'Odyssey' translator Emily Wilson says Nolan should have hired a scriptwriter
Classics scholar Emily Wilson criticizes Christopher Nolan's film adaptation of 'The Odyssey' for its weak script and lack of emotional depth. She argues that the film fails to capture the complexity of the protagonist and suggests that hiring a professional screenwriter would have improved the final product.
Why it matters
This highlights the ongoing tension between academic fidelity and creative adaptation in high-budget Hollywood filmmaking.
Christopher Nolan 's new film The Odyssey is a box-office hit. But University of Pennsylvania classics scholar Emily Wilson, who published her own translation of Homer's epic in 2017, says Nolan's script is poorly written and lacking in emotional depth and character development. And, she adds, there are no sex scenes — and all the food looks horrible.
"We need to have a protagonist with detailed, believable motivation," Wilson says. "[But] these desires seem stripped from Odysseus. He doesn't seem to want food. He doesn't seem to want sex. What does he want?"
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