39/49
After 20 years, Odysseus finally returns to Ithaca, where he finds his wife held captive by rival suitors for the throne and his son awaiting death at their hands. To reclaim his family and all he has lost, Odysseus must rediscover his strength. This is the third time Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche have appeared together in a film. They previously worked together in Wuthering Heights (1992) and The English Patient (1996). Penelope: How can men find their way to war but not their way home? Odysseus: For some, war becomes home. This study focused on immersing the viewer in the multifaceted pain and suffering of Penelope and Odysseus as Odysseus returns home to Ithaca. This study seemed to explore quite systematically the challenges faced by many soldiers returning from active duty, including PTSD and other mental health issues, reintegration into their previous lives with family and society, and the flashbacks of memories and pain, both endured and inflicted, and the internal transformation that results from them, which is irreversible. The return is driven by a brilliant casting choice that allows the viewer to experience this roller coaster ride on which the two main characters ride to considerable heights, the latter due to the unique and special resilience of both Penelope and Odysseus during this difficult time in their lives. and without mutual support. In fact, the two are kept quite apart for much of the action, which only makes the catharsis more intense in the more intense, thriller-like later part of the film, which otherwise moves at a slower pace. Fiennes brings his unique style of portraying suffering to this work – a great addition to his great skills from his previous portrayals of pain and anguish in Spider and The End of the Affair. Binoche is a perfect choice for the role of Penelope, as the viewer can be tricked into feeling and hoping that the two characters will connect in the same way they were close in The English Patient, and Pasolini uses this to create additional tension in this work with those whose memories of The English Patient are vivid. This is a great and very important work that must be experienced!
