Christopher Nolan responds to rightwing bigots' backlash to his film "The Odyssey"

The "woke" bait was actually a Trojan horse itself, distracting from the overall subversion of the original Odyssey. Making Helen of Troy not the cause of the war turned it into an unjust war for greed and power, which is used to indict Odysseus, as a villain rather than a hero, throughout. It's absolutely based on the feminist translation. Shame on Shapiro for promoting that message and warping of Homer's work.

Due to the potential spoiler-age, something to read after the film that explains why Odysseus got caught up in regret and angst over the sacking of Troy. As well as the ending getting him mired even deeper into the consequences of breaking of it.

Why Zeus's Law and the breaking of it is the heart of the film
https://comicbook.com/movies/feature/the...lans-film/

Nolan misrepresented and misused "Zeus' law." Homer never applied it to war nor the gift of the Trojan horse, as both were punishment for Paris violating Zeus' law by stealing Helen away.

(Jul 21, 2026 08:24 PM)Syne Wrote: Nolan misrepresented and misused "Zeus' law." Homer never applied it to war nor the gift of the Trojan horse, as both were punishment for Paris violating Zeus' law by stealing Helen away.

Regardless of interpretational abuse, it clarifies Shapiro's claim below, where he seems to be construing Odysseus as analogous to this or that OT figure (like David, etc) who broke commandments and sought repentance. Except that there's presumably no forgiveness in the context of Zeus. And after reading his X post, that "law" is indeed exactly what he was focused on.

Conservatives battle over whether 'The Odyssey' Is 'Biblical' Or 'Woke'
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/movi...05841.html

EXCERPT: Shapiro, in a post on X Tuesday, said conservative critics who have slammed "The Odyssey" are "missing the Biblical forest for the woke trees," suggesting the movie has themes of "Biblical morality" and is a "large-scale win for civilizational values."

Shapiro's post: https://x.com/benshapiro/status/2079587206071464094

My respect for Ben has grown seeing his ability to transcend his partisan mindset and embrace the pure artistry of the film.. But I'm still abit wary of his reference to "biblical morality" and "civilizational values" (aka white Western values).

(Jul 21, 2026 08:46 PM)C C Wrote:

(Jul 21, 2026 08:24 PM)Syne Wrote: Nolan misrepresented and misused "Zeus' law." Homer never applied it to war nor the gift of the Trojan horse, as both were punishment for Paris violating Zeus' law by stealing Helen away.

Regardless of interpretational abuse, it clarifies Shapiro's claim below, where he seems to be construing Odysseus as analogous to this or that OT figure (like David, etc) who broke commandments and sought repentance. Except that there's presumably no forgiveness in the context of Zeus. And after reading his X post, that "law" is indeed exactly what he was focused on.

Conservatives battle over whether 'The Odyssey' Is 'Biblical' Or 'Woke'
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/movi...05841.html

EXCERPT: Shapiro, in a post on X Tuesday, said conservative critics who have slammed "The Odyssey" are "missing the Biblical forest for the woke trees," suggesting the movie has themes of "Biblical morality" and is a "large-scale win for civilizational values."

Shapiro's post: https://x.com/benshapiro/status/2079587206071464094

Yeah, he's just wrong, because he's an admitted Nolan fanboy.
Xenia (the law of hospitality overseen by Zeus) is explicit in Homer, but Ben denies that.. as if he's never read Homer.

Quote:Yeah, he's just wrong, because he's an admitted Nolan fanboy.

How does being a fan of Nolan's films bias Ben's view on his films? Do you think he's earning some commission off promoting them? If I'm a fan of steak, does that mean my opinion on a particular steak is therefore invalid? OTC, it is MORE valid simply because I've eaten more steaks than the average person.

He gave it a Christian gloss? The real problem with Christopher Nolan's "Odyssey", with guest John Daniel Davidson.

AFTER PARTY with Emily Jashinsky
https://youtu.be/Fnj8ZQWS45U

VIDEO EXCERPTS: You also have thoughts on The Odyssey, which smashed records over the weekend. According to ABC, Christopher Nolan the film launched with an estimated 124.5 million in domestic ticket sales and another 139.6 million from overseas, notching an even better debut than Oppenheimer and marking the filmmaker's best opening since 2012's The Dark Knight Rises, which of course was a Batman film.

[...] John, you wrote, "We are living through an era of cultural destruction amidst all of the celebration of the Odyssey." ... But you say ... "The larger problem is Nolan's reinterpretation of major themes in the Odyssey, which doesn't just change the visual presentation of the material but its meaning. What it amounts to isn't just artistic license, but deliberate deliberate deconstruction."

Let's go, John. Make your case.

Okay. Now, I have some caveats. First, when I wrote that, I hadn't seen The Odyssey, and I still haven't seen The Odysseyl. I'm not a go-to-the-theaters kind of person. ... I did minor in ancient Greek at Hillsdale College ... obviously I've read the Odyssey. I've read the Odyssey in Greek.

[...] it's not like I'm breaking the internet by noting that Christopher Nolan changed the presentation. He changed things in the story in a way that changed its meaning.

So this is a sort of almost like putting a Christian moral gloss on this ancient Greek myth. And the problem with that is it sort of destroys the Odyssey as the Odyssey. It turns it into something else.

[...] there's this theme in Christopher Nolan's work of tortured heroes with post-traumatic stress disorder like Batman or Oppenheimer or Odysseus, in this case.

That's setting aside the woke casting stuff and the questionable modernization. This modernizes the story in a way that I think deconstructs it. And I say that because it renders the story incoherent.

You can't really keep the story of the Odyssey by trying to superimpose Christian morality over it. To say that Odysseus felt guilty about the Trojan horse or about the sacking of Troy, that kind of ruins the story...

The real problem ... https://youtu.be/Fnj8ZQWS45U
https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/Fnj8ZQWS45U

Quote:But you say ... "The larger problem is Nolan's reinterpretation of major themes in the Odyssey, which doesn't just change the visual presentation of the material but its meaning. What it amounts to isn't just artistic license, but deliberate deliberate deconstruction."

Let's go, John. Make your case.

Okay. Now, I have some caveats. First, when I wrote that, I hadn't seen The Odyssey, and I still haven't seen The Odysseyl.

LOL Nuff said I think.

How are "tortured heroes with post-traumatic stress disorder" or deconstruction "Christian morality"?