Most attempts at filming the story of Odysseus have played on the return of a King, but not so for Uberto Pasolini; he concentrates on the return of a man, a beaten soldier ashamed at the loss of all his men, whilst his Queen has suffered abandonment and humiliation.
Odysseus finally gets home penniless and unrecognizable, washed up as a beggar on the shore, whilst Penelope fights off suitors, wishing to marry her for power and wealth. Even her son Telemachus is fed up waiting for his father, urging her to remarry so they can continue their lives. This is all coming to a head when the unknown tramp emerges from the sea…
The return of Odysseus to Penelope after twenty years is mirrored ironically by the re-meeting of Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche after 28 years (since ‘The English Patient’) , and it is their fantastic acting that gets much of the reviews:
‘the film shines when it’s simply Binoche and Fiennes facing off, especially in scenes where Penelope pretends not to recognize her husband, trying to force him to step forward into his rightful place. Each actor does their best work wordlessly, the fluttering of a throat or a downward gaze speaking volumes’ - Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times. ‘
Both are terrific, but Binoche is the standout. The camera rests on her face when she first realises that the dishevelled vagrant is her missing husband: the turmoil of pain, fury and anguished love that Binoche conveys with her eyes alone is almost too intense to watch’ - Wendy Ide, Guardian.
It was thirty years ago that Pasolini first thought of this film and fifteen years since he approached Fiennes to star. The result is surely worth the wait...
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