Tag: matt-damon

The Odyssey (2026)

  • Director: Christopher Nolan
  • Screenplay: Christopher Nolan
  • Based on: Homer’s Odyssey
  • Producer: Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan
  • Cast: Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, John Leguizamo, Lupita Nyong’o, Samantha Morton, Zendaya, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal, Himesh Patel, Elliot Page
  • Cinematography: Hoyte van Hoytema
  • Editing: Jennifer Lame
  • Score: Ludwig Goransson
  • Genre: Epic action fantasy
  • Runtime: 173 minutes

Go big or go home.

Odysseus only wishes he could. He’s spent two decades away from his darling wife Penelope and son Telemachus after the Trojan War. Ten of those years blockading the city of Troy and a further seven in a lotus flower-induced amnesic state courtesy of the nymph Calypso.

En route, he and his legion avoid becoming lunch to an ugly cyclops, dodge sea monsters, get their arses kicked by the Laestrygonians (armoured giants) and encounter the living dead. There’s a lot to pack into an almost three hour runtime. No wonder it took him so long to return to Ithaca. In the meantime, Penelope is surrounded by suitors vying for her attention. Loads of them. Damn, girl! You’ve got dozens of men to choose from and I can’t even find one!

As for going big, Christopher Nolan puts forth an ambitious epic. From a technical standpoint, ‘The Odyssey’ is a success; excellent imagery, musical score and cinematography.

I can’t help feel that Nolan is ever so slightly a victim of his own hype. Everyone has been raving about his latest directorial effort. This feels like an event. That’s a good thing – he’s preserving the theatrical experience in an era of waiting for movies to drop digitally. Kudos to him. He’s in a select club of auteurs who get bums on cinema seats. But why can’t we treat every film with such reverence? The new ‘M3GAN‘ spinoff ‘Soulm8te‘ was originally meant to be released theatrically. It’s now being dumped on some streaming site. Sure, you can’t compare apples and oranges. With ‘The Odyssey‘, audiences know what they’re getting; it’s not a Trojan horse. An all-star summer tentpole blockbuster. And following the poor critical reception of ‘M3GAN 2.0‘, it’s the safe option to pivot to streaming in case of a financial loss for the studio. We need to take a chance on the smaller films directed by nobodies. There’ll always be an audience for these flicks.

My gripe aside, I ponder: could the film have worked better as a duology? Frank Herbert’s ‘Dune‘ was cleaved, and the final chapters of the ‘Harry Potter‘ and ‘The Hunger Games‘ series were stretched out into two parts. I’ve not read Homer’s text (it’s all Greek to me) yet I’m aware there’s things omitted from the cinematic adaptation that would’ve allowed the supporting actors more screen time. Lupita Nyong’o (Helen of Troy), Charlize Theron (Calypso), Zendaya (the goddess Athena), and Samantha Morton (bewitching as sorceress Circe) feel as though they’re ripples in an ocean.

‘The Odyssey‘ is the mother of all homecomings.

My rating: 7 / 10

The Rip (2026)

  • Director: Joe Carnahan
  • Screenplay: Joe Carnahan
  • Cast: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Steven Yeun, Teyana Taylor, Sasha Calle, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Scott Adkins, Kyle Chandler
  • Cinematography: Juan Miguel Azpiroz
  • Editing: Kevin Hale
  • Score: Clinton Shorter
  • Genre: Action thriller
  • Runtime: 113 minutes

The Miami-Dade Police Department’s Tactical Narcotics Team receive a tip-off of a stash house: a property used for the storage of illegal goods – in this case, $20 million hidden behind a wall in the attic of a suburban home. The team; Lieutenant Dane Dumars (Matt Damon), Detective Sergeant JD Byrne (Ben Affleck) and three detectives (played by Steven Yeun, Teyana Taylor and Catalina Sandino Moreno) conduct a ‘rip’, a seizure of said assets.

Dumars (Matt Damon) starts acting erratic; confiscating everyone’s cellphones, not notifying his superiors. When he first got the tip, he gave his colleagues conflicting answers whenever they inquired as to the amount of money stashed. What’s he up to? Is he scheming to take a large chunk for himself?

The head honchos at Netflix would abscond with the cash, undoubtedly, so they can continue operating their conveyor belt of glossy yet hollow projects. How much dosh did they need to sway stars (and producers) Damon and Affleck into their fold?

The cops are the good guys, right? Working in law enforcement is a thankless job; mistreated by members of the public, constantly in danger of death on the front line. Could you honestly blame them for ‘earning’ a little on the side?

Twisty and confusing (in parts), ‘The Rip’ is watchable if nothing special. The use of lighting is superb however. The abode the raid occurs in is in an eerily quiet cul-de-sac, and as the squad’s mission takes place after hours, streetlights provide the source of illumination. An atmosphere of unease is created – both on the street and inside the garage where the dollars are counted, green light seeping through the windows.

My rating: 5 / 10