Chris_Docker Assante's Odyssey is a minor triumph in more ways than one. As a cracking good adventure it will already have been reviewed many times. What is perhaps worth adding is its possible interest to those approaching Homer's Odyssey or even the Iliad (preferably in that order) for the first time. It is not, of course, a blow-by-blow film of the very lengthy Homeric poem, but as dramatisation go, it is a worthwhile introduction to the characters at a basic level. It doesn't 'Westernise' the Greek mythology to fit tastes dictated by the likes of Disney, or make the ancient Greek Gods silly and ridiculous. We see Odysseus inspired to intelligent courage by the Goddess Athena (wonderfully played by Isabella Rossellini), and this will contrast for the student with the great but unthinking bravery of Hector (in the Iliad). Rossellini combines the qualities of blue-eyed beauty without a hint of soppiness. Hermes edifies with technical insights in a perfectly detached way. Thus the Gods are both external realities and that which inspires and strengthens specific internal values. The devotion of Odysseus to his beautiful wife Penelope is both subjected to his strong sense of duty (in the bigger picture, from oaths made to his fellow men) and, if that seems uncaring, shown in the strength by which he chooses to return to her even after he is offered the choice of that or immortality.As far as a mainstream film goes, it at least attempts to tell the story within the ethos of ancient Greek values. But there is another benefit to seeing it. That is, Homer is so long, so dense, and with so many characters, that although one can gain an intellectual appreciation by reading it, a dramatisation helps the reader to identify and understand the characters emotionally, dynamically, wand this brings out the force of the relationships. Assante has tried, and to some extent succeeded, in bringing out the taste of ancient Greece in a way not dissimilar to what Christian Jacq, in his novels, did for ancient Egypt's New Kingdom period. Well worth a watch!

Kirpianuscus the first virtue - to see it is the best way to determine a child to read "Odissey". not surprising for an Andrei Konchalovski film. but surprising for the great way for give a so faithful adaptation of one of the great books of European culture. and a realistic Ulyses, different by the recipes of Kirk Douglas but giving the traits, vulnerabilities and virtues in the most convincing manner, in a great performance of Armand Assante. a film who impress. scene by scene. because it is real admirable work examples. and amazing science to use the special effects as tool and not as axis defines it in the splendid manner.

tankace It is the anniversary of this historic mini-series which here in Greece back in High- School our history and philosophy teachers always said to us to watch it. And truth to be told ,this time they we right, the series is at least a decent take of one of the most famous adventure stories of all time and one of the oldest to.So to finish with this part quickly yes the series has taken several liberties with the source material and yes the parts about the Trojan War are perhaps the one of the biggest strays of a source material since Braveheart, Apocalypto, Pocahontas, the Patriot and Pearl Harbor. However unlike those films it has quality story-telling, nice scenery and a respect to the adapted material ,so it is more a case of the 300 and the Last Samurai. And as I wrote we have an adapted material, so it is the take of the directing, producing and writing team of the story not the story itself for the Odyssey is a monster of a book! For that the creative team has to be faithful to the themes, major plot points and characters of the story and that mini-series actives this goal. Now the acting ,in all honesty, is passable ,with the exception of Odysseas, Penelopy and Tilemacos, who are portrait very well. Well it is the story of Odysseas and his family isn't it? I think ,is logical to get the best parts of it, though the rest of the cast do a good work ,so no real complains here.The effects are quit good event two decades after dispute the facts we are talking about a TV-budget adventure. The creatures of the myth are depicted very good and even now when I re-read the Odyssey when I want to think of the creatures, I use their incarnation from the series and the same applies for the human characters in a lesser extent.In general we have a decent adaptation of Homer's work and was presumably the best we could get back then, which in the end is "Not too bad at all". Now if it is a remake of that I have no idea, let's hope that it will be as respectful as this series.

Wuchak This 1997 TV movie by Andrey Konchalovskiy is an almost-three-hour rendition of Homer's Odyssey, the epic Greek poem that details Odysseus' decade of wandering from one adventure to another after his victory in the long Trojan War, trying to make it back to Ithaca, Greece, and his beloved Penelope. Armand Assante plays Odysseus, Greta Scacchi his wife and Alan Stenson their son. Some of the numerous guest stars include Isabella Rossellini, Bernadette Peters, Eric Roberts, Christopher Lee, Vanessa Williams and Michael J. Pollard.While the cast, locations and score are excellent, the story is conveyed in a relatively dull manner in the first half and is hampered by the manifestations of "the gods." Yes, I realize the filmmakers' were only trying to be true to Homer's epic, but some of these manifestations are eye-rolling and take the viewer out of the story. This explains why 1954's "Ulysses" and 2004's "Troy" played down this element or cut it out altogether. However, after the first half you start to accept it as part of the adventure/fantasy and roll with it, particularly because the second half is nigh exceptional, starting with the crew's confrontation with the three-headed Scylla, which is a truly horrific sequence, and then the entire final act, especially the action-packed fight between Odysseus & his son and the brutish suitors of Penelope.Assante isn't larger-than-life as Douglas was in "Ulysses," but he evokes Odysseus' intelligence, guile, and versatility, as shown in the poem. Once you catch a grip there are some potent scenes/acting, like the initial revelation of Odysseus with various Ithacans. Furthermore, some parts have a palpable spiritual quality. Unfortunately, it does take a while to get into the groove, but the second half is more than worth it (not to mention the score and the magnificent Mediterranean locations).Lastly, some people have erroneously summed up the moral of the film as "Don't anger the gods." While this is true on the surface, the subtext is way more than this and totally applicable to reality. It's revealed in the second half: *** SPOILER ALERT*** Odysseus was condemned to wandering from crisis to crisis for a decade because of his arrogance after his victory at Troy. Before finally returning to Ithaca we observe a humbled and enlightened man. This is the core message. Once Odysseus is humbled a potent nugget of wisdom is revealed: Sometimes it's necessary to temporarily kowtow to the arrogant in order to assess the situation and bide your time for an effective strike.The film runs 176 minutes (the VHS 165 minutes) and was shot in Turkey and Malta.GRADE: B