PINUP TIME (TERRIFIC TEAM-UP): INGER STEVENS IS SARAH

I SAW THE ODYSSEY (2026)

The proclamation of writer/director Christopher Nolan's adaptation of Homer's epic poem, The Odyssey, was greeted with great ardor (and an avalanche of pre-ticket sales), but as time progressed and footage (laced with its murmured, contemporary parlance, and debatable, diverse-to-a-fault casting) was revealed, concern ascended. As such, I did my best to remain receptive when viewing the completed product, and for the sake of this post, I hope to apply comparable objectiveness. 

For the record, this particular Odyssey captures ample aspects of Homer's The Iliad; and why not? The decade-long Trojan War is the catalyst for Odysseus' exhausting journey, one where he's required to enter battle, only then to endure the arduous voyage home. 

To jostle and extend Odysseus' cause-and-effect path, there are fierce and captivating characters to greet him, including Poseidon's cyclops son, Polyphemus; the illusory Calypso and Circe; anguished, swine-men; oversized, armored warriors; shadowy sirens; a hungry hydra, a trip into smoldering Hades; and general, backdrop terrain that's sometimes sprawling and sometimes craggy, all projected per IMAX's ubiquitous lens (secured by Hoyte van Hoytema's golden photography and Ludwig Goransson's psychedelic score). The culmination creates a mammoth reverie, not quite a Charles H. Schneer/Ray Harryhausen spectacle, mind you, but one with the same phantasmagoric intent. 

And as if to capture the glory of old Hollywood, the movie has quite a cast to back it, but the results necessitate several hits and misses, with some personas lingering and others fading fast. These personas consist of Matt Damon as Ithaca's King Odysseus; Anne Hathaway as Queen Penelope; Tom Holland as Telemachus (the couple's bullied but steadfast son); Robert Pattinson's Antinous (the double-crossing pursuer of Penelope's hand); Corey Hawkins as Polybus (Antinous' short-fused henchman); Jon Berthal as King Menelaus of Sparta; Benny Safde as King Agamemnon of Mycenae; Elliot Page as Sinon (not Achilles, as some surmised and feared, but still the great warrior's understudy, albeit lifted from Virgil's The Aeneid); Lupita Nyong'o as both Helen of Troy ("the face that launched a thousand ships") and her twin, Clytemnestra; Charlize Theron as Calypso; Samantha Morton as Circe; Zendaya as Athena; Mia Goth as Melantho (Penelope's disloyal maid); Bill Irwin as the amazing, colossal Polyphemus; Himesh Patel as Eurylocus (Odysseus' brother-in-law and conscientious second in command); John Leguizamo as Eumaeus (a nurturing servant); Ryan Hurst as Mentor (whose name says it all) and Travis Scott as Demodocus (a bookending, rhythmic raconteur). There are many others, since this is a cinematic monument, with many participants required to populate its parts. 

Some of the performers I fancy (whether in this production or beyond it); others, not so much so, due to their absurdist pronouncements on any number of  topics. Also, it doesn't matter whom I prefer among the lot. I like to keep my posts a certain length, and to pick and choose the ups and downs of a cast this overwhelming would (I fear) take forever and a day, page upon page. Let's just say that I believe others will feel as I do when it comes to the personality juxtaposing. In addition, as far as who's-who ensembles go, this one might be weighty (and favorable to some for its DC/Marvel alignment), but it can't match the smooth, satisfying likes of The Ten Commandments (1956), The Longest Day, A Bridge Too Far, How the West Was Won, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, Airport or The Poseidon Adventure (1972). The Odyssey's mismatched and polarizing semblances could, in this regard, be the movie's aesthetic downfall: a big no-no for a broad fantasy or for that matter, even a grounded one. 

The choice of casting stems from an evident need to modernize The Odyssey (with the performers being the characters and not the performers becoming the characters), while at the same time, keeping the story stationed in its proper, ancient niche. Because of the stressed dynamic, it might be wise to perceive The Odyssey along the lines of Fellini Satyricon, Zack Snyder's 300 and/or Alejandro Jodorowsky's El Topo and The Holy Mountain: idealized, partial-anachronistic visions that have achieved a cult status. However, this categorization doesn't define other Nolan movies (prime cases in point being The Dark Knight Rises, Interstellar and Oppenheimer), where the substantial streams are seamless despite the inflation. The director's fans, therefore, are inclined to find The Odyssey a clashing, cinematic experiment that some will call "woke," due to its various, cultural appeasements, and some will call "conservative," due to Odysseus' tireless "work ethic." Either way, it's not one or the other, and so, how can it please either side, let alone both? 

