The Odyssey (1997 miniseries)
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The Odyssey | |
---|---|
Based on | Odyssey by Homer |
Written by | Andrei Konchalovsky |
Directed by | Andrei Konchalovsky |
Starring | Armand Assante Greta Scacchi Isabella Rossellini Vanessa Williams Bernadette Peters Alan Stenson Eric Roberts |
Composer | Eduard Artemyev |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Producers | Nicholas Meyer Francis Ford Coppola Dyson Lovell |
Cinematography | Sergei Kozlov |
Editor | Michael Ellis |
Running time | 176 minutes (2 parts) |
Production companies | Hallmark American Zoetrope |
Original release | |
Network | NBC |
Release | May 18 May 19, 1997 | –
The Odyssey is a 1997 American mythology–adventure television miniseries based on the ancient Greek epic poem by Homer, the Odyssey. Directed by Andrei Konchalovsky, the miniseries aired in two parts beginning on May 18, 1997, on NBC. It was filmed in Malta, Turkey, parts of England and many other places around the Mediterranean, where the story takes place. The cast includes Armand Assante, Greta Scacchi, Irene Papas, Isabella Rossellini, Bernadette Peters, Eric Roberts, Geraldine Chaplin, Jeroen Krabbé, Christopher Lee and Vanessa Williams.
At the
Plot
Part 1
Odysseus and his men initially stop on an island dominated by one-eyed giants, the
Odysseus travels to an island where Aeolus (Michael J. Pollard) provides him with a bag of wind to help him home, instructing him to open it when he gets close to Ithaca. One of his men opens it prematurely, blowing them off course. Next, they stop at the island of Circe (Bernadette Peters), a beautiful witch, who turns his men into animals and blackmails him into sleeping with her. Odysseus is told of Circe's magic by Hermes (Freddy Douglas), who helps him avoid being transformed as well. Circe tells him to go to the Underworld next, and only then does Odysseus realize that he has actually been tricked by Circe, who put a spell on him so he stayed on the island for five years instead of five days. Odysseus digs his ship out of the sand and tide and sails to the Underworld.
Part 2
Arriving at the Underworld, Tiresias (Christopher Lee) torments Odysseus, recognizing his courage and wit, but criticizing his ego and foolishness. After Odysseus sacrifices a goat into the River Styx, Tiresias tells him that the only way home will take him past a treacherous isle where Scylla (sea monster) and Charybdis (tidal pool) live. As he is running in terror from the underworld, he meets his mother Anticlea (Irene Papas), who committed suicide due to the pain of losing her son. She informs him that back on Ithaca there are multiple suitors, including Eurymachus (Eric Roberts), vying with each other to marry Penelope for her money and power.
Odysseus' boat nears the isle of Scylla and Charybdis. Scylla's six serpentine heads wreak havoc on the crew, killing many. Everyone but Odysseus is killed when Charybdis creates a whirlpool and destroys his ship. Odysseus arrives on the island where the goddess Calypso (Vanessa Williams) lives and becomes her prisoner. Meanwhile, Odysseus' now 15-year-old son Telemachus (Alan Stenson) tries to find his father and is told by Athena (Isabella Rossellini) to travel to Sparta and seek out one of his former comrades that fought with him. When Telemachus finds Menelaus (Nicholas Clay), one of Odysseus' comrades, he learns that Menelaus doesn't know what happened to Odysseus but believes him to be dead.
Two years later, Hermes arrives, telling Calypso to release Odysseus, and she provides him with a raft to get to Ithaca. Another storm causes problems for Odysseus as he calls out to Poseidon, who reminds Odysseus about what he said the day he left Troy, and to remember his place as a mere mortal. The next morning, Odysseus washes ashore and is found by some Phaeacians girls. With help from Phaeacian King Alcinous (Jeroen Krabbé), they help Odysseus back to Ithaca. They deliver him at night while he is fast asleep, to a hidden harbor on Ithaca. Upon awakening the next morning, he finds himself on Ithaca where he is reunited with Telemachus. Using a peasant disguise provided by Athena, Odysseus meets up with Penelope where she decides to hold a contest to find the person who can string Odysseus' bow. After Odysseus wins the contest, Athena lifts his disguise and Odysseus is assisted by Telemachus in slaying Eurymachus and the suitors. Once the suitors are dead, Odysseus is finally reunited with Penelope.
Cast
- Armand Assante as Odysseus
- Greta Scacchi as Penelope
- Eurycleia
- Jeroen Krabbé as Alcinous
- Christopher Lee as Tiresias
- Irene Papas as Anticlea
- Bernadette Peters as Circe
- Michael J. Pollard as Aeolus
- Eric Roberts as Eurymachus
- Isabella Rossellini as Athena
- Vanessa Williams as Calypso
- Alan Stenson as Telemachus
- Josh Maguire as Young Telemachus
- Yorgo Voyagis as King Agamemnon
- Nicholas Clay as King Meneleus
- William Houston as Anticlus
- Ron Cook as Eurybates
- Michael Tezcan as Eurylochus
- Roger Ashton-Griffiths as Polites
- Alan Cox as Elepner
- Adoni Anastasse as Perimides
- Stewart Thompson as Antiphus
- Paloma Baeza as Melanthe
- Reid Asato as Polyphemus
- Mark Hill as Orsilicus
- Pat Kelman as Elatus
- Antinous
- Tony Vogel as Eumaeus
- Sally Plumb as Arete (Queen Alcinous)
- Katie Carr as Nausicaa
- Marius Combo as Agelaus
- Oded Levy as Leocrites
- Peter Page as Philoetius
- Heathcote Williams as Laocoon, a soothsayer
- Richard Truett as Achilles
- Peter Woodthorpe as Mentor
- Derek Lea as Hektor
- Freddy Douglas as Hermes
- Miles Anderson as Poseidon (voice)
- Alan Smithie as King Priam of Troy
- Vernon Dobtcheff as Aegyptius
Filming
Special effects
The creature effects for this miniseries were provided by Jim Henson's Creature Shop where they used a talking animatronic pig roasting on a spit, a CGI for Scylla, a rod puppet sea slug-like sea monster that devours Laocoön, and the full-bodied version of Polyphemus.
The boat used in the series was reused a few years later for the Jason and the Argonauts miniseries.
Rating
See also
- Greek mythology in popular culture
- List of historical drama films
References
- ^ "Emmys.com list of 1997 Nominees & Winners". emmys.com.
- ^ "The Odyssey's Rating". IMDb. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
External links
- The Odyssey at IMDb
- The Odyssey at Rotten Tomatoes
- Hallmark Entertainment: The Odyssey