beeswax, while Odysseus, who wishes to hear the Sirens' song, should be tied tightly to the ship's mast.
'Whoever approaches unknowingly and listens to the Sirens, is doomed, neither his wife nor his children will greet him when he returns home. Do not stop there, walk on; block your friends' ears, fill them with sweet beeswax so they do not hear the Sirens' song.'
Can it be said that the Sirens represent the romantic adventures that await sailors in distant lands, which do not always end sweetly? Although a sailor may sometimes succumb to these enchantments, he often does not lose his way in the end because he has tied himself firmly to the mast.
5. Ithaca, Books 13-24
When Odysseus safely reaches Ithaca, Athena disguises him as an old beggar and sends him to the loyal shepherd Eumaeus. Athena then goes to Sparta and tells Telemachus to return to his homeland. After arriving in Ithaca, Telemachus encounters the old beggar in Eumaeus's hut; he does not immediately recognize the person before him as his father. When Athena briefly restores Odysseus to his true appearance, father and son recognize each other, embrace, and decide what to do against the suitors in the palace.
The next day, Odysseus goes to the palace disguised as a beggar. The first to recognize him is his loyal dog Argos, who has aged and been neglected. Argos wags his tail slightly and lowers his ears; Odysseus hides his tears to keep his identity secret. The old dog dies immediately after seeing his master for the last time after twenty years.
This scene is one of the most powerful depictions of the friendship between humans and dogs in a classic work spanning thousands of years. It is a story of loyalty that goes far beyond the understanding that tries to remove them from our lives and confine them to shelters.
The people in the palace mock the old beggar and push him around. Penelope feels pity for him and calls for the old nurse Eurycleia, who once took care of Odysseus, to wash his feet. When Eurycleia sees the scar on Odysseus's foot, she recognizes him.
Penelope declares that she will marry whoever can string her husband's old bow and shoot an arrow through the eyes of twelve axes lined up in a row. None of the suitors can manage to string the bow. When it is Odysseus's turn, he easily strings the bow and shoots the arrow through the eyes of the twelve axes. He then turns his weapon against the suitors. With the support of his son Telemachus and loyal helpers, and with Athena's protection, he kills all the suitors.
Penelope does not immediately believe that the person before her is truly Odysseus. To test him, she tells Eurycleia to move their marriage bed to another place. Odysseus becomes angry at this request because he built the bed around the trunk of a thick olive tree whose roots still stand in the ground. That bed cannot be moved.
This detail is proof of Odysseus's true identity; only Penelope and Odysseus know the secret of the bed. The couple recounts their experiences to each other until dawn after a long separation.
The next day, the relatives of the slain suitors gather to take revenge. As the conflict is about to restart, Athena intervenes and forces the parties to make peace. Thus, the years of disorder in Ithaca come to an end.
A maritime monument extending beyond the ages
Whether it is entirely correct to regard the Odyssey merely as an extension of the Iliad is open to debate. The two epics are parts of the same great mythological world, but their spirits and focuses are different. The Odyssey can also be read as an immortal work that tells not just the story of a Greek warrior in the person of Odysseus, but of all ancient sailors.
Odysseus is a warrior who participated in the Trojan War; however, the story of his return home, which begins after the war and lasts for ten years, is a pure sailor's tale filled with struggles at sea.
In the epic, scenes from the life of the ancient sailor are presented in a fairy-tale-like and at times exaggerated style: struggles with the sea, relationships established with local people in the ports the ship visits, conflicts, foreign lands, and romantic adventures... All of these are elements with which today's sailors can find parallels in their own lives to some extent.
However, no matter what Odysseus has experienced, he ultimately returns to his home, his nest, and his wife. While Homer erects a maritime monument that extends beyond the ages in the person of Odysseus, he also paints a portrait that immortalizes the patience and sacrifice of sailor wives through the character of Penelope.
In conclusion, Odysseus presents a portrait of a sailor etched into the collective memory of humanity as both a warrior commander and a bold seaman:
Daring, brave, and quick-witted; a solid friend or a noble enemy who gives due to both love and hate... Sometimes swept away by adventures, yet always placing his homeland, family, and loved ones above all else, ultimately returning to them, a valiant human being.
Source: SeaNews Türkiye
