Ben Shapiro hails Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ as a ‘masterpiece’
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Political commentator Ben Shapiro praised Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ after watching the Greek epic, calling it a “masterpiece” and sharing positive remarks about the film.
While some critics have raised concerns about aspects of the movie, Shapiro had a different take, praising Nolan’s direction and the performances of the star-studded cast, including Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway and Tom Holland. The movie was released on July 17.
Ben Shapiro praises Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’
At the beginning of his over 18-minute review, Shapiro said, “It’s really, really, really good. It’s a terrific movie,” before praising Nolan’s filmmaking style.”
“The movie is Nolan’s great at what he does. I mean, the movie is a masterpiece,” Shapiro said.
“Nolan is unparalleled. He’s the best director working today, without a doubt. He just creates iconic movie after iconic movie,” he added.
Ben Shapiro praises Matt Damon’s performance as Odysseus
The media host also praised Matt Damon’s portrayal of Odysseus in the adaptation of Homer’s epic.
“I think he’s great in nearly everything. He sort of disappears into the part in a way that he doesn’t in a lot of other movies. He’s great as Odysseus,” Shapiro stated.
Shapiro also applauded other stars of the movie, saying, “Robert Pattinson as Antinous is an excellent antagonist. He’s sleazy and gross. Tom Holland as Telemachus is excellent, well cast. Anne Hathaway does a great job as Penelope.”
Ben Shapiro addresses Lupita Nyong'o’s role in ‘The Odyssey’
The ‘Daily Wire’ co-founder also discussed the conversation around Lupita Nyong'o’s casting as Helen of Troy.
He told viewers, “So, I know a lot of people were like, ‘Oh my god, Lupita Nyong’o is supposed to look like Diane Kruger.’ I don’t know. Diane Kruger doesn’t look very Greek. She’s German.”
“Lupita Nyong’o is a beautiful woman. But here’s the thing, actually, in the script, Nolan goes out of his way to explain that the war wasn’t really launched over Helen being gorgeous,” he added.
Ben Shapiro criticizes Elliot Page’s casting in ‘The Odyssey’
However, Shapiro expressed disappointment over Elliot Page’s casting as Sinon.
Shapiro described the casting choice as an “absolute puzzler” and said the actor’s portrayal “doesn’t work.”
Christopher Nolan explains his approach to ‘The Odyssey’
The comments came after Nolan addressed discussions surrounding his adaptation of the classic Greek epic.
The filmmaker had reportedly said, “Remember, I spent 10 years of my life dealing with ‘Batman’. When I came on ‘Begins,’ writers and artists had been working on this beloved character for almost 65 years, and a lot of freighted thoughts were out there about what he represents.”
“And what I learnt over my time on that trilogy is you can’t worry about any of that at all. What you have to do is honor the original text by interpreting it in the strongest way you personally can,” Nolan added.
