The Odyssey

 

The Odyssey is Christopher Nolan's epic action-adventure adaptation of Homer's legendary poem, starring Matt Damon as Odysseus alongside a stellar ensemble that includes Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, and Zendaya. Shot entirely on IMAX film, the story follows Odysseus on his grueling ten-year journey to return to his kingdom after the Trojan War, battling mythic monsters and god-driven forces along the way.

Nolan has often been criticized for a lack of diversity in his casting, so seeing such a well-renowned, award-winning, diverse cast here was a very welcome change. Matt Damon brought strong leadership to Odysseus, carrying a heavy burden of guilt that felt surprisingly similar to Oppenheimer. Some might argue Damon played it a bit one-dimensional or that Anne Hathaway leaned too hard into her performance, but I thought their chemistry worked really well. Zendaya served as a grounding moral compass, quietly commanding the screen as Athena, while Lupita Nyong'o pulled double duty and really impressed me with her limited screen time. I actually wanted to see more of her story. Robert Pattinson was wonderfully sly, conniving, and convincing in his role. But the most impressive performance of the whole film belonged to Samantha Morton, who played Circe brilliantly. She was cold, calculated, brutal, and genuinely dangerous.

The movie delivered a massive sense of scale, filling the screen with incredible sets, endless extras, and another pulse-pounding, unforgettable score from Ludwig Göransson. It brought up themes of loyalty and the struggle to return home, while offering a sharp critique of the personal damage caused by unchecked patriarchal arrogance.

Even with its massive runtime, the film kept me completely hooked from start to finish. This is a massive movie that is absolutely worth seeing on the biggest screen possible.

Die My Love

Die My Love is a psychological drama from director Lynne Ramsay, starring Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson. The story centers on a writer and new mother, Grace, living in rural Montana whose world begins to fracture as she falls deeper into severe postpartum psychosis and intense isolation.

As an audience member, you can see Grace’s spiral starting early on, and Lawrence did a phenomenal job bringing subtlety to a breakdown that slowly escalated into something far more extreme and dangerous. The cinematography did a lot of heavy lifting to mirror that loneliness, using quiet, empty compositions and deep blue tones that physically radiated depression and isolation.

Robert Pattinson, who played Jackson, surprisingly had a solid New York accent, as he sometimes struggles with accents. He also had remarkably grounded chemistry with Lawrence. He gave an empathetic performance, showing the painful reality of what it looks like to deeply love someone who is losing their grip on sanity.

The movie purposely blurred the line between reality and hallucination. It leaned into symbolic elements like a wandering horse and a mysterious motorcyclist that left me deciphering what actually happened.

Die My Love was undoubtedly a clever, visceral film, though the pacing did drag a bit in the middle. I found myself checking the time about an hour in, but by the time the credits rolled, I still really appreciated what it pulled off.

The Drama

The Drama is a dark romantic comedy from A24, directed by Kristoffer Borgli, starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson. The story centers on a couple preparing to tie the knot, only for a sudden, unexpected confession during their wedding week to throw their entire future into complete chaos.

Talking about the worst thing you have ever done is probably never a good idea, especially around a partner's friend group where you are still the outsider. I honestly thought what some of the other friends admitted to was far worse, but because of group loyalty, everyone laughed it off while holding Zendaya's character, Emma, to a completely different standard.

The film dug into the massive risks of building a relationship on a lie and how fast those secrets compound. It tackled fascinating themes of trauma, who actually deserves empathy and forgiveness, and what you are genuinely willing to tolerate from a partner, wrapping it all in a sharp satire that exposed human hypocrisy. 

Zendaya showed incredible range here, capturing raw sadness, anxiety, and fear, while maintaining strong chemistry with Pattinson. Pattinson was equally brilliant, bringing layers of confusion and stress that culminate in an epic, unhinged crash out. Rachel, played by Alana Haim, exhibited some of the most frustratingly passive-aggressive and toxic behavior in the whole movie. The cringe-inducing, chaotic moments highlighted the flawed humanity of these characters perfectly.

Overall, I thought that this movie was unique and kept me on my toes throughout. My only real critique was that while Emma received rich, compelling character development, it would have been nice to see that same level of depth given to the rest of the group.