Christopher Nolan has achieved a career record with his brand new movie, The Odyssey.
The director, whose credits include the Dark Knight trilogy, Inception and Oppenheimer, has just released his version of Homer’s poem, and it’s become one of the best-reviewed films of the year,
Nolan’s new release is so revered that it sits as his highest-ranked film on review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes, surpassing his most acclaimed movies The Dark Knight, Interstellar and The Prestige.
At the time of writing, The Odyssey has a score of 95 per cent, which is one per cent more than indie psychological drama Memento (2000), Batman Begins (2005) and its 2008 sequel The Dark Knight, starring Christian Bale and Heath Ledger.
The Odyssey debuted with 97 per cent, and has dropped two per cent as more reviews from verified users rolled in – so it could dip below those three films. But its strong showing just days after reviews started rolling in is evidence that it’ll remain one of Nolan’s most acclaimed films.
In The Independent’s five-star review of the Odyssey, Clarisse Loughrey called it Nolan’s best film to date.
“As a feat of pure adaptation, Nolan has achieved something I admittedly thought was near impossible,” Loughrey wrote. “His stamp is all over the film – this is intellectual, brutalist, muscular Hollywood fare – yet it never wavers in its commitment to, and comprehension of, its source text.”
The film is on course to make more than $117m (£87m) in its opening weekend of release in the US alone, making it the biggest debut for a live-action film released in 2026.
Following behind The Odyssey on Rotten Tomatoes, with 92 per cent, is magic drama The Prestige (2006), starring Bale and Hugh Jackman, with Inception and Best Picture-winning Oppenheimer (2023) at 91 per cent.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
Try for free
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
Try for free
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
The Dark Knight Rises (2012) has 90 per cent, with Nolan’s very first film – the low-budget Following (1998) – in sixth place, with 85 per cent. War drama Dunkirk has 81 per cent, while Insomnia (2002), starring Al Pacino, Hilary Swank and Robin Williams, has 77 per cent.
The lowest-rated Nolan film, according to Rotten Tomatoes, is 2020 mind-bending espionage thriller Tenet, which has generated a cult fan base in the years since. It has 76 per cent on RT.
