Bold, serene, and dangerous, audiences previewed Christopher Nolan’s latest Greek epic, The Odyssey, at the historic Tara Theatre this past Monday.
Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s foundational text arrives in IMAX theaters July 17, following a monthslong marketing campaign built on secrecy, record-breaking presales, and controversy over its casting choices. Advance word suggested a film unafraid to reinterpret its 3,000-year-old source material for a modern audience. That reinterpretation is most visible in the casting of Lupita Nyong’o, rapper Travis Scott, and Corey Hawkins, all three of whom bring new energy to a story usually rendered in marble and myth.
Nyong’o takes on a dual role as Helen of Troy and her twin sister, Clytemnestra, Agamemnon’s wife. Where online speculation ahead of the film’s release framed her casting as historically incongruous, that speculation proves wrong on screen. Nyong’o brings an ethereal beauty to both roles. As Helen, that beauty is complicated by a lazy eye and a scarred face, a striking departure from the “face that launched a thousand ships” framing that has defined the character for centuries. As Clytemnestra, however, the otherworldly glamour is on full display…