Product: The Odyssey [VHS] (1997)
Rating: 3.0
Average delivery
The Odyssey is probably one of the most well-known stories of Western literature. It contains elements of suspense, action, adventure, fantasy, romance, and even some comedy. It is also quite long, and features a big cast of characters; human and non-human. With all of this, it would seem to be a perfect candidate for a top-notch movie. Surprisingly, Hollywood has made very few movies about this topic, with probably the best one being this production by Hallmark.The storyline follows the original epic quite well in terms of action. The casting is better than average, as Armande Assante does look like he is of Mediterranean descent, and gratefully, does not speak with an English accent as Sean Bean's Odysseus in the movie "Troy". The special effects are as Hallmark movies go; believable but not extravagant. The dialogue is somewhat flat. For such a famous epic with so many hundreds of English translations, the director should have tried to make this tale like Kenneth Branagh with his Shakespeare movies; have the characters speak the dialogue from the original text. Other than that, no noticeable flaws. Nothing spectacular but still worth the 3+ hours to watch this movie.