Based on the last part of the famous epic poem The Odyssey, The Return tells the story of Odysseus’ return to his homeland after 20 years away. In case you’ve never read Homer’s narrative before, Odysseus went away to help fight the Trojan War for 10 years. When he returned home things weren’t what he hoped they would be, and The Return tells that tale.
Queen Penelope (Juliette Binoche) has a problem. King Odysseus (Ralph Fiennes) has been gone for 20 years. Unknown to her however, Odysseus has returned and hides among her subjects as a beggar. He’s observing what is going on, and is trying to decide if he should disappear forever to avoid more bloodshed. Odysseus learns however that heavy is the head that wears the crown.
The Return removes all intervention from the Gods to tell a more grounded story. Purists may have an issue with them doing that, but the story makes sense this way and is easier to understand for those who may not know the source material. Fiennes does an amazing job playing a King who has seen too much bloodshed in his lifetime. The look in his eyes is a mix of pain and tiredness that a lot of actors couldn’t pull off. While the movie is a slow burn, the last act more than makes up for it.
With beautiful cinematography, strong acting, and beautiful score, The Return is a film that we should hear more from, especially around awards season.
- Rated: R
- Genre: Drama, History
- Release Date: 9/7/2024
- Directed by: Uberto Pasolini
- Starring: Charlie Plummer, Juliette Binoche, Marwan Kenzari, Ralph Fiennes
- Produced by: James Clayton, Konstantinos Kontovrakis, Marco Pacchioni, Roberto Sessa, Romain Le Grand, Stéphane Moatti, Uberto Pasolini, Vivien Aslanian
- Written by: Edward Bond, Homer, John Collee, Uberto Pasolini
- Studio: Heretic, Picomedia, RAI Cinema, Redwave Films
