Director Christopher Nolan has offered insight into his adaptation of Homer's epic poem, "The Odyssey," revealing a deliberate choice to provide Odysseus and Penelope with a happy ending, diverging from the original text.
Nolan, known for his complex narratives and ambiguous conclusions, explained his approach to adapting the ancient story. "My form of storytelling is, you take a hero, as we did with Oppenheimer, and Oppenheimer has all these flaws, all of these complexities," Nolan said in an interview with TIME. "You find an actor who can take the audience on a journey with that character and make mistakes with that character and not judge that character."
In "The Odyssey," Nolan focused on Odysseus's post-war trauma and his perceived responsibility for the downfall of a civilization due to his violation of "Zeus' law," an ancient Greek concept akin to the modern golden rule or the concept of hospitality (xenia). The film emphasizes Odysseus's mistakes, particularly the creation of the Trojan Horse, and explores the relationship between Odysseus and his crew, whose deaths are brought to the forefront in Nolan's adaptation.
"The end of the poem is so grim and so misogynistic, I had to exclude some of that material," Nolan stated. "But I didn’t want to completely take it off the table in terms of what it is saying about men and the way they wage war."
Interpretation of Zendaya's Character
Nolan addressed the interpretation of Zendaya's character, suggesting she is not the goddess Athena as Odysseus initially perceives her, but rather a manifestation of Odysseus's guilt. In the film, the character is seen as a priestess during the sack of Troy who is beheaded, encapsulating the chaos wrought by the Trojan Horse. Nolan noted that while this is his interpretation, he prefers audiences to form their own conclusions.
"Here’s what I will say: For me, what was important was that we view the gods the way that people at the time might have viewed them," Nolan explained. "So they’re seeing evidence of the gods in nature. They’re seeking and finding gods and the influence of gods in the people around them."
Parallels with Oppenheimer and Modern Themes
The director drew direct parallels between "The Odyssey" and his film "Oppenheimer," particularly in the theme of "just because you can, doesn’t mean you should." He elaborated on the concept of "Zeus' law," explaining that it represents the crucial importance of the relationship between host and guest in ancient times, a concept that was essential for survival.
"Three thousand years ago, that was everything. You were always at the mercy of strangers," Nolan said. "And so this idea that a stranger could be a god in disguise, it’s very powerful as the underpinning of a belief system."
The Aftermath of War and Helen's Scarred Face
Nolan also touched upon the portrayal of Helen of Troy, inspired by the line "The face that launched a thousand ships, or maybe just 500." He questioned the conventional myth where Menelaus spares Helen due to her beauty, suggesting instead that her scarred face in the film communicates the trauma of the war's aftermath. "I was looking for a shorthand way to communicate the aftermath of the war and how it’s been traumatic for the entire world."
Regarding the cyclical nature of history and civilization, Nolan aimed for a balance between pessimism and optimism in the film's conclusion. "Civilization will rise again," he quoted Penelope as saying, suggesting rebirth and regrowth alongside the pessimistic view of history repeating itself.
"For me, it was important in looking at the ending to try and strike the right balance between pessimism and optimism—pessimism about what might have precipitated the Bronze Age catastrophe and the optimism that positive things will reassert themselves," Nolan concluded.