Film fans have been flocking to cinemas across the UK on Friday to be among the first to take in Sir Christopher Nolan's latest film The Odyssey, with one viewer describing it as "unlike anything I expected".
The blockbuster is an adaptation of Homer's ancient Greek epic, with Matt Damon starring as Odysseus, the Greek king of Ithaca, as he makes his perilous 10-year journey home after the Trojan War. It also stars Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong'o, Samantha Morton, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron.
Early Morning Screening at BFI IMAX
One fan leaving the 8am screening of the film at London's BFI IMAX, Abishek, 22, a student who said he regularly rewatches all of Sir Christopher's films, with The Prestige and The Dark Knight trilogy being his favourites, was impressed with The Odyssey.
He told the Press Association: "It was totally unlike anything I expected. I'd read the book also, so there's a certain sort of imagery you associate the film with, but then it was completely different. So it was a total surprise, the colours, the visuals, and of course it's a film completely filmed for IMAX, so no black bars, nothing limited, it was amazing. I can't find my words, I'll have to take a week to process it, it's completely out of this world."
Viewers Take Time Off to Prepare
Another fan, Majesty Hiele, said he took three days off work to prepare for seeing the film. He said it "didn't even feel like two hours", in reference to its 173-minute running time, and added that Sir Christopher's "way of easing you into the story and fully understanding the full picture" had made it an easy watch.
He added: "I tend to rate movies out of five because I feel 10 just feels performative to me. But the story, the full experience, the sound, I'm watching it in IMAX, seeing it where it was intended, for cinema, five out of five, and I mean I shouldn't really be surprised, it's Christopher Nolan, but then he just keeps on topping himself."
Scale and Character Depth Praised
Reuben Ward, 18, from Bedfordshire, described The Odyssey as a "towering film" and said he was impressed by its scale and the depth of the movie's characters, but said he was keen to see if it would be as strong on a smaller screen.
He said: "It was so mesmerising to just see this story being told in a huge way like this, I would love to go see it again personally, given I've already seen it here. To be honest, I genuinely wouldn't mind seeing this in other cinemas, in like a much smaller cinema. It will be interesting to see that big story in a small cinema, just like seeing how much of an impact it has there, rather than BFI IMAX, because obviously, you get the large screen, you get the large surround sound. I'm just curious to see whether that impact can be transported over to a small cinema like one of the local ones I have."
The Odyssey was released in UK cinemas on Friday.
