The Odyssey becomes Christopher Nolan's highest-grossing movie
The Odyssey has become the highest-grossing movie of acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan's career after making $1.104 billion at the global box office.
The Odyssey has become the highest-grossing movie of Christopher Nolan's career.
The blockbuster, an adaptation of Homer's ancient Greek epic, has grossed $1.104 billion worldwide since its release on July 17 to become the most successful Nolan flick of all time.
The Odyssey surpasses the auteur's previous record-holder The Dark Knight Rises – the Batman movie from 2012 – which earned $1.085 billion, while its 2008 predecessor The Dark Knight made $1.005 billion.
Nolan – who has also helmed movies such as Tenet and Interstellar – has now grossed over $7 billion globally with his filmography.
The Odyssey features an all-star cast and has become the highest-grossing picture in the careers of Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway and Robert Pattinson.
Jim Orr, president of domestic theatrical distribution at Universal Pictures, said: "Christopher Nolan has earned audiences' trust by consistently delivering must-see theatrical events, and The Odyssey is him operating at the peak of his powers.
"Nolan's epic film has been at the forefront of the culture, with audiences seeking out premium formats and repeat viewings for this once-in-a-lifetime cinematic journey."
Veronika Kwan Vandenberg, president of distribution at Universal Pictures, hailed The Odyssey as "a global epic that has resonated with audiences everywhere with its massive scope and uncompromising vision".
Despite the record-breaking box office feat, The Odyssey was recently panned by Emily Wilson – whose 2017 translation of the story served as a source of inspiration for the picture.
The classicist wrote in an essay for the London Review of Books: "I had hoped that Nolan's affinity with these Homeric themes might push him to new creative heights, and enable him to conjure more believable characters.
"But The Odyssey features his usual combination of grandiosity and superficiality... the film's version is too confused, its characters too underdeveloped, to deliver what it half-promises in terms of big ideas – although it is very good at conveying big bangs and big giants."
Wilson added: "Nolan's Odyssey lacks many of the elements that make the poem great.
"It has nothing convincing to say about time, memory, history, war, or about the relationship between one warrior's glorious return and the lives of his family, adversaries, comrades, friends and neighbours.
"It lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth. Its narrative structure is gimmicky. The writing is abysmal. None of the characters has convincing motivation for their actions or words. There are no sex scenes, and all the food looks horrible."
However, Wilson did claim that The Odyssey's release in cinemas was "an event to celebrate".
She wrote: "The release of The Odyssey is still an event to celebrate.
"This epic is bringing audiences back to cinemas... translations of Odyssey, including mine, are flying off the shelves... (and) perhaps the film will persuade a few college administrations not to cut their literature, language and history departments.
"Nolan is doing his best to get the general public reading again, and I am grateful."
