The highly anticipated Odyssey by Christopher Nolan, based on Homer’s epic, is out today and being shown in cinemas around the world.
Teacher Philippos Mantzaris will be going to see the film, but for himthe Odyssey is part of his work.
Every day in the classroom, he talks to his pupils about the adventures of the king of Ithaca and tries to convey to them the beauty and value of Ancient Greek.
“It is a wonderful piece of literature that children can identify with, perhaps even see Odysseus within themselves, and also see their own homeland. The Odyssey is a story that unfolded here in Greece. As a child, when I was in my village studying the Odyssey, every time I read about Nausicaa washing clothes at the spring, I pictured my mother taking me there as a child and us going to wash clothes in exactly the same way” said teacher Philippos Mantzaris.
The pupils are asked to analyse Odysseus’ intelligence in relation to his physical strength, and to decide whether the killing of the suitors is a just act.
“It is a story that teaches us many things and tells us not to give up and to use our minds instead of violence. I think we should continue to teach it” says pupil Maria Zeibekaki.
But beyond the classroom, many young children come into contact with the Odyssey through theatre. Actor Manos Pintzis plays Odysseus in a production aimed at children and teenagers.
The well-known actor believes that, beyond its entertainment role, the show can help children get closer to the Homeric world.
Many families and schools from Athens and the provinces are coming to see the performance.
“You don’t say to a child, ‘Just read the story because you have to.’ Because they will resist when something is imposed on them.But when the child sees all this unfold before their eyes, that becomes a valuable step towards learning: they learn because they want to” says Manos Pintzis.
Nikos Varelas watched the performance with his four-year-old son.
“We’ve started now that he is four. Since he was two and a half or three, we’ve been reading both the Iliad and the Odyssey in versions suitable for children. It is our duty as parents, as Greeks.”
In Euronews Culture’s review of The Odyssey, we wrote: “While some purists may quibble at some anachronistic liberties taken with the dialogue (a couple of F-bombs do strike a false note), The Odyssey brushes aside reservations by being a monumental technical achievement. It is to be expected from a director of Nolan’s meticulousness, as well as from his four-time cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema – without forgetting the great Ludwig Göransson, who delivers a tremendous, throbbing score. Expected, but not taken for granted.”
We added: “Still, something is missing. Not the filmmaking flair, nor the ambition; rather a moment to breathe and emote during what sometimes feels like a dutiful α to β to γ trip to Hades and back.”
Read the full review here.