Uncharted Thoughts.

AI FREE ZONE.

Spoilers.

“to burn the walls of Troy was to burn the entire world”

It takes a wise man to know when he is wrong, but it takes a better man to admit when he is wrong. I was so, so wrong about ‘The Odyssey’. I was convinced it was going to be ‘woke’ garbage. Some legendary ancient tale warped into the poor narrow mindedness of modern cinema. A tale that is supposed to be about destiny, war, adventure and defying the Gods, narrowed into something as trivial as race and gender.

I was also concerned about the casting choices, I thought them weak and somewhat lacking vision. I was thought the costumes looked cheap. I was not so much concerned with the historical accuracy, just the authenticity of its creation. I thought both of these element was going to make the film lack immersion, that once again I would sit through some trashy plastic vision.

I forgive myself for the mistake, for jumping the gun and assuming the films failure. We are so used to terrible movies, and political intrusion to otherwise good stories. We have been bombarded with trashy superhero movies, and sequels, that I forgot what film was. I no longer looked for anything but negativity when it came to the art of cinema, but now, I know its back.

I will start by saying that my critiques are valid, and although the film is a masterpiece of storytelling and cinematography, the flaws of the film are found within my original concerns.

The casting isn’t perfect. I think the actors did their best and some of them hit the mark, but I think it was unambitious. Tom Holland is an actor, and one that has filled some impressive roles. I do not think he was right for the role.

Elliot Page, is not a great actor, in my opinion and broke me away from the story. I’d say Matt Damon was, okay.

There is no doubt, this film will pick up an Oscar or two, but not for acting. It’s not that a certain performance was bad, I think they put there all into it, but the project went beyond the capabilities of some of those involved.

The message.

The odyssey is about defying Zeus’s law, corrupting civilisation and the laws that govern them, and the stress of what war, wrong doings and evil has on one’s soul.

It’s not just an adventure story about a man trying to get home. It’s a story about why that man refused to go home.

Monsters, witches and whirlpools are surface level issues along the way. The real challenge is overcoming ones wrongs doings. To forgive yourself, and to mourn for those that you have hurt, and for those that you led astray.

Before the fall of Troy, Odysseus was a brave, clever, happy man. He had honour and choose to invite the poor and homeless into his halls for food and shelter.

Then came Agamemnon, the king of aura farming. A ruthless man who would stop at nothing to seize Troy and its trade routes.

He forced Odysseus to come with him to Troy, to sit outside the walls for 10 years and rot away.

To get home, to see his son and wife. Odysseus came up with a plan… you know the rest.

There’s a code made by the gods, in an attempt to help them build a civilisation. It was called Xenios in Ancient Greek times. In the odyssey, they called it Zeus’s law. A sacred bond between man.

The law is simple, treat others as you would wish to be treated. This also extends to helping the needy and being courteous to beggars, and travellers. It’s an honour code basically.

Odysseus is honourable. He plucks at the string of his bow to warn animals he is hunting that he is there. So that it has a fair chance of survival.

But it was Odysseus that came up with the Trojan horse. It was Odysseus that broke the sacred law by allowing men to open the gates of those who he deceived with a gift.

What was the price of this treasonous act? The collapse of civilisation, and an additional 10 years adrift.