The Odyssey has stormed the box office since arriving in cinemas, which is no small feat for a movie reportedly made on a $250 million budget. Even so, not every audience member left without a few criticisms.
Christopher Nolan’s large-scale take on Homer’s classic hit theaters just last week (July 17), following Odysseus, the King of Ithaca, as he endures war, monsters and a brutal journey home after Troy.
The film drew huge crowds almost immediately, reaching $264 million worldwide in only a few days, with IMAX screenings proving a major draw for viewers eager to see Nolan’s latest epic in the format he shot it for.
With stars including Matt Damon and Tom Holland among its cast, many cinemagoers saw it as one of the year’s biggest events. Still, some viewers believe one sequence may have revealed more of the production setup than intended.
A discussion on Reddit focused on the movie’s visuals, especially the way certain props and background elements appeared in one of its action scenes.
Although the performances themselves were widely praised, some viewers thought they could spot technical equipment or practical effects at work on screen.
One person opened the thread by asking:
“Did anyone else spot this in The Odyssey?”
WARNING: Spoilers Ahead
They then wrote:
“In the scene where they face the giants did anyone else notice the trees moving? Once I noticed that I switched into corridor mode and was like how are they doing that? And I thought I could see a practical ring on the ground maybe even two that might have had the trees or platform spinning with the actors or camera on it.”
The moment being referenced is the scene in which Damon’s Odysseus comes across giant fighters in a forested setting.
“Corridor mode” refers to imagining the frame in a more vertical orientation, similar to TikTok, rather than the normal widescreen format used in theaters and on YouTube.
Other Reddit users said they had noticed something similar, particularly when thinking about how much more of the frame is visible in Nolan’s IMAX presentation.
Because the film was shot in IMAX 70mm rather than the more standard 35mm format, the image includes a larger portion of the set, including extra space above actors and more ground in view. IMAX and the studio have also emphasized that the production used brand-new camera technology built to make sound recording and large-format shooting work together.
One viewer commented:
‘as soon as I noticed the trees moving I went into Corridor mode’
They also said:
‘on the 70mm imax version I am pretty sure I noticed a strip of ground sliding along, maybe even two in opposite directions.’
That same viewer suggested the effect could have involved digital trees, but added that they had:
‘for sure saw the ground moving as well’
This led to more speculation that some kind of mechanical rig may have been positioned beneath the set pieces to create movement during the shot.
Nolan has previously spoken about the complications that come with using IMAX cameras, which are extremely heavy and only hold around three minutes of footage per load. In an interview with the New York Times, he explained:
“Every shot on those [dialogue-heavy] scenes was an engineering question, because you can’t take a 400-pound camera and stick it above an actor. You have to build chain hoists, find a way to move the camera appropriately. Everything has to be done safely.”
He also said that he often operated the camera himself, with support to help manage and stabilize the weight from behind.
So while nothing has been confirmed about the scene in question, some viewers think the camera may have been mounted to ‘trees’ or another practical rig to capture the effect. And given how much of The Odyssey was designed around IMAX exhibition, it may be one of those moments where the scale of the filmmaking is part of what makes the shot feel so unusual.