Christopher Nolan's film adaptation of Homer's The Odyssey largely stays faithful to the ancient text, but the Oscar-winning director has chosen to omit the story's brutal and bloody conclusion. The film ends after Matt Damon's Odysseus and Tom Holland's Telemachus slaughter the suitors, skipping several key scenes from the original poem.
Penelope's Final Test Cut
In Homer's epic, after the suitors are killed, Penelope (played by Anne Hathaway) tests Odysseus by asking him to move their bed. Odysseus knows this is impossible because the bed's head is rooted in a living olive tree, proving his identity. The couple then retreats to make love. Nolan's film does not include this scene.
Telemachus's Vengeance on the Maids
Another omitted scene involves Telemachus's brutal punishment of the 12 female maids who consorted with the suitors and disrespected him and his mother. In the poem, Odysseus orders Telemachus to drive a sword through them, but Telemachus deems that too swift. Instead, he hangs all the treacherous women from a ship's cable after they clean the great hall of blood and gore.
Mutilation of Melanthius
The film also cuts the fate of Melanthius, the disloyal goatherd who betrayed Odysseus by siding with the suitors, insulting his disguised master, and attempting to arm the enemy. In a rage, Telemachus, along with Eumaeus and Philoetius, drags Melanthius outside. They slice off his nose and ears, castrate him, throw his genitals to the dogs, and then lop off his hands and feet. Melanthius is left bleeding, and it is unclear if he dies from his wounds. Such harsh punishment was for violating the household loyalty of Xenia.
Final Confrontation Omitted
The climax of Homer's The Odyssey includes a final confrontation where the families of the slain suitors march to seek revenge. Odysseus kills Antinous's father Eupeithes, but the goddess Athena intervenes and commands peace. Nolan's film does not include this scene, ending the story on a different note.
According to the source, only three UK cinemas can show The Odyssey in the format Nolan filmed it. The film stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, Tom Holland as Telemachus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, and Robert Pattinson as Antinous.
