Going in, I did not know anything about Homer’s “Odyssey”. But I figured that was OK, since I had no idea the movie was based on that story. Actually, I was afraid because I thought it was a musical. And, when I think of musicals I picture a story from my younger days:
[It was a hard day in the fifth grade. My science project did not work out the way I had hoped. Nonetheless, I am excited because my home work is finished and it is time for television. I grab a bowl of ice cream, a couple of cookies, and I jump on the couch. What day is it? – Tuesday! I settle back, relax, and anticipate the start of my favorite show – “A-Team”. Then I hear mom coming down the steps. She walks into the living room and says the words you most dread as a kid. “I hope you don’t care if we watch something I want to see tonight.” And there you have it. My first experience with a musical – “The Sound of Music”.]
So you can understand my fear when I thought this was a musical. Much to my surprise and delight, it was not.
Although I had no idea what relation the plot had to the original story, I thought it was well crafted and highly enjoyable. Often times, I think movies with goofy characters can go overboard and ruin a potentially good story. This was not one of them. The characters were funny (not really laugh out loud funny, more smirk funny) and nicely portrayed. For the more highly edjicated people, I would suspect that a knowledge of Homer’s version would add to the overall enjoyment. |
