Wire report

‘I would be ashamed to have written any part of this’: Odyssey translator Emily Wilson attacks Nolan blockbuster

Wilson, whose work on Homer’s epic was praised by Nolan, said his film was grandiose and superficial with ‘nothing convincing to say’ • Peter Bradshaw reviews The Odyssey • ‘At times I felt I’d bitten off more than I could chew’: Christopher Nolan interviewed • What Nolan’s Odyssey changed, invented – and left out Emily Wilson, the classicist whose 2017 translation of Homer’s Odyssey was cited by Christopher Nolan in early publicity for his hugely successful adaptation of the poem, has roundly criticised the film, saying “it has nothing convincing to say” and that it “lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth”. In a scathing essay for the London Review of Books , Wilson writes: “I had hoped that Nolan’s affinity with these Homeric themes might push him to new creative heights, and enable him to conjure more believable characters. But The Odyssey features his usual combi

Source-feed image associated with ‘I would be ashamed to have written any part of this’: Odyssey translator Emily Wilson attacks Nolan blockbuster
Source-feed image associated with the linked report: ‘I would be ashamed to have written any part of this’: Odyssey translator Emily Wilson attacks Nolan blockbuster.Credit: The Guardian Source-feed thumbnail displayed with attribution and outbound source link; VINI does not claim ownership or republish the third-party article body. Image source Cached source-feed image shown for continuity with attribution and an outbound source link; VINI does not claim third-party image authorship or republish the third-party article body.
Reading time2 min

coverage / Wire report

Reader toolsFollow the reporting.

Get updates, read source context, send useful records, share the story, or support the reporting work from the reading page.

FollowGet story updatesBriefs and topic returnsContextOpen background1 public sourceContributeSend recordsDocuments, dates, photosSupportFund reportingReader-backed workShareCopy story URLvininews.com
Why it mattersCulture

Wilson, whose work on Homer’s epic was praised by Nolan, said his film was grandiose and superficial with ‘nothing convincing to say’ • Peter Bradshaw reviews The Odyssey • ‘At times I felt I’d bitten off more than I could chew’: Christopher Nolan interviewed • What Nolan’s Odyssey changed, invented – and left out Emily Wilson, the classicist whose 2017 translation of Homer’s Odyssey was cited by Christopher Nolan in early publicity for his hugely successful adaptation of the poem, has roundly criticised the film, saying “it has nothing convincing to say” and that it “lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth”. In a scathing essay for the London Review of Books , Wilson writes: “I had hoped that Nolan’s affinity with these Homeric themes might push him to new creative heights, and enable him to conjure more believable characters. But The Odyssey features his usual combi

What to know1 source

Check the original link, updates, and responses when a detail is contested.

Keep readingfilm

Open topic or search related wording such as records, sources, agencies, dates, and locations.

What happened

According to The Guardian’s linked report, ‘I would be ashamed to have written any part of this’: Odyssey translator Emily Wilson attacks Nolan blockbuster, Wilson, whose work on Homer’s epic was praised by Nolan, said his film was grandiose and superficial with ‘nothing convincing to say’ • Peter Bradshaw reviews The Odyssey • ‘At times I felt I’d bitten off more than I could chew’: Christopher Nolan interviewed • What Nolan’s Odyssey changed, invented – and left out Emily Wilson, the classicist whose 2017 translation of Homer’s Odyssey was cited by Christopher Nolan in early publicity for his hugely successful adaptation of the poem, has roundly criticised the film, saying “it has nothing convincing to say” and that it “lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth”. In a scathing essay for the London Review of Books , Wilson writes: “I had hoped that Nolan’s affinity with these Homeric themes might push him to new creative heights, and enable him to conjure more believable characters. But The Odyssey features his usual combi

Context

The development sits in VINI’s Culture coverage for readers following arts, entertainment, fashion, film, music, celebrity, and the business of culture. The original report is linked so readers can check the source account, follow later updates, and compare new coverage against the first published record. The linked report is dated 2026-07-27T14:52:30+00:00.

What to watch

Open questions include whether primary sources issue follow-up statements, whether local or market impacts become clearer, and whether additional reporting changes the timeline or adds material context.

Source

Primary source: ‘I would be ashamed to have written any part of this’: Odyssey translator Emily Wilson attacks Nolan blockbuster via The Guardian. VINI cites and links the source; it does not reproduce the publisher’s full article text without rights clearance.

Keep following

This file can keep developing

vininews.com uses reader tips, public records, right-of-reply requests, corrections, and follow-up reporting to keep important stories current.

SubscribeGet the next updateSend recordsShare documents or leadsRespondRequest comment or replyDonateSupport reporting costs

Support and subscriptions never buy coverage, placement, suppression, or corrections.

This VINI report keeps the original publisher link available and does not republish third-party article bodies without rights clearance. 1 reference listed.

Source links

Reader comments

Moderated discussion

Account access

Comments are open to authenticated approved accounts, screened for spam and abuse, and published only after newsroom moderation unless editors change the story control.

Loading comments.

No approved comments yet.

Substantive, civil comments can be submitted by approved account holders.