I could make many easy criticisms of The Odyssey, but those criticisms would certainly feel unfair. What this production achieves is to give you full respect for what is being attempted here, and that if it fails to fully realise the story of Odysseus, it is not for want of trying but technological, budget and time restrictions.
Let me put those criticisms nevertheless, because you do want to know what you are getting into. Firstly, it's extremely condensed. The decade long Trojan War, the recruitment of Odysseus, the deaths of Hector and Achilles, the Trojan Horse - are all wrapped up in under 30 minutes in what isn't much more than a montage. Now - this is absolutely necessary in a 3 hour mini series but it does feel like opening the first Rocky movie with the training montage. You don't get to meet the characters as they start their journey - you just have to jump on board as they gallop towards the middle.
Additionally this means that many of the actors simply don't have time to build their characters, Odysseus' men are just a rowdy crowd of exchangeable faces with zero distinction between them except one plays the flute, one is fat, one is brave but foolhardy, one has a beard etc. It's a tough criticism because it's no one's fault without tripling the runtime, but unfortunately, watching them get picked off one by one leaves you feeling nothing. Both Odysseus and Penelope suffer as characters in the same way, even though they obviously get the most screentime, but it is absolute credit to Armand Assante and Greta Scacchi that with such threadbare time for character work until at least the final third of the film, they nevertheless create compelling and powerful performances. Other big name actors acquit themselves well. Some of the direction is contrived rather than natural for the same reason. The need to get across an idea in the time allowed, rather than to grow a scene naturally.
To my mind, the biggest problem is the sound design. It's one of those movies where it sounds like much of the location audio has been studio dubbed, whether it actually has been or not. It's really obvious when the scene switches from Calypso's island, back to Penelope and Telemachus. The sound for the latter picks up the atmosphere and acoustics of the location, whereas the former, the sound is overlaid and flat, with no feel for the location. It's really noticeable and is probably the biggest criticism that I would lay at the feet of the production as opposed to a constraint of the medium in which they are working.
The special effects are - of their time. And that time being when computer graphics were a tool rather than an art.
But I did get to a point where none of this mattered. What does matter is the ambition of the piece. It successfully manages to convey the epic nature of Odysseus' journey. You must approach it with the same attitude as you would with the book, with your imagination open and willing to use it to expand on what you are watching. It does as much justice to the epic as was likely possible at the time and is well worth seeking out.
Let me put those criticisms nevertheless, because you do want to know what you are getting into. Firstly, it's extremely condensed. The decade long Trojan War, the recruitment of Odysseus, the deaths of Hector and Achilles, the Trojan Horse - are all wrapped up in under 30 minutes in what isn't much more than a montage. Now - this is absolutely necessary in a 3 hour mini series but it does feel like opening the first Rocky movie with the training montage. You don't get to meet the characters as they start their journey - you just have to jump on board as they gallop towards the middle.
Additionally this means that many of the actors simply don't have time to build their characters, Odysseus' men are just a rowdy crowd of exchangeable faces with zero distinction between them except one plays the flute, one is fat, one is brave but foolhardy, one has a beard etc. It's a tough criticism because it's no one's fault without tripling the runtime, but unfortunately, watching them get picked off one by one leaves you feeling nothing. Both Odysseus and Penelope suffer as characters in the same way, even though they obviously get the most screentime, but it is absolute credit to Armand Assante and Greta Scacchi that with such threadbare time for character work until at least the final third of the film, they nevertheless create compelling and powerful performances. Other big name actors acquit themselves well. Some of the direction is contrived rather than natural for the same reason. The need to get across an idea in the time allowed, rather than to grow a scene naturally.
To my mind, the biggest problem is the sound design. It's one of those movies where it sounds like much of the location audio has been studio dubbed, whether it actually has been or not. It's really obvious when the scene switches from Calypso's island, back to Penelope and Telemachus. The sound for the latter picks up the atmosphere and acoustics of the location, whereas the former, the sound is overlaid and flat, with no feel for the location. It's really noticeable and is probably the biggest criticism that I would lay at the feet of the production as opposed to a constraint of the medium in which they are working.
The special effects are - of their time. And that time being when computer graphics were a tool rather than an art.
But I did get to a point where none of this mattered. What does matter is the ambition of the piece. It successfully manages to convey the epic nature of Odysseus' journey. You must approach it with the same attitude as you would with the book, with your imagination open and willing to use it to expand on what you are watching. It does as much justice to the epic as was likely possible at the time and is well worth seeking out.