That thing is borderline unreadable.
The Odyssey? Or the review?
The review.
A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
31–39 of 39 posts
Re: A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
#32The film won't mark generations like Interstellar but is far from being silly. This is a deliberate interpretation of the Odyssey with a very interresting approach IMO: can a man who destroys a whole civilization can come back home as a hero ? The main theme is about shame and how to deal with it. The film is really pretty good and far above any avg blockbuster.
Some of us go to the cinema for escapism. Notsome bdsm guilt cult thing. But then maybe its me and fetish fims are mainstream now.
Re: A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
#33The film won't mark generations like Interstellar but is far from being silly. This is a deliberate interpretation of the Odyssey with a very interresting approach IMO: can a man who destroys a whole civilization can come back home as a hero ? The main theme is about shame and how to deal with it. The film is really pretty good and far above any avg blockbuster.
Ender's Game did a pretty good job of answering that question
Re: A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
#34Earlier quoted context omitted.
I mean, yeah, mythical Sparta is the place worshipped by fascists of all times, including their own times. When you see people celebrating Sparta, you likely see fascists on the rise. But also, there were plenty of Christian and Catholic Nazi. Catholic priests (outside of Germany) actively worked toward Nazi project. Commandments are always malleable, including the "tho shall not kill" one. By the way, the recently e…
> But also, there were plenty of Christian and Catholic Nazi. The Catholic Church condemned Nazi ideology in the 1930s and said racism is incompatible with Christianity. The story of the papal encyclical is quite interesting. Lots of priests ended up in prisons of concentration camps. The Nazis were determined to specifically get rid of Christian values. They invented two new religions to try and replace it: Nazi neo…
Examples of Christian (or any other religion's) priests taking the politically difficult view and living by their own precepts and stated values are few and far between.
From the very beginning. Look into how the churchmen happily destroyed pagan temples and killed pagan priests in the Roman Empire when they had the power to do so. Look at how they justified and clamoured for death (including of Christians) during the Crusades. Or at how long they've taken to take a position against slavery. Or how they've bent the knee to fascists in the XXth century when it was politically expedient to do so. The few who stood by their principles are very rare, even though they've been used to whitewash their institutions later.
And to avoid getting blamed of anti-Christianity: that's also true of Buddhists (look at how they killed Muslims in Myanmar), of Muslims (the Saudis especially), and the way most Jewish synagogues have reacted to the genocide is nothing but horror and shame.
Religion (as in the institution) has almost always lagged behind virtuous developments: it's virtuous people who have largely initiated these movements and sacrificed for their cause. You don't get to the level of wealth and power that the Church has by taking morally right stances.
Re: A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
#35Earlier quoted context omitted.
And as the economist points out this is really an interpretation of our times because in no part of the Odyssey (which I've read) there is such an emphasis, it's all about coming home.
That's a really odd thing to point out, as even the earliest written records of the Odyssey are later interpretations of what was a story passed in oral tradition. And on top that, what most of us have read, have further passed through one ore more translations. Each of the transcriptions add interpretation, especially ones that move from ancient languages to modern. Maybe it's the modern era with brands and so many…
> That's a really odd thing to point out, as even the earliest written records of the Odyssey are later interpretations of what was a story passed in oral tradition.
It's not at all odd to point out that a movie is at odds with the common interpretation. That interpretation and the tradition that made it common should not be tainted by incompatible takes, they should be respected in order to avoid confusion and prevent the use of well known sources as promotional vehicles for war-mongering pseudo-art.
If the makers of the modern movie wanted to promote a different idea, they should've named it differently without confusing the public that the original had anything to do with their fantasies.
Re: A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
#36Earlier quoted context omitted.
Ancient literature is so fucking wild because the value systems were unlike anything that exists today. My favorite example is in the old testament when God sends a couple angels to Lot and a large mob of sodomites (people from the city of sodom, although they probably satisfy both definitions of the word) converge upon him and demand to rape the angels. Lot immediately attempts to negotiate by offering to let the mo…
There are bits of this that are at odds with current value systems, but also bits that accord with them. Offering them his own daughters as victims definitely does appal anyone today, and I guess comes from a strong culture of obligation to guests - before your self or your family. Lot did not know they were angels so did not know the alternative existed. On the other hand they agree with us that gang rape is very wr…
It may be because in those days that daughters were seen as a means of forming ties with various mens' families through children.
Either way, there is a strange ending to this story which is that Lot's daughters got him drunk and seduced him.
Re: A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
#37Looked awful in basically all respects, and everyone I trust on film thought it was an embarrassment. A shame, and such an opportunity.
And yet most reviewers praise it. So either they are all wrong, or you move in very snobbish circles. Because 'an embarrassment' is extremely strong language that should be reserved for very bad movies and im quite sure this isn't. I didnt care for Tenet at all, which i thought wasted a good concept, but i would never call the movie an embarrassment because it was clearly very well made. I just didn't like it. But he…
Given the astroturfing/filtration campaigns known to be abused by Hollywood... sure it's probably fake, yes.
Re: A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
#38Earlier quoted context omitted.
In those days, people did not have many qualms about such things. The Romans destroyed Carthage long after this was written, and expressed little regret over having done so.
Ancient literature is so fucking wild because the value systems were unlike anything that exists today. My favorite example is in the old testament when God sends a couple angels to Lot and a large mob of sodomites (people from the city of sodom, although they probably satisfy both definitions of the word) converge upon him and demand to rape the angels. Lot immediately attempts to negotiate by offering to let the mo…
As a devout Catholic, I used my confirmation money to buy a bible and read from it every morning. Some parts of The Old Testament were disturbing but this story really shocked my younger self. I found it to be both horrific and bizarre.
Until I started reading the bible myself, I had unquestioningly accepted everything my elders (parents and teachers) had told me but reading stories like this made me start to question my beliefs and over the next 15 years I gradually believed less and less (progressing from Catholic to Christian to theist to deist to atheist).
Re: A Silly Adaptation of "The Odyssey"
#39Earlier quoted context omitted.
Ancient literature is so fucking wild because the value systems were unlike anything that exists today. My favorite example is in the old testament when God sends a couple angels to Lot and a large mob of sodomites (people from the city of sodom, although they probably satisfy both definitions of the word) converge upon him and demand to rape the angels. Lot immediately attempts to negotiate by offering to let the mo…
As a devout Catholic, I used my confirmation money to buy a bible and read from it every morning. Some parts of The Old Testament were disturbing but this story really shocked my younger self. I found it to be both horrific and bizarre. Until I started reading the bible myself, I had unquestioningly accepted everything my elders (parents and teachers) had told me but reading stories like this made me start to questio…
I mean, there’s a _reason_ that the Church was historically not keen on the general public reading it for themselves.