An Odyssey for Our Own Time
This article discusses Christopher Nolan's film adaptation of The Odyssey, focusing on the theme of 'xenia' or the sacred law of hospitality. It explores how the film uses the ancient Greek concept to reflect on modern societal needs for human connection and trust.
Why it matters
It highlights how classical literature and ancient ethics remain relevant in contemporary cultural discourse and cinematic storytelling.
Christopher Nolan presents a very human hero to a culture that desperately needs one.
Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: Melinda Sue Gordon / Universal Pictures. July 27, 2026, 9:43 AM ET Share Save “A war. A man. A trick. A trick to break the walls of Troy. And burn it—screaming—to the ground.” Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey opens in the great hall of Ithaca, with a bard singing a hymn about the cunning of Odysseus, the hero of the tale, to the men who have overrun his house—courting his wife, menacing his son—while he is absent. A feast has been turned into a desecration.
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