Despite the conflict, the movie exudes certain sectional virtues, in particular when it reaches its anticipated, bow-and-arrow climax. As with Uberto Pasolini's The Return, Odysseus' strike-'em-down assault is well rendered, but it sure takes its meandering time to get there. This makes one wonder if the vengeful payoff is sweet enough for the final course, when that portion was adapted (and elongated) only a short time ago. (It's rather like comparing George P. Cosmatos' Tombstone to Lawrence Kasdan's Wyatt Earp, with the latter offering a condensed version of the former's O.K. Corral confrontation and with both historic examples released within close proximity.) 

With this (and prior observations) expressed, I'm uncertain if I can embrace The Odyssey's daring ambivalence. I'd need to revisit it to be certain, and believe me, I still want it to win me over. Right now, though, it feels like Craig Gillespie's Supergirl: not abysmal at every turn, though far from world-shaking. For my initial view, I'd hoped it would have taken me to another time and place, with my heart racing and my spirit soaring (much as I'd experienced as a kid when watching Mario Camerini's Ulysses with Kirk Douglas and Anthony Quinn). Instead, I came away an accidental tourist, peeking from margins that I wasn't invited to attend (ah, Disclosure Day once again). Yes, I still found worth in it (without any doubt, I did), but was the entirety worthwhile? Perhaps, the question is an answer all unto itself. ᚄ

TERRIFIC TEAM-UP IMAGE: ENTER THE PUNISHER

 

R.I.P. HAL WILLIAMS

For a generation of affectionate fans, you were a constant, comforting presence: a familiar face that one and all called "friend." 

On the theatrical end, you costarred in The Cherokee Kid; On the Nickle; Flight; The Rookie; Private Benjamin; Guess Who; Snow 2: Brain Freeze; Hardcore; The Generation Gap; Thou Shall Not Commit Adultery; The West Side Waltz; Off the Wall; The Young Landlords; Night Club; Swing Out, Sweet Land; The Escape Artist; Sidekicks (1974); Cool Breeze; The Sky is Gray; Don't Look Back: The Story of Leroy 'Satchel' Page; Palmerston U.S.A.; and Herbie Rides Again. 

However,  episodic television was your prime turf, with significant stints on Sanford and Son and its later offshoot, Sanford (as Officer Smitty), as well as The Waltons (as Harley Foster); Private Benjamin (reprising your role as Sgt. L.C. Ross); Tales from the Crypt; The Jeffersons; Good Times; What's Happening!!; Webster; Gimme a Break!; Roots: The Next Generations; L.A. Law; S.W.A.T.; Most Wanted; Police Story; Hill Street Blues; Caribe; Quincy M.E.; T. J. Hooker; Magnum P.I.; Harry O; Matlock; Cannon; Dan August; The Magician; The White Shadow; Gunsmoke; Kung Fu; That Girl; The Jimmy Stewart Show; The New Dick Van Dyke Show; Mad Love; Percy & Thunder; Parks and Recreation; Mr. Mayor; The Mayor; The First Family; The Dukes of Hazzard; Knots Landing; Temperatures Rising; Night Court; Moonlight; Moesha; 227; On the Rocks; ... and The Sinbad Show. 

Through your many endeavors, you lifted our spirits and warmed our hearts, Mr. Williams. There's no doubt that our lives would have been a little less special without your special glow, and for that, we owe you abundant thanks. 💗

FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

LARRY JOHNSON'S DREAM DIARY #4: RE-ENGAGE THE SURREAL

Larry Johnson's Dream Diary #4 returns readers to sectors that are at once bizarre, absurd and beautiful, each and every one plucked from the artist's intimate reveries. 

For this volume, the chapters include Johnson facing a tiny, attack dog, which he averts via amazing ascension; another tale of ascension in which he becomes an underdressed Pied Piper; a "restaurant" where chess rules and dancing is the main course; the startling discovery of a naked arsonist; the frustration spurred by an incoherent, art teacher; a search for a comic shop, distinguished by a friendly couple and the inexplicable water that surrounds them; a downpour that prompts the purchase of a Batman comic; the preparation of a rocket launch and its madcap consequences; a cordial encounter with a youthful clone; an art exhibit where the guests head into a perplexing tunnel; a rattling, home invasion; and last but not least, a bike ride emboldened by equanimity.

Johnson's abstract documentations are great fun, for he allows one to see through his eyes and experience his jaunts as if they're one's own: indeed, a most welcoming gesture.  

To enjoy the gamut of Dream Diary #4, send $10 per Paypal to LewBrown@verizon.net, or to Venmo @Lawrence-Johnson-232, and in little time at all, Johnson's captivating compilation will arrive at your door.

FOR THE FUN OF IT: